Lawrence Mok and Anthony Barbara at Dexion Australia highlight the growing challenges the pallet racking industry is facing to ensure safety remains the primary focus.
Recent events such as the cracking occurring in residential towers in Sydney, and scaffolding collapses, plus the exposure of dangerous and fatal accidents shared on Social media platforms remind us that we must always keep safety front of mind.
These catastrophic events should shine a spotlight on what your business is currently doing and how it can do it better.
Pallet racking in Australia
Storage, retrieval, and product handling under industrial racking systems is an integral cost and efficiency factor across distribution facilities. However, red flags are being raised over pallet racking operation and maintenance.
According to a study by Persistence Market Research, the global industrial racking system market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7 per cent over the next 10 years. This is due to warehouse expansions, the surge in e-commerce products and other automation factors.
Dexion manufactured storage solutions have been providing safe products for over 80 years and are one of the prominent market players in the business of pallet racking, shelving and storage. Lawrence Mok, Manager of Structural Engineering and Anthony Barbara, Senior Product Manager at Dexion say that an efficient warehouse is a critical part of success for businesses. Whether the design is simple racking, semi-automated or fully automated, the layout and structural design are critical to ensure a solution meets the safety standards, as well as being an efficient and flexible.
Lawrence and Anthony say a warehouse solution is like any piece of machinery. To ensure ongoing safety and compliance the storage solution needs to be maintained serviced regularly and repaired when damaged. Lawrence and Anthony warn that without proper engineering, pallet racking can become seriously dangerous. They’re urging companies to invest in safe structures in order to prevent potential racking failures that would be hazardous for workers and have a detrimental effect on the business.
Identifying the dangers
Lawrence and Anthony have a combined experience of 45 years in designing, developing and evolving products & racking solutions. As a qualified engineer who has worked across the Australasian market, Lawrence is regarded as the racking guru at Dexion Australia. They’ve seen new products and market trends sculpt the changing industry but are firm to say that safety has always been the top priority.
Dexion’s technical experts are concerned at the current neglect from companies who are failing to maintain an engineered pallet racking structure. They believe there is a lack of awareness surrounding pallet racking issues and businesses are compromising safety for cost effective solutions, that could be a dangerous decision.
Some customers are skyrocketing their risk towards a fatal accident due to a range of factors. The main dangers include mixing different brands to deliver pallet racking solutions for its warehouses and using racking companies that do not provide engineering certification of their product. Undertaking poor installation of the racking structure and failing to maintain rack structures in accordance with the code are also high-risk variables that contribute to avoidable accidents.
“This is common in small traders, they may think that if the beam slots in the upright position then the product is compatible, but this is a huge misconception,” Lawrence says.
Every solution has its own unique engineering requirement, the design may also include seismic considerations due to different locations and operational requirements. Lawrence says some manufacturers try to copy components from other pallet racking solutions that are inaccurate. Even worse when an inferior steel grade is used.
Beams accidentally dislodging and uprights collapsing under the weight of the load, are among the unknown risks when a structure isn’t fully customised and engineered. It is the workplace’s responsibility to maintain safety. The racking supplier should be providing the correct engineering certification to ensure the design is safe and made to the code.
Anthony says it is non-negotiable that racking structures that are used daily, need to be regularly maintained and serviced, just like you would with your car to prevent serious implications. A damaged upright or beam left in operation can cause a load to fall or rack to collapse. It is important that organisations have the processes in place to ensure a damaged area is blocked from use and assessed by an experienced rack inspector as soon as it is noticed.
An engineered solution
With over 80 years’ experience in delivering safe storage solutions, Dexion has delivered a diverse range of projects to thousands of customers. The company’s history and experience in the industry has shaped how they manage complex project requirements. A critical part of this is the safety culture that underpins all decisions. Dexion thrives on customer engagement. The company knows they need to understand every customer’s requirements to provide a solution that complies to relevant codes and standards, but also ensuring that the business is supported with training and governance post job installation.
Lawrence says other racking companies only focus on theoretical design for engineering certification, but Dexion believes in combining theory and actual part testing, as customers get a proven solution that is reliable, efficient and safety guaranteed. “We confirm all our calculations by physical tests. Theory is based on ideal conditions, and we know that there are other factors that can occur such as extreme weather events, so we test every detail and ensure its engineered correctly,” he says.
Maintaining safety
A racking collapse can cost businesses significantly in product and property damage, as well as causing serious injuries to warehouse workers. Dexion provides solutions for small and large warehousing operations, no matter the size of the organisation, the safety needs are the same.
Anthony says across Dexion’s 20 plus supply centres in Australia, everyone working throughout its warehouses have acknowledged the company’s commitment to safety. “I’ve never worked in an industry where people have worked for a brand and shown a total commitment to safety, you really can’t get better reassurance,” he says.
Dexion has trained certified rack inspectors that can ensure ongoing safety of your structure.
It is not uncommon for a fork truck or a pallet to collide with the racking structure. The inspector will highlight any areas that need repairing as well as ensure that any damaged racking is replaced by the correct components.
Dexion is one of a few companies that offers a lifetime warranty on their products. To maintain the warranty Dexion requires the customer to ensure their rack is inspected regularly and maintained.
Lawrence says Dexion’s structural design and testing supports all market sectors. From pallet racking that supports cardboard boxes to racks that are designed with fire sprinkler systems that are approved by local fire departments, it’s Dexion’s mission to deliver and maintain safe pallet racking for all industries.