With the right racking system you can get more storage out of your warehouse space than you would have ever thought possible but you should be careful to give a lot of thought before deciding what to have – it is certainly easier to fit than remove and getting rid of second hand racking might not be easy. There are several common sense things you should consider before buying – it is always easy to be wise after the event.
What do you sell?
This may seem like a ludicrously simple question to consider but it is really important. Perhaps the question should be – what might you sell in the future? If your business is very settled and not likely to change in the near future you perhaps don’t need to consider this but if you deal in a fairly volatile market where your stock might change, it is important. An example would be someone who deals in televisions; who would have guessed ten years ago that televisions would be four feet across and about two inches thick? Anyone planning racking without looking to the future may end up making an expensive mistake.
Don’t skimp on the racking
If your business is still growing, don’t forget to allow for the future. There are obviously concerns of cost, but within limits buy as much as you can afford. Some racking is easy to adapt or add to and cantilever racking is best of all in this regard because you can use it for large or small items. If you are likely to start storing larger items in the future, then cantilever racking should be your first choice. If you ever have members of the public in your warehouse you must be especially careful to make sure that access to the racks is adequate and that they can easily remove items without having to stretch or reach too much, for health and safety reasons.
How are you off for space?
If space is at a premium, cantilever racking is again an excellent choice because its footprint is small. The shelving is supported on a central column which is in turn held up by a strong base. The cantilevered arms can hold any kind of load and the space underneath is usable and also very easy to keep clean. Racking that rises from the floor can result in loads of rubbish getting trapped beneath it. This is particularly true in more cramped spaces, when cleaning solutions are hard to get between the rows. Edge to edge ride on sweepers can easily clean right up to the bases in cantilevered systems.
Health and Safety
It is really important that racking is installed correctly and all staff have proper training in loading and unloading. It is easy to see how accidents can happen in warehouses because although there are instructions with the racking when it is installed these can easily get forgotten over time. When stock taking or a large consignment is being dealt with and time and tempers are short, overloading or inadequate stowing of loads can lead to disaster. It is a good plan to copy out safe usage of all racking systems and attach them to each row. If there is no room to put them up poster style, they can be laminated and hung on a piece of string or tape. The instructions don’t have to look fabulous – you are simply making sure everyone knows the tolerances of the racks. These figures are not necessarily something that staff can hold in their heads all the time, so having them written down is a handy reminder and could prevent a serious accident.
John Hinds writes for Lojix. His interests include blogging, reading, playing tennis, listening to music and travelling.
Featured images: License: Image author owned
Marty Huggins
