Pallet Racking Safety and You: An Introduction to Pallet Racking Safety

Businesses of All Sizes, From All Over the World, Can Benefit From Knowing a Bit More About Pallet Racking Safety.

Pallet racking is a big asset to any business, but it’s also a big responsibility. Pallet racks are large structures that, when not used properly, are cumbersome at best and dangerous at worst. A warehouse that uses pallet racking well can operate with an efficiency to make any competitor jealous. Though laws about pallet racking safety may differ around the world, the key ideas remain the same. That’s why we at Storage Equipment Experts have created this infographic.

Pallet Racking Safety and Racking Inspection Training

Our knowledge of pallet racking comes from the wisdom accrued from years of being on the front line of the racking industry. We’re always keen to share our knowledge, and that’s why we offer rack inspection training delivered by rack inspection experts.

Racking inspection training allows businesses to ensure their pallet racking is inspect by their own staff.

Checking that pallet racking is properly secure, checking that it’s not bent, checking that it’s not damaged, and checking that it’s not overloaded in some way: these thing are not just one skill. They are a series of skills that can be acquired by varying levels of training.

And so while every country recognises the importance of this training, different countries have different attitudes to it. This is why some countries, like the UK and Australia, require that a racking inspection expert from outside your business inspect your pallet racking and other countries, like the US, do not.

The UK and Australia then also differ with how often a racking inspection expert should inspect your pallet racking. Furthermore, the two countries also differ with what constitutes a racking inspection expert in the first place. All of which is why we made this infographic. We want to clear up a lot of the confusion surrounding pallet racking safety.

At its heart, the principles of pallet racking safety are simple. Though they differ from country to country, the core ideas should be the same. In reality, it shouldn’t matter what country you’re operating in. We know this to be true because, despite being performing racking inspections as per HSE’s guidelines, we have offered our insight to American, South African, and Asian publications.

Pallet racking safety can be easily achieved by following the legal guidelines of your own country. Still, knowing about how pallet racking safety works in other countries can help to inform your decisions as well.

Pallet racking is our passion at Storage Equipment Experts. Our desire to inform is why we provide a free racking inspection checklist as well as SEMA-approved racking inspections and rack inspection training. We offer a variety of services because we understand that pallet racking safety is a varied discipline. Pallet racking safety is always a worthwhile investment, and so it’s never a bad time to call or email us!

Contact Storage Equipment Experts for a visit from the racking inspection experts. We aim to provide the best racking inspection training and pallet rack inspections in the UK and we do so by adhering to HSE’s strict standards.

Legal writer and academic Peter Drucker once said, “Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window”. The quote has two morals: the first is that predicting the future is hard, perhaps dangerous, and the second is that to predict the future we need to look at the past or “look out the back window”.

With regards to the modern warehouse and the future of pallet racking, those who wanted to predict the future would have to take note of its role in the Industrial Revolution. If another revolution is on its way, as some generational theorists predict, will the modern warehouse and pallet racking play a part? And what part will it play?

Safe and Sustainable: Pallet Racking Inspections, Racking Inspection Courses, and the Environment

The environment is the key issue of our times, and so the future of warehousing and logistics will need to recognise this. The recent warehouse explosions in Tianjin, China are a sign of what the warehouses of the future will look like if warehouse safety and the environment are ignored in the name of profit. Unsafe production and environmental disaster usually go hand in hand, as the lethal air pollution caused by palm oil production in Indonesia has made clear.

Future warehouses should be ones that invest in sustainable practices. More racking inspection courses and pallet racking inspections will ensure that businesses are safer and are looking to the future. Alongside this, businesses will need to be more environmentally friendly. After all, just as the problems related to workplace safety and the environment go hand in hand, so too do the solutions. As researcher Doug Morrow points out, sustainable business is a multifaceted concept.

Safe and cybersafe: pallet racking inspections, racking inspection courses, and digital technologies

The use of robots and digital technologies to increase the efficiency of warehouses is already happening. Amazon uses countless programs, codes, and machines to do a large amount of the work in its warehouse. This effect will only become more pronounced, and more widespread, in the future. Online shopping has lead to increased demand and increased supply. However, the speed of all of this has come at a cost. Online retail companies like Amazon rely on a system that is literally known as “chaotic storage” and workers have complained about mistreatment and lack of safety.

The future of warehouse use depends on combining the best elements of new technologies with a safe and sustainable business model. Whatever the future warehouse looks like, we at SEMA racking inspections will be there to ensure that it operates as safely and efficiently as possible. Just as pallet racking inspections have been a vital part of our warehouses in the past, pallet racking inspections are a vital part of our warehouses’ future.

Is your warehouse ready for the future? Contact Storage Equipment Experts Ltd today for racking inspection training or a pallet racking inspection from a SEMA approved racking inspector.

From the industrial revolution to the rise of Amazon, warehouses have always been behind the scenes of a much greater historical narrative of business. But where did it all begin? How did we come to live in a world where warehouses and pallet racking are so essential to companies and economies?

The year 15,000 BW (Before Warehouses)

Warehouses, in different forms, have arguably been around as long as humans have had agriculture. Settling down in one spot meant that humans could harvest food rather than hunt for it. All this harvested food needs to be stored and so, in that sense, humans have been using warehouses for 15,000 years. Still, the warehouse as we know it today is a much more recent invention.

The Modern Warehouse, Pallet Racking Systems, and the Industrial Revolution

A planned and efficient warehouse with organised pallet racking systems that categorically stores items en masses has its roots in the industrial revolution. The modern warehouse meant that humans could produce huge surpluses that allowed for jobs beyond farming and making things from raw materials. This surplus has been hugely important in human history. As John Green puts it, if you live somewhere other than a farm, enjoy free education, eat blueberries during the winter, or live anything even resembling a modern lifestyle, then you have the Industrial Revolution to thank. And without warehouses or pallet racking systems, the Industrial Revolution could not have happened.

Warehouses Today and the Importance of SEMA Approved Pallet Racking Inspections

Since the Industrial Revolution, warehouses have gone through many changes. The first is that they became more functional, rather than being the aesthetically pleasing buildings that they once were. This increase in functionality is a sign of how warehouses have multiplied. Now, warehouses have a variety of uses. Some of the oldest once have become part of history, their architecture making them perfect for art installations or museums. More technologically advanced warehouses have helped fuel the rise of online shopping. Amazon, for example, prides itself on a well maintained warehouse and an excellent pallet racking system.

The current challenge for warehouses is not rapid growth, but steady growth. In less economically developed regions, we have seen the disastrous costs of valuing efficiency of business over safety when it comes to warehouse use. This is why SEMA approved pallet racking inspections and racking inspection courses are so important. The warehouse of today, and the warehouse of the future, should aim to be smart and safe in order to be profitable.

Make sure your business has the warehouse of the future! Contact Storage Equipment Experts Ltd today for a pallet racking inspection from a SEMA approved racking inspector.

Pallet racking inspection cannot be performed by just anybody. HSE state that only people who are “technically competent” can perform pallet racking inspections, but there has been confusion in the past about what this means. Before the new CDM regulations came into place, the loose definition of “competence” led to the rise of over 300 different card schemes.

Pallet Racking Inspections and Racking Inspection Training

HSE have identified SEMA Approved Racking Inspectors (SARIs) as “expert inspectors” and recommend a pallet racking inspection from an “expert inspector” at least once every twelve months. HSE also recommends that the regular inspections are performed by a business’ staff. The best way to ensure that your staff are “technically competent” enough to do this is through racking inspection training and racking inspection courses.

Pallet Racking Inspection Checklist

If you are qualified to inspect pallet racking, you then need to consult a racking inspection checklist. The checklist details what parts of the pallet racking system you should be looking at, what counts as safe, and what counts as unsafe. There are many things to consider, but the most common sign of damaged racking is if it is bowed in the middle from too much weight. The level of bending should be measured, taken note of, and marked as safe or unsafe according to the regulations laid out on your racking inspection checklist.

It is important to be accurate as the difference between an acceptable and an unacceptable amount of bending can sometimes be less than a millimetre. However, if something is on the very edges of safe, then that “near miss” should not be ignored either. A pallet racking inspection requires constant diligence and high standards.

Pallet Racking Inspection LogBook

As you go through your checklist, you should mark each piece of racking as either red, amber, or green. HSE recommend using this system to avoid ambiguity: green means safe, amber means repairs are needed as soon as possible, and red means repairs are needed instantly. Ambiguity can cause a company to “suffer from inaction” and, when it comes to racking safety, inaction is toxic.

Contact Storage Equipment Experts Ltd today for racking inspection courses and racking inspections from a a SEMA approved “expert racking inspector”.