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Posted on Oct 20, 2015 in Business Tips

3 things to consider before buying industrial pallet racking

Palletised stock may not be hard to manage and store, but it certainly requires customised solutions if you want to increase warehouse or stockroom efficiency, decrease time frames and reduce picking errors. To that extent, if you’re planning to invest in industrial pallet racking systems, then you need to carefully consider your options and factor in different criteria to make sure you choose the best suitable system. There are 3 main things you need to consider before making this type of investment, which can be quite significant, and these factors are available space, product or load type and supplier. Each can have a great impact on your chances of investing in the best suitable and most effective racking system for your particular business needs.

 

Space considerations

Obviously, your warehouse or stockroom has a certain available floor space and you need industrial pallet racking that fits within that space. However, this isn’t to mean that space can’t be manipulated to your benefit or, better yet, racking can be so adjusted. There are many solutions that can be implemented in warehouses or stockrooms with limited floor space, most of which rely on using the vertical space, such as two tier shelving or mezzanine floors. Other solutions include customised layouts and configurations that will maximise your available floor area and reduce to a minimum wasted space.

 

Product considerations

The industrial pallet racking system you choose should perfectly fit not only the space you’ve got available but also the products and loads you need to store and handle. Palletised goods may fit within certain standardised measurements, but the way you handle and operate the pallets, as well as the way in which goods are needed, influence the choice of racking. For instance, goods with expiration dates need to be operated on a first in first out basis, which means you need pallet flow racking or any other system that supports this type of operation, while others may need to be handled on a last in first out basis, requiring of course a different type of racking. In addition, as said, the way you handle pallets also needs to be taken into account, because certain types of pallet trucks need narrow aisle racking while others require larger aisles.

 

Supplier considerations

 

Obviously, finding the right type of industrial pallet racking to suit your space and your products depends greatly on the supplier you choose. It’s very important to select a company with a great range of products, experienced engineers and designers and even an installation service, especially if you’re looking at a large project, such as fitting an entire warehouse. Take your time to browse through the companies available on the market and compare their offers carefully. The better you choose your supplier, the more help you’ll have with the other two factors mentioned above. This is because a good supplier with a great range of products and experienced designers can create a bespoke solution for your warehouse, taking into account space and load criteria.