Inspection and Maintenance of Racking
05 December 2017
When it comes down to racking , a regime of regular inspection should be carried out at a series of levels of competence.
Warehouse staff and fork lift truck operators should be encouraged to report all damage immediately as it occurs to ensure that appropriate action is taken to protect the safety of operatives and others.Regular formal inspections of all racking should be undertaken by warehouse supervisors at weekly and monthly intervals to identify and act upon any damage not yet reported. This should include the removal of products from random bays so that a more in-depth inspection can be carried out.
Yearly or half-yearly inspections should be carried out by a technically competent individual, fully experienced in the identification and categorisation of racking damage. This individual may be a fully trained member of management, the rack manufacturer or supplier’s technical expert or an independent consultant.
The frequency of each level of inspection must be adjusted with due regard to the throughput of the warehouse. High usage stores require a more regular inspection. Cold store conditions are more demanding for materials as well as staff and therefore this must be taken into account when determining the frequency of inspection and the skill of the inspector.
All surveys must be conducted, and in particular documented in the maintenance log, in a systematic and clear manner. The survey will classify damage according to severity. Generally, three degrees of damage will exist; Green, Orange and Red alert levels.
Red alerts are items of the racking which are severely damaged well beyond the limitations allowed. In such circumstances, the racking should be immediately off-loaded and isolated from use until repair work is carried out. This type of repair work would normally consist of the replacement of the damaged item. A written report will also usually be provided by the racking inspector to notify the racking user of the seriousness of the situation.
Orange alerts are issued when the items are damaged beyond the limitations allowed but not serious enough to warrant the off-loading of the rack. Staff should however be informed that once the rack is off loaded, it is not to be reused until the repairs have been carried out. If the rack with an orange alert has not been off loaded within 4 weeks, it then becomes an immediate red alert and the racking should be off loaded instantly.
Green alerts are items which are damaged but are within the limitations allowed. Such items should be recorded as being suitable for use but be identified for future reference and monitoring.
Damage Requiring Replacement
Anything which significantly changes the original cross section profile or deforms the straightness of any load bearing member or which significantly weakens jointed members due to failed welds or loose bolts, requires replacement.
Damage to Racking
Any damage to a rack upright will reduce its load carrying capacity. The greater the damage the greater will be the reduction in its strength until the upright collapses at its normal working load.
Damage to bracing sections will reduce the capacity of racking frames to withstand accidental frontal impacts and may reduce the axial load carrying capability of frame uprights. Failed welds or lose bolts requires replacements.
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Assessment of Damage to Uprights and Bracing Members
A steel straight edge 1m long is placed in contact with a flat surface on the concave side of the damaged member such that the damaged area lies central as near as possible to the length of the straight edge.
For an upright bent in the direction of the rack beam spans, the maximum gap between the upright and straight edge should not exceed 5mm.
For an upright bent in the plane of the frame bracing, the maximum gap between the upright and straight edge should not exceed 3mm.
For bracing members bent in either plane, the gap between the straight edge and the bracing member must not exceed 10mm. These rules apply to damage which produces an overall bend in a member. They do not apply to highly localised damage such as dents, buckles, tears and splits. Members subject to these defects should be replaced.
Assessment of Damage to Beams
Beams will normally deflect under normal working conditions to a maximum permissible of SPAN/200 (e.g. 3000mm/200 = 15mm deflect allowed) This deflection should disappear when beams are unloaded and should not be confused with permanent deformation caused by overloading or impact damage.
Damage should be measured against the following criteria: Beam and connectors which show any clearly visible deformation should be unloaded and expert advice should be gathered from the equipment supplier.
Welded connections between beam section and end connector should show no signs of cracking.
