How Is Weight Distributed On A Shelf?

Does your warehouse storage equipment sag when your workforce stacks products on top of them? This would usually be a sign that they are unstable and close to collapse – which is the worst-case scenario for your warehouse business.

Not only would this result in a total loss on your commercial shelving, but this also results in stock loss and potential injury to your staff working around them. Either way, it costs your company an astronomical amount of money and loss.

You need to ensure that all of your warehouse storage equipment and fixtures are properly installed and only utilised for the products they are designed to stock – nothing heavier than the weight guidelines they have.

To properly distribute weight on your shelving solutions, there are some guidelines to follow to the letter.

Forward Planning

No matter if it is shelving or industrial storage racks, consider the amount of weight you will be required to store upon them and hope many your products weigh.

Alongside that, take into consideration how tall and wide these products will be and how many are to be stacked within the spaces allocated for them. Looking ahead at the possibility of these products changing in volume or being more in demand in certain parts of the year gives you a clearer input to storage component requirements and makes an easier choice of system to meet the weight needs.

Even is Everything

Evenly distributing weight across your shelving or storage solutions is an essential part of avoiding structural collapse.

It is deemed best practice to place heavier items on the sides of your shelves and lighter items more centrally. When possible, place the heaviest stock over the brackets of your system. No single part of a shelf should hold more weight than other parts of your shelf.

Adhere to Guidelines

Every shelving and pallet racking manufacturer will provide strict instructions regarding weight capacity.

These guides are extremely helpful when purchasing and loading storage components, but it is always better to be safe than sorry. Storing weight that exceeds the manufacturer’s guidelines, it is best to reinforce the current system or upgrade to a system that allows for more support for products at a higher and riskier level. Do not take chances with your storage system guidelines for weight storage, as this is sure to end badly in most instances.

Contact the team at Monarch Shelving today for all pallet racking and commercial shelving requirements.