Pallet Rack and Installation Secrets…

Many companies and organizations across North America are searching for ways to cut capitol costs in their facilities.  One way they have been doing so is by purchasing used pallet rack to increase storage space or even to replace rack that has been damaged.  As many assume that they are saving money by purchasing used pallet rack, the long term costs could be astronomical. 

When new pallet rack is purchased and installed for the first time it is typically engineered for the particular seismic zone and load ratings that the facility requires for their storage needs.  With used pallet rack,  engineered history of the particular pallet rack is not usually known.  The used rack  could be a liability rather than an asset. 

 What you don’t see (inside the beams or frames) could make the used rack a liability.  If buying used pallet rack, care and due diligence must be taken to make a wise purchase.

Squaring pallet rack is often misunderstood. The whole process begins with measuring the placement of the rack. You might measure off the walls or other fixtures to find both the end line and the aisle line. In theory both lines should be square with each other, but in reality they are most likely not square. The reason is that when the building was built the construction process is moving at a steady pace and squaring walls are attempted but not to perfection. We have all seen wavy walls or out of square walls in our homes. Now magnify that in a building that is 300 feet by 300 feet. So reality hits and our lines are not necessarily square with each other.
Once you have built your starter bay, place the pallet rack bay on both the aisle line and the end line. Anchor both of the columns on the aisle line. Now square the rack by picking the same reference point on both front columns. Measure diagonal to another identical reference points on the back columns. If you had two tape measures, the tapes would cross each other and form a “X”. If both measurements match the rack is square. If they are not, they need to be adjusted by pushing the back pallet rack columns parallel with the aisle line. Re-measure for square. Once you have repeated the process and the rack is square, anchor the back columns.

Note that your back column may or may not be on the end line when square. This should not be a big concern since the building is not perfectly square.

Note also that when aligning the pallet rack on the aisle line you should line up the face of the column not the foot plate because the foot plates are not always exactly attached in the same place.

More pallet rack installation tips will follow in a future post.

Everyone has there own way of installing pallet rack but I am going to share something I learned not to long ago. Before I took part in this new style of installing pallet rack, I was skeptical. Before I would stand the rack on the chalk line put in the first beam level and move on to the next up right, once the run of rack was standing I would go back and install the remaining levels. After all the beam levels were installed, I would proceed to square and anchor the rack.

Now I have changed my method. I now start by building a starter bay complete, square, and anchor the starter bay before continuing the run. After the starter bay is complete, I proceed to the rest of the pallet rack run. Instead of throwing the lower level in I install the very top level with the use of a scissor lift. Snap in the beam into the starter bay. Pull the lift forward while someone raises the upright and slides into place. I then install the hanging beam into the new upright. From there we complete the run using the preceding steps. After the run is standing we install the lower levels and anchor the rack. That is it in a nut shell. More details and reasoning will be included in next post. Until then…

The PR Skate has designed and test a pallet rack accessory that will change the way pallet rack is relocated. Warehouses, distribution centers, big box retailers, and the material handling industry could save thousands of dollars in any remodel that pertains to pallet rack, conveyors, mezzanines, and/or other storage rack systems. Since storage space is an asset, and if one can create more space without increasing square footage, it makes sense to use a system that could potentially save 1/2 to 2/3rds of the time and labor cost.