Cantilever racking for wood
Cantilever racking is the most popular way to store hardwood and softwood lumber products on shelves. Cantilever racking consists of vertical single columns with horizontal cantilever arms for transporting products and various loads over long distances in warehouses and yards. The columns are designed to be self-supporting and made of steel sections.
Columns
The correct term for the leg system is column, with a number of arms attached to them by various means (by pins, bolts or rarely by welding) which project from the column.
The posts are connected together by a series of cross braces and tie beams for lateral stability. This provides uninterrupted storage runs – ideal for storing Timber’s long product lengths.
Wood Storage Solutions
Not only does storing lumber using cantilevered racks ensure safer storage of lumber than simple block stacking, but it also has the major benefit of allowing individual lengths to be selected to meet an increasing number of smaller and more diverse orders. It can be done either directly from the shelf or by placing packages stored high up on the floor with the package and then returning it to its original position when the selection is complete.
Inevitably, it is a more efficient process than moving several packages of bulk stacked lumber (inevitably, it is required to remove three lengths of lumber from packages at the bottom of a three-deep, four-high bulk stack) and provides a lower level of additional benefit of inventory damage because the packages are handled less frequently before being used up.
The use of modern multi-directional rugged terrain side-loading reach trucks with relatively low bed heights allows manual selection of two or three levels at the bottom of the rack. This allows for accommodating peak demand cycles by temporarily increasing manpower without the need for additional mechanical handling equipment.
All in all, cantilever racking reduces order selection cycles and optimizes vehicle space utilization while reducing inventory damage. All of these benefits, along with high levels of customer satisfaction and the resulting repeat business, make the investment in cantilever racking a compelling argument for all lumber merchants.
Further Reading:
How do industrial shelves and racks improve the storage capacity of warehouses?
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Rack labeling system – greatly improves warehouse efficiency
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Tips on how to assemble a wire shelf
Post time: May-23-2022