How To Protect My Pallet Rack

If the photo above looks familiar to you, you need to consider protecting your pallet racking system. We have all seen the videos on the internet of the disastrous pallet rack collapse. Putting a racking system in your warehouse can be nerve racking and dangerous if you do not work with someone who is qualified to provide the equipment and if you do not protect it properly. So that raises the question. How do I properly protect my pallet racking. Here are a few of our favorite ways that we do so:

1. Column Protectors
2. Guard Rail
3. End of Aisle Guards
4. Bull Nose Protectors
5. Column Reinforcements
6. Bollards
7. Double Posting
8. Heavy Horizontal

Now let's discuss some of the options above:

1. Column Protectors for Pallet Racking:

Pallet Rack column protectors are an easy and affordable way to protect you pallet rack from forklift damage. They are easy to install after you have already bought your pallet rack. 

Most pallet rack column protectors have 4 anchor bolt holes that connect it to the concrete. Some have 2 anchor bolt holes and bolt through the upright. And then some are plastic or rubber, and just mount to the front of the upright. 

All of these are viable options, it just depends on what you prefer. Also column protectors come in height of 12", 18", and 24". Which one you need kind of depends on where you experience pallet rack damage the most. 

2. Guard Rail

In the picture below you can see double high guard rail protecting the end of rows of pallet racking. Guard Railprovides maximum protection to pallet racking end of rows which are especially vulnerable to forklift damage. 

Guard Rail can be single high or double high depending on what you prefer. Single high is a little bit cheaper but still offers good protection. 

If you have sit down forklifts, guard rail is especially effective at protecting your pallet rack end of aisles.

3. End of Aisle Guards

Pictured below is Steel Kings End of Aisle Guard. This product is another great way to stop forklift damage from happening to those end of aisle uprights. 

In the picture the end of aisle guards are lining a tunnel bay to keep the lifts from running into them. These guards are especially effective from keeping outriggers on stand up lifts from plowing through your racking system. 

On top of adding protection, they also give your pallet rack a sleek low profile finish.

4. Bull Nose Protectors

If you have stand up reach trucks to operate in you pallet racking system, you need to invest in bull nose column protectors to protect your investment and your employees. 

To the left is a Savety Yellow Products bull nose protector. It is easily installed on any standard pallet rack upright with 1 anchor bolt that goes through the front to lock it in place. 

Using stand up reach trucks without bull nose protection will leave your rack exposed to a lot of damage from the outriggers on the forklift.

5. Column Reinforcement

Pictured is Steel King's Column Core for the SK2000 line. This product is exceptionally effective at reducing damage to uprights, and it does not impeded into any aisle ways.

It is a piece of structural channel that is dropped inside the column and tak welded into place. Manufacturers that provide this product are Steel King, Speedrack, Unarco (uses a wood filler), and ridg-u-rak has their own style of column reinforcement.

This is a custom addition to pallet rack that can be added upon request. 

6. Bollards

Bollards for Pallet Rack Protection are a good old fashioned way to protect your pallet rack from damage and reduce having to spend money on costly repairs, not to mention keeping employees and inventory safe.

These style of bollards are mounted at the end of rows with 4 concrete anchors in the ground. 

7. Double Posting

Double Posting your pallet rack uprights is a fantastic way to reduce damage. Pictured is a sample that we have of a double posted front upright on a structural upright. It also includes a welded cap over the column to pass food inspections.

The key to double posting the uprights effectively is running the double post up through the first beam level. Otherwise you are just creating a place for the upright to bend. 

Double posting offers protection to the upright and also increases upright capacity. This is a custom option that can be added to the pallet rack upright.

8. Heavy Horizontal

Heavy horizontal on pallet racking is another feature you can use to make your rack system bullet proof. Commonly used on pallet rack systems ie: drive in, to protect those uprights deep in the system. 

Pictured is a special upright with a bull nose protector (welded on) and a heavy horizontal. The heavy horizontal is the piece of c channel that has the hole punched in it to get an anchor into place. 

These are great to use in pallet rack system because replacing uprights in the middle of the system can be time consuming and costly