Modern warehouse storage and distribution is based on warehouse racking systems. Just as storing standard pallets, lumber materials or oddly-shaped industrial products, the identification and installation of the optimal racking system may have a significant influence on operational efficiency, safety and bottom line. It is a detailed manual covering the most important concerns warehouse managers and facility operators have when choosing, installing and maintaining their racking systems.
General Racking Systems: The basics.
Storage and Capacity Concerns.
The next issue that arises when warehouse managers are setting up their racking systems is the selection of the appropriate load capacity of the racks. Pallet rack load capacity can be calculated and these are based on three key elements that include load beam options, upright frame options, and deck capacity. This is done by deciding on the maximum weight of each pallet (including product and pallet), learning about your bay layout and ensuring both beam and upright capacities.
Two or three pallets can be placed in a normal pallet rack bay, each level of the shelf can store one or two pallets, and the regular pallets have a weight of about 2,000 lbs. Nevertheless, it is only the minimum–your unique requirements can be quite different depending on your products and activities. It is important to recall that the general capacity ratings are on uniform distribution of loads (UDL) i.e. the load should be distributed uniformly across the surface of the deck.
Another important factor is space optimisation. The areas to consider when considering your warehouse layout are floor space, ceiling and aisle dimensions. Any type of racking such as a selective or a flow rack will give you the ability to store up to the ceiling making the most of the cubic space that is available to you. Considerations When making your layout, you need to make sure your racking system and material handling equipment is able to operate within the limits of your building.
Selecting the Right System
The issue of the type of the racking system that may best fit your needs is not a one-fit situation. Selective racking systems that have parallel rows of upright frames with adjustable beams are convenient in the rotation of products and well suited in warehouses with intensive movement of pallets and frequent retrieval activities. These generalised systems are suitable in cases of operations with a high number of SKU but few per SKU.
Other systems can be better applicable to various needs of operation. The drive-in and drive-through racking systems are very efficient in utilising the vertical space and provide very high-density storage with the drive-in systems being based on the first-in first-out logic. The push-back racking systems provide dense storage capability and easy accessibility which can be employed in warehouses with high turnover rate of a certain product or warehouses whose business model is based on first-expiry, first-out of stock inventory management.
Knowledge of the basic distinction between the racking and the shelving will assist you in clarifying your requirement. The only major difference here is that in the shelving, goods are loaded into the system and withdrawn manually whereas in pallet rack, it is through forklifts that the palletised goods are loaded and unloaded in the stores. This difference touches upon the equipment requirements, to the needs of staff training.
In the case of heavy or bulky items, all of the three primary categories of warehouse racking can be configured to be used as heavy-duty, even though the optimal solution is based on the size of items, how often they are accessed, the level of required space density and also the available space in the facility.
Health and Safety Regulations.
Safety is not a priority, but it is the basis of the successful operations in the warehouse. The pallet racking systems are a great solution to maximise the safety of your building, the forklifts have clear and appropriately sized aisles and pallet shelves to move around, and the products are stored in proper code, preventing accidents.
Rack safety has its foundation on regular maintenance and inspection. Handling Material Institute suggests that at least your racks should be checked once a year and further, when your racking system is damaged by means of a forklift or other warehouse equipment, it is better to have your racks inspected and have the damaged area replaced at once.
Adherence to the industry standards guarantees the legal and safety protection. The most current and useful technical storage rack design resource in the market would be the ANSI/RMI MH 16.1, and any repair done on any part of the structure would be within the needs of the RMI/ANSI requirements on new construction. OSHA has warehouse racking requirements such as load capacity requirements that need to be realised in order to have workplace safety.
Safe operation should be provided through proper clearances. SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) defines the minimum distance between the top of the load and the beam overhead and on either side to be 75 mm so that there is sufficient room to operate the forklift safely and to avoid unintentional hits.
Installation and Cost Factors.
The racking installation is complex and first time buyers are amazed by the complexity involved. Regarding putting pallet racks or removing them, it is highly advised that you employ the services of professionals because of the numerous factors to be considered to ensure that your employees are safe, and your products, building, and equipment are not damaged.
The cost of warehouse racking depends on brand, quality and quantity required hence it is necessary to take in-depth quotes depending on your needs. The propitious news about expanding businesses is that, when your racking is in good condition, moving it to your new building would cost you a big amount of money as long as professional assistance is taken to unassemble, transfer, and re-assemble, and so on.
Anchors preserve the racks and ensure the reliability and the durability of the pallet racking to offer security in your warehouse. This anchoring is not an option, it is an important safety requirement and it impacts on your insurance coverage and liability cover as well.
Baum Timber Racking Systems: Specialised Warehouse Solutions.
Lumber Storage Requirement.
Lumber storage creates special challenges that can not be sufficiently met using conventional pallet racking. Storing lumber is not a single process but consists of a set of activities classified into three highly important steps, namely drying (removal of moisture in freshly-cut wood), processing (handling of logs and cut materials), and holding (maintaining the best conditions).
Of special concern is moisture control of lumber storage. The same research of the U.S. Forest Service found that when one-inch softwood lumber is kiln-dried to 8 percent or less and stacked with a pile roof in a moist outside setting, the moisture content of the average stick at the bottom of the stack about 2 percent in the first month, followed by 1 percent during a humid season. Knowledge of these absorption rates can guide you to schedule proper conditions of storage and rotation.
Dimensional lumber Lumber storage racks can take dimensional lumber (2x 4x 2x6s, 4x4s), heavy construction timber beam, plywood and sheet goods, high end hardwoods (furniture), and engineered wood, such as LVL and OSB. The support settings of each type of material might have to be different to allow it to remain in place without warping or breakage.
The physical design of the timber storage is also subject to requirement. In order to prevent the loading issues and accommodate the different timber lengths, the timber package must be placed on five rollers and the timber package can easily be rolled straight onto the racking.
Timber storage system specification.
In the case of cantilever racks to be used with lumber, the compatibility is of great importance. The structural and roll-formed styles will not fit into the same cantilever rack–when you choose one type instead of the other, you have to use that type on the entire rack. It is not only the first-time costs that are affected by this decision, but also the possibility of future expansion.
A one-sided system is applicable in lumber storage provided that you have the right upright capacity and arm capacity. It is up to your warehouse plan and the access needs as to whether you want to use a single or a double sided version. Single-sided rack- One side of the rack contains arms and is usually mounted against a wall to save space whereas the other side of the rack has arms and can be used freely as the arms are on both sides and can hold more as well.
To meet the needs of facilities in seismically prone areas, the storage racks must have seismic test results, which determine the effectiveness of the rack in taking seismic conditions as they stand, do not sway, buckle, or move across the floor-the test results might be imposed in your region to make the racks permitted.
Storage of lumber (outdoors).
Storage outdoor requires particular attention to the resistance to weather. Outdoor racks must be made with non-rusting and non-corroding materials such as galvanised or stainless steel, should have drains or holes cut in it to allow water to flow and move freely, must not be in touch with the ground, and must have non-rusting and corroding coatings to ensure it remains dry.
The open designs of structures will allow air to flow freely to decrease the chances of the lumber developing mould or rot and the adequate anchoring to concrete plates will make the structure stable during windstorms or storms. All these design components combine to ensure that the quality of lumber remains intact even after being exposed to the elements.
To minimise costs, to enable low cost operations, most companies in their operation stock used cantilever racks of lumber, which is a low cost solution in increasing storage capacity without the need to buy new equipment at full cost.
Cantilever Racking Systems: The One-fit Solution.
Capacity and Design specification.
Cantilever racking systems have exceptional weight capacity flexibility. The average cantilever arm can hold a weight of 1,500 to 5,000 pounds and in few cases, it also has the ability of holding up to 18,000 pounds per arm with no theoretical limit to the overall system capacity. The more critical factor gets the capability of the floor to support the entire load.
Prior to ordering any cantilever system, you need to know length, depth, height and weight of products you will deal with in order to understand the amount of arms, uprights, and braces you need. Sufficient spacing is essential in terms of safety and efficiency. The arms are usually separated by a distance of 3 to 6 feet and the arrangement depends on the length and weight of materials used and this is decided on during the consultation.
It is important to detect load deflection–have the load on two pieces of wood to look like cantilever arms, and in case of deflection, place support points in three or four positions so that there is no damage to the load or arms. The weight must be hanging on the arms at the end by half the distance between upright centerline and upright centerline to be distributed in the most efficient way.
Learning Building Blocks and Installation.
The cantilever rack systems have four primary components namely bases (attaching the system on the floor), upright columns (when the rack is in need of vertical support), arms (when the rack is in need of extension horizontally and holding materials), and braces (when a horizontal and diagonal stability is required).
Cantilever systems must follow design limitations to achieve safety. Do not put arms on the back side of single sided cantilever rack–although the upright may have holes to accept arms on both sides, it is a highly dangerous thing to do and must be avoided at all costs.
Arms are available in various designs; some straight arms are used when items should stand on their beds such as bar stock, and some have lips to prevent rollage of objects, ideal in pipes or round materials. New cantilever systems have variable arms which can be adjusted with changes of inventory giving a long term flexibility.
Applications and Equipment Compatibility.
Though cantilever racks are primarily utilised in the storage of large scale building materials, they can also store the items which are commonly placed on traditional pallet racks with fully adjustable arms which can be broadened or tightened based on the size of the inventory.
The decision on configurations has an effect on the efficiency of the warehouse. Single side cantilever racks are fixed on the wall, and the two-sided ones are attached at the rear which provides superior structural stability, space-saving, and flexibility.
Side-loading forklifts are also more appropriate in the warehouses with cantilever systems where less space can be occupied by the aisles and therefore more racking units can be installed. Cantilever rack systems with canopies placed outside the building are usually installed by many clients due to their high load capacities that enable the client to utilise the space that would otherwise be used indoors.
Installation and Safety Procedures.
The use of cantilever racks is safe, and the first step is the right installation. Make sure cantilever uprights are firmly fixed to the floor using base supports to make them more stable, make sure that the number of the arms used and the length of the same is suitable to the stored items, and never place too much weight on the cantilever uprights without following the assigned capacities.
The outcomes of negligence are terrible. Placing an incorrect size or style of cantilever racking could lead to severe injuries or fatalities in your warehouse since a tendency to disregard the weight restrictions and admonitions raises the chances of a system breakdown.
The weight must be spread out among all arms, but no more than the ability of each arm, or the entire system, will allow, and cantilever rack arms must never be placed at the rear of a one-sided unit. These are not guidelines but all-important safety mandates that will secure the personnel and the stock.
There are several considerations when picking and choosing the appropriate racking system: what you need to store, what your facility can hold, what your facility needs in terms of safety, what your facility can afford. You could be putting up standard pallets using selective racking, lumber products with special timber systems, or of bulky materials with cantilever systems, all of this depends on the knowledge of what each system can or cannot do.
Keep in mind the racking systems are investments that last long before your operation in terms of efficiency and safety. With professional consultation during installation, professional installation, routine maintenance and inspection and strict following the weight limit and other safety measures, your racking system will be of service to your business in the coming years. With most racking systems being modular, you can reconfigure and expand them as your business grows and develops, and thus they are flexible partners in your success.
The secret to optimising your racking investment is not only ensuring that you select an appropriate system in the first place, but also watching it on an ongoing basis, training personnel on operating it safely and regularly evaluating whether it is still up to your new emerging requirements or not. When well designed and executed, your racking system will not only increase safety, but also efficiency, and add considerable productivity and profitability to your warehouse.
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