Racking up safety
August 1st 2008

SEMA leads the way in safety standards for racking, as this report from member company, LINPAC, outlines

In the pressured logistics and distribution market it is hardly surprising that racking and shelving systems come in for some robust use and abuse, particularly from forklift trucks.

Fortunately, the racking industry has always been conscious of the need to have stringent standards and guidelines in place.

These codes of practice ensure safety is the number one priority from design, through manufacture, installation and maintenance.

"The Storage Equipment Manufacturers' Association (SEMA) has led the way in providing strict controls for the industry to abide by," explains Mike Savage, Technical Director for LINPAC Storage Systems. "SEMA produces a comprehensive raft of documents covering everything from design, usage and installation of storage equipment through to truck/racking interfaces, mezzanine floors and building regulations.

"These guidelines are very specific to the UK market and they provide an excellent resource for both the manufacture of the equipment and the end users in warehouses up and down the country." New guidelines from the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) are being drawn up and are due for publication in six to nine months time. These will cover the design, use and initial specification of racking and installation tolerances and clearances.

"The CEN guidelines will be welcomed by UK manufacturers and will no doubt update some of the older standards in the industry.

That said, SEMA will remain the leading authority in the UK and it is important that buyers of racking systems ensure they are designed and built to SEMA regulations," comments Savage

Complex installations Storage systems are becoming more complex as racking systems have to integrate with conveyors, pick stations and other functions within warehouses. This increases the need for health and safety precautions as operatives work in space restricted environments, in ever closer proximity to moving equipment.

Care & maintenance Whilst the design, manufacture and installation are vitally important in developing safe storage systems there is another key aspect which often gets, if not ignored, forgotten about as Savage explains: "The pressured environment in a modern warehouse means the racking comes in for some tough usage. It is, therefore, a dangerous misconception to think that once it has been professionally designed and built you can just forget about it.

"We recommend to our customers that they carry out a quick visual check every day, with a more formal documented visual check every week. In addition to these visual checks, we advise a full inspection is carried out annually by a qualified external inspector.

"SEMA offer an Approved Inspector Qualification for individuals who carry out the inspection of storage equipment. To achieve the required standard candidates must successfully complete a specially designed intensive course, written examination and practical assessment.

There is also an on-going commitment to continuous professional development (CPD) for which inspectors are required to attain a prescribed number of points on an annual basis.

Beam deflection A subject that often causes debate between the manufacturer and the end user is beam deflection. When designing racking systems, manufacturers rely on the customer to tell them what will be stored in the racking. The manufacturer can then design the racking accordingly, ensuring it is fit for purpose but not over-engineered to add cost to the job.

Savage says: "Occasionally a customer will load up their new racking and on visual inspection notice the beams deflecting.

Concerned about this they naturally get on the phone. We have to explain to them that beams are designed to flex.

"A standard 2.7m beam is designed to flex up to 13.5mm under load and provided it is no more than this the structure is absolutely safe. We show customers how to check beam deflection with a piece of string, which may sound Heath Robinson, but it works.

"Another safety issue that can be contentious is that of barriers and column guards. We strongly recommend that these are designed into a warehouse from the start, because if they are added afterwards, it is not always possible to ensure the correct clearances are provided. Incorrect clearances can lead to bigger problems than the barriers or guards are designed to stop.

"The reasons customers sometimes shy away from including barriers and column guards in the initial design are because they take up valuable space and add cost. It is, however, short-term thinking; experience has shown us that life-time costs are higher if the barriers and column guards are added later."

Cheap for a reason With the credit crunch biting, the second hand market for racking can be seen as more attractive, but beware, it throws up different challenges as Savage reveals, "Second hand kit can be a bit of a grey area.

Purchasers need to ensure they are buying it from reputable companies because otherwise they will have no clue as to where the racking has come from, what it was used for or whether it has been overloaded in its previous location.

"Like any second hand market there are a few tricks of the trade that less trustworthy dealers can employ such as cutting beams down or painting over corroded steel. So if it's cheap, it's usually cheap for a reason and long-term that can be very expensive in more ways than one," says Savage.

Although racking safety and compliance is complex, by ensuring your racking supplier is SEMA approved you can be confident that the quality of the storage equipment products and systems will be fit for purpose.

The products will be designed and tested to recognised and approved standards, and will be installed in accordance with acknowledged safety standards.

Regular visual checks by your own team and an external annual inspection using a SEMA Approved Inspector will help you maintain your storage system and identify areas of risk with SEMA's red, amber and green risk identification system. And one last word, having followed this procedure, don't forget to actually carry out the recommendations and repairs, otherwise it all counts for nothing!

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