You don’t need to go far to read a news report about the scarcity of warehousing in New Zealand, including this blog we wrote a few months ago. In the racking industry, we know that clever and thoughtful racking design helps warehouses maximise storage capacity and make gains in productivity.
In general, Narrow Aisle Racking is the golden bullet for warehouse storage; the closer, the better! Narrow-aisle racking uses regular pallet racking components with aisles spaced closer together. This reduces wasted aisle space and allows pallets to be stored to a greater density, maximising your 3-dimensional space.
However, simply gaining as much racking as possible in a space is only half of the equation – what about the machines to manage the loading and unloading of pallets? After all, there is no point having racking so narrow that it can’t be accessed.
So how do we design racking that is easily accessed?
This is a far more complicated question, and to answer it, Nat Turner from our sister company MHS will run us through a few of practical considerations.
Are you starting from scratch, or do you have pre-existing racking?
If you have pre-existing racking, chances are you will want to use it if you can. This means that the forklift will have to fit what is there, or the space could be redesigned to best utilise existing racking, maximum storage density and accommodate existing or new forklift(s).
How high is your racking going to be?
Whilst narrow aisle racking can be up to 16m high, not every warehouse will have a 53ft stud height. Generally speaking, entry-level narrow aisle forklifts, like a Pedestrian Walkie Stacker, have a maximum 10ft reach and are best suited to low stud heights. These are great for businesses with tighter budgets, but they do not mitigate Health and Safety issues or work in high throughput environments.
The next step up the ladder would be something like an Articulated Narrow Aisle Forklift, with up to a 15m reach that resembles two forklifts in one. A hinge attaches the forks to a traditional counterbalance machine at the back. This hinge allows the forks to swivel over 90 degrees from the main unit to load and unload.
Aside from the height, and the speed, these machines differ in the width of the aisle they can service – a pedestrian stacker typically needs a minimum of 2.2m, while a narrow aisle forklift can work in aisles as narrow as 2m.
For extremely narrow aisle racking, a Turret Truck will be worth considering, with the ability to work in a 1.6m aisle. Turret Trucks are a bespoke solution which allows the operator to travel up to heights of 18 metres with guidance systems. This man-up process means the driver sits within the carriage of the Turret Truck, giving them a clear and accurate view whilst allowing both pallet and picking movements.
For any project, it is vital to understand load parameters, site measurements, throughput, and operational principles to ensure optimal working space for the proposed forklift and a complimentary racking solution.
Will you only have one type of racking?
Some warehouses will only contain one type of racking; others will have two or more.
Some warehouses will have out-of-the-box racking products, while others will have specialised racking, or a combination of both.
If you have more than one type of racking, chances are there will be more than one type of material handling solution that will work for you. You may have the budget for both, or you may have to find a middle ground in a solution that is not the best option for either but can easily service both. Sometimes, there may be a forklift solution to service different types of racking, such as a multi-directional forklift, but each business is unique, and the key is to understand operational requirements and budget.
How reliant are you on your forklift?
If you only have one machine, and it breaks down or gets a service, can your business still operate? If the answer is yes, that is great. Suppose the answer is no and you don’t have the budget or necessity for two machines. In that case, you must have quality equipment and an adequate level of support infrastructure to mitigate any downtime-associated risk.
Should I design racking to match my forklift or buy a forklift to match my racking?
The answer is – neither. If you are in the position of designing a warehouse from scratch, you would design the warehouse to suit your business, workflow and products. This is not always easy to do as both racking and forklifts are sold separately, in very separate businesses, by different people who do not consider each other’s value proposition during the design phase – until now.
Introducing the synergy between PRS and MHS, two organisations sharing and referring customers and designing complementary, thoughtful warehouses that provide the best racking and material handling solution to the customer.
Both organisations have a wealth of knowledge and experience, which they can leverage to design and execute a streamlined, highly efficient warehouse that will reduce your handling, and stock damage and bring you those all-important productivity gains every business needs whilst making maximum use of your budget.
Contact PRS and MHS today and get the advice and support you need to maximise your warehouse space.
Pallet Racking Solutions designs, supplies and installs quality pallet racking and warehouse storage solutions, New Zealand wide. Follow our blog for the latest innovations, new tech, safety and compliance, case studies and in-depth explanations of our solutions.