How to store long and awkwardly shaped objects has been a dilemma that warehouse managers have tried to solve since the opening of the Industrial storage warehouses. No matter the material, whether it be timber, steel pipes and furniture that cannot be boxed, traditional pallet racking will simply never suffice. This is where the cantilever warehouse racking systems saves the day.
What Distinguishes Cantilever from the rest?
Cantilever racking systems is greatly different compared to the other racking systems, since there is no front support that is the common of front uprights. Cantilever racking systems is where horizontal arms extend from a vertical column. Imagine a vertical column having horizontal strong arms that supports a number of heavy shelves without having a front support. This design system enables staff to offload and pick up stock of inconveniently large items without the limits of tradition bay systems.
It is all astonishing in its design. There are horizontal arms that are supported by a central spine that are set at pendant defined heights. This creates levels of storage that is capable of accommodating timber beams that are up to twelve metres long and copper pipes that are three metres long. No frame systems or front and rear post systems become a factor.
Where Is It Most Effective?
Some businesses continue to use the cantilever racking system for the storage capabilities it offers. Builders merchants storing timber, plumbing materials, and construction materials have found the system to be quite helpful. Metal stockholders enjoy storing various lengths uncut and unbent steel, aluminium’s, and any other profiled metals. Furniture dealerships also use it to store and display their bulky stock such as sofas, mattresses, and other large items that are a challenge to floor space, saving the showroom a lot of room.
The system also functions in a manufacturing setting, especially when raw materials have not been sized appropriately. Carpet and flooring suppliers, for example, are able to position arms for rolls of carpet and flooring of various widths and lengths in the same space quite easily.
Single Sided Vs. Double Sided
Planning the space for the area often determines if you’ll deploy single or double sided configurations. Single sided units are set against walls which makes single use of perimeter space, keeping the aisles open. Double sided systems create storage that can be accessed from either side, allowing for back to back configurations that double the storage space in the area.
The answer often depends on the presence of floor space, traffic, and if the allocation of an aisle for both sides is possible. Other warehouses use a blend of both systems, single sided units along the walls and double sided in the middle.
Height and load considerations
With cantilever racking systems, the vertical storage capacity and stability tend to form a paradox. The height base ratio has to be strategic to retain the stability of the structure, it is the height and arm ratio that engineers tend to work with to ensure stability is met even with the maximum load expected.
The arms of cantilever racks are the supporting pieces of the racks and are with immense capacity with a range of a couple of hundred kilogrammes to tonnes. The trick lies at the moment of arm retention, guessing the load retention with a focus on how the loads are distributed across the arm. The arms are stressed differently and are considered to retained focus upon with the load of the arms, in tip concentrated and the other tip.
Installation and safety
The base floors with BC of the arms are a high concentrate system, and are primary arms with a system of load balance at the base and without other branches. The cantilever racking structure cannot be complete without concentrated load near the single arms that diminish the stability of the entire system.
The safety procedure with constructions and arms systems attached is a high balance in racking systems. Systems that have a fault structure i.e. bent arms, withdrawn connections and plated portions have the potential to collapse at any moment. Even operators with arm loading techniques have training to Theory, high tipping techniques stress the system beyond retention. Single concentrated arms are the focus of most of this racking.
The Bottom Line
Cantilever racking solves a problem rather well. When storing long, bulky, or even oddly shaped materials, few options provide equal space efficiency and accessibility. The system isn’t suited for every scenario, but in appropriate instances, it converts chaotic floor storage into ordered, easily-accessed inventory.
As for warehouse managers contemplating other storage options, the question isn’t whether cantilever racking is better than other options it’s whether your inventory profile is aligned with what the system does best. If you spend a lot of time working around long materials or wasting valuable floor space on items that do not fit standard pallet configurations, it is time to seriously evaluate cantilever racking.