In the rapidly evolving industries, and limited space availability in the nation, there’s always an increased need for a proper storage system, that is easy to accommodate heavy or light-duty goods, increase the safety of the areas and also provide easy accessibility to the loaded items. In such cases, the best storage solution brought forth was pallet racks and now they have become the most important inventory part of the industries and their warehouses. From the increasing demands of customers, the demand for efficient storage systems also increased and thus selecting the right pallet racking systems for your industries or warehouses has become a crucial and challenging part. But in this article, we will guide you about the different types of racks, their benefits and how you can choose the one best for your uses.
Pallet Racking Systems: What are they?
A pallet racking system is a storage system that has vertical columns with horizontal rows to accommodate the different loads on the pallets. These racks are widely used in the warehouse, or distribution centers in order to maximize the use of vertical space and provide clean, and easy working space for the employees. Businesses dealing with heavy or light-duty weight can opt for these pallet racking, and enhance the overall inventory management.
Pallet Racking – Advantages
The pallet racking system comes with a lot of advantages for its users. Some of these include:
- Space Maximization: By using the vertical space of the area, the warehouse racking system increases the overall storage space.
- Great Accessibility: The racking systems are most widely used in different businesses due to their easy loading or retrieval of the items, using manual force or forklifts, reducing the ends of loading or retrieving the items.
- Easy Customization: Many of the racking systems provide this basic advantage of customizing it when required, thus allowing the different products of size and shape to fit well in the pallet racks.
- Cost-Effective: These systems apart from being durable and flexible, are cost-efficient in order to meet the specific budgets for small or large-scale industries.
- Safety Standard: These racking systems, complex to all the domestic and international safety standards in order to prevent the risk of collapse or injuries in the working space.
Racking System – Types
Different businesses cater different needs as per their load requirements, size of manufactured products and inventory management. Thus, in order to maintain the specific uses and demands of the customers, there are differ types of pallet storage racks available in the market. Some of these include:
Racking for Warehouse Storage: Selective Pallet Racking
Among the different warehouse pallet racking systems, one of the most commonly used racks are the selective pallet racking systems, due to their high accessibility, direct path to access loads and the increased safety due to robust structures.
Selective Pallet Racking – Merits:
- Accessibility: Every pallet in these racking systems has a separate accessibility without affecting the other pallet, efficient for good inventory management.
- Cost-Efficient: The design of these racks are quite simple,and require less amount to be manufactured thus making it a cost-effective solution.
- Flexibility: It is easy to adapt the different working conditions, and modify when needed for the different size or heights of the goods.
Selective Pallet Racking – Demerits:
- Wasted Aisle Space: This rack uses a lot of space in between the two racks, thus not just for the space limited area.
- Low Storage Density: This system requires large aisle space for the forklifts to manage the goods, thus reducing its storage density.
Pallet Racks with Double Deeps: Increase your storage capacity
The advanced or innovative version of selective pallet racks are the double deep pallet racking systems, which have two deep pallet racks to increase the storage space of an area.
Double Deep Pallet Rack – Merits:
- High Storage density: Since they have two deep pallets for storing goods, it increases the overall storage space of an area.
- Cost-Efficient: Being durable, and space maximizing they are available at a budget friendly cost.
Double Deep Pallet Rack- Demerits:
- Requires Forklifts: As these have two deep pallets they require specially designed forklifts to get access to the deep pallets.
- Restricted Accessibility: To access the rear pallets, the front ones need to be removed which is time consuming.
Racks for Carton Flow Pallet Requirements: The Ideal Storage Solution
Carton flow racks, uses gravity led systems to move the goods from loaded side to picking side, widely used in the business with perishable goods like food or medicines to work in the principle of FIFO.
Carton Flow Rack Systems – Merits
- FIFO Principle: These racks work in the principle of First-in first out, thus the items loaded first will be picked first in order to maintain the quality of the products.
- Picking Efficiency: The loads purchased by the gravity system from loading to picking side are easily accessible to the forklift there.
Carton Flow Rack Systems – Demerits
- High Investment: Since these racks require a gravity roller and accessibility forkflists on both sides, the initial cost is quite high.
- Limited Uses: Since they have rollers, not making it fit for heavy-duty goods, thus limiting the application of carton flow racks.
Long Loads: A Cantilever Racking System
For warehouses that deal with the long and irregular shaped items, like pipes, lumber etc, require an extended arm with no vertical hindrance storage systems, and cantilever racking systems are the best solution for it.
Cantilever Racks – Merits
- Good for Loading Goods: It is the best choice to accommodate the long loads in their extended arms not fit in traditional pallet racks.
- No Hindrances: Long items are stored in arms, which have no vertical columns as an obstruction to their effective storage.
Cantilever Racks- Demerits
- Large Space Required: The storage and installing of these types of racks and goods, often require huge floor space, thus not specific for space-constrained areas.
- Less Weight Capacity: Not suitable for the heavy-duty goods, as the racks rely on certain support only.
Pallet Racks with Multiple Tiers: Maximize Vertical Height
For industries that are deemed to be growing in future, or even require heavy density storage without using a lot of aisle of floor space, multi-tier racking system is the best choice for the business that have huge vertical space, but limited floor and aisle space.
Multi-Tier Pallet Racking – Merits
- Vertical space Maximization: These racks make the best use of vertical spaces, allowing for the multistage storage capacities.
- Easy accessibility: Each of these pallets have easy and independent accessibility, thus optimizing the loading and picking time.
Multi-Tier Pallet Racking – Demerits
- Complex to Install: Since these are multi-level racks they require professionals for their proper installation, as its quiet complex.
- Safety Concerns: Working at height is quite risky for the employees, thus it requires necessary safety protocol to be followed.
Pallet Racks With Drive-Ins: The Perfect Solution for Businesses Limited on Warehouse Space
The drive-in racks are best for the areas with limited floor space, allowing forklifts to enter the pallet area easily and thus saving a lot of loading or retrieving time.
Drive-In Pallet Racks – Merits
- Heavy-Load Capacities: These racks allow easy accommodation for heavy and bulky goods.
- High storage Density: As forklifts can enter the pallet space for load and retrieve, followed by their maximum storage capacity, it is fit for the high storage density area.
Drive-In Pallet Racks – Demerits
- Risks of Accidents: As the space is limited, and forklifts are used it increases the risk of mishaps in the area due to rack and forklift collapse.
- Restricted Accessibility: The first pallet for every row is restricted for accessibility thus reducing its inventory management to an extent.
Gravity’s Advantage: Pallet Flow Racks
Pallet flow racks have installed gravity led systems, which pushes the goods from loading end to the retrieving end, thus increasing the use of goods first loaded more easily and allows for continuous restocking of the goods.
Pallet Flow Racks – Merits
- FIFO Principle: It works on the principle of first in first out, where the goods loaded first are retrieved first thus making it an ideal choice for the perishable goods.
- Highly efficient: With goods continuously moving and restocking, the picking of the items and their loading is quite efficient without any obstructions.
Pallet Flow Racks- Demerits
- Restriction on Heavy Loads: the gravity pallet racks are not fit for heavy goods, as they can malfunction in the presence of heavy weights.
- Quiet Costly: The installation and maintenance of these pallet flow racks are quite costly than any other racking systems.
Push back Pallet Racking: Suitable for High-Density Storage
Push back pallet racks are used to hold multiple goods, deep in the pallets as they push back the pallets on an inclined rail this effect for easy storage and retrieval of the goods.
Push Back Pallet Racking – Merits
- Good Storage Density: Each of the lanes can hold multiple pallets and so the numerous goods, thus increasing their overall storage capacity.
- Retrieval Efficient: The retrieval of items is quite easy and efficient as forklifts can easily be used in the retrieving proves, with no further obstructions.
Push-Back Pallet Racking – Demerits
- Limited Flexibility: this racking system is good for those businesses that have the same and uniform goods in shades, sizes and weights as they are not flexible.
- High Investment: In comparison to other warehouse racking systems, these are quite costly in installation and maintenance both ways.
Dynamic Racking: Other Types
In addition to all above racking systems, there are some other inventory management and dynamic racking systems available in the market in order to cater the specific needs of the business. This include:
- Mobile racks: Mounted on the mobile rails or wheels, to relocate them.
- Shelving Racks: Best in order to accommodate small to medium items without their loss.
- Automated Racks: the racks which can be easily compacted or expanded through automatic remotes when used, thus increasing the space efficiency.
Conclusion
Therefore, choosing the right pallet racking systems from the wider options is quite challenging and critical tasks. But if you know about them thoroughly, along with the load requirement of your business area, the task becomes quite easy. Contact SimcoSteel now and get the best racks with a wide option to cater all your specific needs.
FAQ 1: When should warehouse racking be inspected?
Ans: Warehouse racking is essential to be inspected at a regular interval, which might be a week, month or an year depending upon the type of racks and goods accommodated in it.
FAQ 2: What is the best way to inspect warehouse racking?
Ans: Warehouse racks must be inspected visually and structurally to know if there are any loosen nuts, bolts or dents and bends due to forklifts.
FAQ 3: What is the best way to clean warehouse racking?
Ans: The best way of cleaning warehouse racks is using soft brushes or air blowers to remove the dust and debris from their surfaces, followed by the prevention of any corrosion material in the racks.
FAQ 4: Is warehouse racking maintained in any particular way?
Ans: Yes, proper and regular maintenance of warehouse racking is crucial. This includes the regular tightening of nuts, checking if the weight capacity is not exceeded and the most important is quick replacement of the damaged parts.