Selecting the correct form of pallet racking for your operation is not as easy a task as it may at first appear. Rushing the decision-making process can result in a storage system which ultimately fails in the long run.

 

The ultimate solution often results from a trade-off between storage capacity and accessibility, tempered by SKU-depth, order profile and the physical characteristics of the product being stored. In this respect, a number of major factors should be taken into consideration upfront. What is the life of a pallet? How is it made up? How is it brought into the warehouse? How long is it stored and how is it picked? These factors all influence which storage medium is eventually chosen and where the pallet is located in the system.

 

Orientation is also an important consideration in helping to achieve an efficient product flow through the building from Goods In to Goods Out, as is aisle length, which can have a significant impact on picking efficiency. 

 

The number of individual SKUs is important. Do you need 100% access, 100% of the time, or can you work with a combination of some products stored in standard wide or narrow aisle adjustable pallet racking for fast access and some in drive-in racking or mobile pallet racking to increase storage density, but at a slower access rate, for example? 

 

Consider the pallet type, its loading, dimensions and product overhang. Also think about the fork lift truck used – is it the correct specification for the racking?

SSI Schaefer has a number of solutions to help resolve these issues for warehouse operators including:

•   Selective Adjustable Pallet Racking with 100% access by reach or counterbalance trucks

•   Very Narrow Aisle Racking with 100% access by specialised trucks

•   Drive-In Racking for high SKU depth products with access by conventional trucks

•   Pallet Live Storage for goods stored on a FIFO basis

 

From visits I make throughout the year, I notice that many warehouses and distribution centres still operate small parts storage and picking systems at ground level, wasting thousands of cubic metres of overhead ‘fresh air.’ It makes far more sense to use your air space and not your floor space.

 

As businesses expand and distribution operations grow, the problem of how to accommodate more product becomes more acute as ground level storage options run out. The solution is to consider multi-tier shelving to maximise the storage potential of the overhead void.

 

It would be easy to construct a mezzanine and replicate ground floor storage and picking locations but this can be an expensive option. Multi-tier shelving systems, such as those designed and supplied by SSI Schaefer, offer a less costly alternative. 

 

Sometimes referred to as ‘build-throughs’, the high steel shelving structures act as supports for elevated walkways, allowing picking operatives access to locations at all levels. Items can be picked by a variety of means, but multi-order picking into totes or cartons on trolleys is the frequently adopted method. Each picking container can then be transferred to either a vertical lift or a simple conveyor system to transport it between different levels or to a ground floor shipping area.

 

Alternatively, picked items can simply be hand-carried to the required point by the picking operator, or removed on pallets via a pallet gate. Stock replenishment is accomplished by reversing this procedure.

 

In addition to optimising the storage capacity right up to the roof, multi-tier shelving brings the advantages of simple and fast assembly and it can be expanded to accommodate future business growth – a simple solution to a perennial storage problem.