Choosing the perfect shelving system for your business’ storage needs should be easy, shouldn’t it?
After all, it’s not rocket science. All you need to do is establish what it is you want to store, work out how much space you can spare for shelving, and then buy the appropriate storage equipment.
There – job done. If only it were that simple. You might be surprised to learn that racking out a storage area is a lot more complicated than you might ever have imagined. Take the shelving itself: there’s such a broad range of heights, widths, depths and load capacities available that it’s all-to-easy to get confused, particularly if you’re setting up a storage area for the first time. So, for your benefit, here’s a bit of general advice about shelving and storage areas. It’s far better to plan and measure meticulously than waste valuable resources on a shelving system that won’t fit or isn’t strong enough after all.
What do you intend to store on the shelving?
It may sound obvious, but what you store on the shelving determines the type of shelving that you’ll need. You’ll need to establish what you intend to store, how much of it there is, and the sizes and dimensions of the storage materials. Whatever shelving systems you choose must fit the products you wish to store. If you intend to store a variety of different sized items, then it is also worth considering loading these goods into storage boxes and containers. This will make the storage area neater and make the products easier to locate.
How heavy are the products you want to store?
The heavier the goods you want to store, then the stronger the duty of shelving you’ll need: heavy goods need a heavy duty shelving system. You’ll need to establish the loading required per shelf, and find a shelving system that adequately meets these needs. The shelf load capacity is usually given as a UDL (uniformly distributed load) and is measured in Kilograms. It’s often best to overestimate the weight loading of shelving, and choose a shelving system with a greater loadbearing capacity than needed: better to be safe than sorry.
How is the shelving to be used?
If your shelving is to be used for business purposes then you must consider how often the goods need to be accessed. Work out the answers to the following questions before you sign on the dotted line. Do you require easy access picking levels? Do you need a labelling system for easy identification? How high is the shelving going to be and is it going to be easily accessible to pickers? Will you need mobile safety steps to give access to the highest shelves?
Measure up.
Measurements are crucial, so it’s vitally important that you take the time to measure the storage space intended for the shelving accurately. Measure the room’s head clearance, length and width.
Make a note of any doorways, windows, pipe work, lighting, radiators or trunking that may protrude and impact the location of the shelving. Fire exits must always remain clear and unobstructed. Never make the assumption that the shelving will fit, because invariably it won’t.
Plan your layout.
Once you’ve accurately measured up, then you’ll need to plan your layout. It’s important that you ensure the layout is as efficient as possible. There are all sorts of configurations that you could use, but the final decision will be determined by what’s best for you and your business. Remember to allow for any obstructions you may have identified, and play around with plans and sketches until you are in a position to choose the best layout.
Choose the right type of shelving for your needs.
If you’re after a quick and easy storage fix, then it’s arguable that boltless shelving will be the right choice for you. Boltless shelving is becoming the increasingly popular shelving solution for small businesses and domestic applications. You no longer need to spend hours bolting the steel shelving together: with the help of a simple rubber mallet you can build an entire bay of shelving in minutes.
