Pallet Racks — 5 Vital Safety Tips
Pallet racking shelving systems are commonplace in warehouses around the world. Business owners understand how advantageous it is to have a quality storage system in their facilities, but as with any system there are problems with safety if the system is poorly constructed or faulty. This article will help identify the potentially dangerous aspects of pallet racks.
So how you can minimise the chances of accidental injury in your workplace?
1. Installation Safety
As with any construction job, pallet rack installers must be cautious and follow procedure if they are to remain safe during installation. Many pallet rack installer have to work at dizzying heights, up to 25 metres in some warehouse. These workers must be fitted with fall protection, as is required by Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) laws.
A good rule of thumb during pallet rack installation is to treat the factory floor as a construction site. Workers should be provided with hard hats and gloves as well as any other safety equipment required for working in your warehouse.
2. Sturdiness
Pallet racks should be as sturdy as possible. Pallets made out of metal are the sturdiest, but hard plastic will be fine in many cases. The upright posts must be the strongest since they bear the weight of the loaded pallets; in fact, most accidents caused by structural failure in pallet racks are the result of a faulty upright post.
Sturdiness is also determined by how well anchored the pallet rack is. Most pallet racks are anchored into a concrete floor, but many are side-anchored into adjacent walls. This will ensure maximum sturdiness.
3. Examination
Pallet racking must be regularly examined in order to ensure that there are no structural problems with the shelving system. If you do not identify problems with your pallet racks, accidents will occur and damage, and even loss of life, can occur.
There are two options available for carrying out pallet rack examination. The first is for examination to be carried out during routine inventory. The second is to have a professional pallet inspection company do the work for you. Many small to medium sized business owners choose the first options due to concerns over cost and lost time. However, large companies frequently hire professionals to inspect their pallet racks due to the sheer size of the job at hand.
Whichever option you choose, ensure that you have your pallets examined regularly.
4. Training
As the owner of the warehouse, it is your responsibility to ensure that only trained personnel make use of the pallet racks. No-one other than your forklift drivers should transport pallets and all visitors and non-warehouse workers should be kept far away from factory operations.
5. Maintenance
Pallet racks and the pallets themselves regularly degrade in quality over time. With all that weight and moving about this is inevitable, so keep an eye out for old equipment and make sure that you update and upgrade regularly.
Pallet racking is a fantastic system that can save your company tens of thousands of dollars, but to ensure that this shelving system remains user-friendly, follow correct procedure and keep your workers safe.