The Right Warehouse Racking System Design Aids In Material Movement And Safety

By Gwen Lowe


Things that are made and the parts or ingredients that go into making them must be stored safely, at least for a while. Proper warehouse racking system design and installations allow for the easy flow of material from one area, through the fabricating process, and into the other area. Steel is usually used as this represents the strongest material, although in some applications, fiberglass or extruded plastics are sometimes used.

The appropriate design for these elements of your plant must account for the size of materials and what platforms they are moved around on. The most popular form of racking design is the individual bay, based on the size of the average pallet. This makes it easy to place pallets into the bays and remove them from either the front or back of the bay.

Designs should allow the use of fasteners to attach them to the walls when possible. The free standing shelving will need additional supporting mechanisms and can be arraigned as needed. Needing to get into the bays from the back or side will also be worth thinking about. The many different configurations are ready for you to look at and think about.

Designing the best system starts with knowing what is happening, on the floor, and what can happen in a day to day operation. The design engineer will want to observe what happens and how it happens. This will be put down on paper and the system will grow from that. They will want to know weights, conditions of the floors, walls, moisture content. Any special considerations concerning the individual parts or ingredients to be use for the product you are producing are also looked at.

Standard traffic patterns that you have always had may need to be altered in minor ways. The addition of racking systems that will handle all of your needs may not be able to be as close to other equipment as you would like. Different material handling equipment may be needed to allow for the up close removal and placement you have been accustomed to in the past.

Having side access to bays is something that can be done on the extreme ends. In some cases, special systems can be arraigned to allow small materials to be slid, on tracks embedded in the floors, to reach all parts. Some of these will also move levels up and down to allow for the removal and replacement of items regardless of location.

Examining all of the options is what a firm specializing in these systems will help you with. There are many configurations of shelves, some of which have self facing rollers. There are specific designs that will have pallets held firmly with attachments until they are released. Others will be have rails that allow the insertion of specific drums, barrels or tanks.

Having a place for everything and everything definitely being in the right place will make for a safe, clean and well operating plant. The companies who offer the many racking systems will have up to date information on all industries and what they are doing. That may include just the right shelving for your plant or they can come up with the perfect one for you and you alone.




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