Warehouse - United Kingdom Warehousing Association

Racking & Shelving 41Rack safety nets help prevent product fallsRack Nets’ back of racknetting from WarehousePartners Ltd is fixed tothe rear of single runs ofpallet racking to form aprotective barrier that preventsloads stored withinthe pallet bays fromfalling into the aisles duringthe pallet put-awayand retrieval process.Unlike metal meshguards which have traditionallybeen used to fulfilla similar function, RackNets netting does notbuckle or become misshapedif subjected to theconsiderable force thatcan be exerted by a displacedpallet.This brings notable costand safety benefits to theuser, as Chris Hopkirk ofWarehouse Partners,explains: “The impact of apalletised load against ametal mesh guard will oftencause such damage to theguard that it has to bereplaced. Apart from theobvious cost of replacingthe guard, this can alsomean that the racking aislecannot be accessed whilethe repair work is undertaken- which causes significantand costly disruption withinthe warehouse.”He continues: “Oldfashionedmesh rackguards are installed in a‘brickwork’ pattern. Theyare not designed to holdback full pallet loads –simply to stop loose boxesfrom falling. If they are hitby a pallet they will usuallyneed to be replacedand, in many cases, ifthey are hit hard enoughthey may simply fall off atthe moment of impact –with potentially seriousconsequences for anyoneworking below.“Because it is flexible andnot of rigid construction, thenet mesh spreads the‘shock’ of the impact of adisplaced pallet . Rack Netsback of rack netting isalmost impossible to damageand will support a displacedpallet until it can beunloaded in an organizedmanner.”www.warehousepartners.co.ukShuttletakes offLink 51’s new Shuttle rackingsystem has been installed atthe warehouses of Kent-basedtool wholesaler Toolbank.The first company in the UK toinstall Link 51’s automated solution,Toolbank found that it was the idealpicking and sorting mechanism fortransporting goods in and out ofdeep storage tunnels efficiently andquickly.The company, which suppliesindependent hardware stores acrossthe UK as well as large chains suchas Jewson, had to install new rackingafter it expanded operationsrapidly – particularly its onlinetrade, after its began to work inassociation with Amazon – at itsDartford headquarters.It extended its warehousingheadquarters by buying an adjacentpremises and “future-proofed” it bybuilding in additional capacity andstorage. The eaves in the new spaceare up to 11.4m in height and arecapable of housing seven levels ofracking, which meant that ease ofaccess was more important thanever.And with £6 million of stock onsite, which has a total retail value ofmore than £15 million, it wasessential that it installed a quick andefficient system for storing andretrieving the items.Shuttle racking systems are wellsuited for warehouses that store alarge number of pallets per SKU,and especially those with high valueSKUs. Operators can stack palletswith a weight of up to 1500kg muchmore quickly and easily, and havegreater accessibility to denselypackedstorage. For flexibility, operatorscan also switch from a first in,first out (FIFO) system to a last in,first out (LIFO) system.The Link 51 Shuttle concept isvery simple to use and, because itworks with both Euro and Standardpallets, is universal.The Shuttle is fully programmableand is activated by a forklift truck orreach truck operator, using a remotecontrol. By activating the switch, theshuttle is moved to the front of theracking and the pallet load isplaced on it. The goods are thenmoved to an empty space deep inthe racking.www.ukwa.org.uk May 2013