Pallet Flow Rack in Essex, Maryland

Resin, coatings, adhesives and packaging often carry shelf-life dates. Using old material first protects the product and reduces scrap.

Pallet flow racking placed at the line delivers the oldest pallet to the operator every time. Receiving loads the back; production pulls the front.

Ask the line supervisor which materials run short most often. Those are usually the first lanes to plan, and their answer often matters more than any report from the system.

The same idea works for finished goods. Production loads lanes from the line side, and shipping picks from the dock side.

That turns the rack into a buffer between the two departments, with product moving one way only.

Older Essex buildings near Pulaski Highway and Back River Neck tend to have lower roofs. A gravity flow rack there usually runs two or three levels.

Lanes rise toward the loading end, so we check clearance at the high end, not just the pick face.

Drums, steel parts and dense materials are heavy. Rollers, brakes and frames are sized for the heaviest pallet, and speed controllers keep it moving slowly.

At the lane exit, a separator pauses the pallets behind so the forks lift freely.

Industrial pallets take abuse. Broken boards or protruding nails stop lanes. A simple receiving check and a standard pallet for flow lanes prevent most problems.

Drums often need a slip sheet or dedicated pallet to roll properly.

Size lanes from usage between deliveries. If the line uses four pallets of a material between shipments, a lane of five or six holds it with some buffer.

Deeper lanes for slow materials just tie up rollers.

Materials without shelf-life rules can go into pushback rack in Essex, which loads and picks from one aisle. Small parts used at the line fit carton flow rack in Essex.

Where the flow block sits relative to the line decides how much walking operators do. Put the pallet flow rack exit right at the point of use, with the loading aisle facing receiving.

In Rossville area plants, that often means a short block of three or four lanes beside each work cell instead of one large block. Smaller blocks closer to the work usually beat one big gravity flow rack across the building.

Mark the floor at each exit so operators know where to stage empties.

Tugs, carts and forklifts all pass near line-side lanes. Exit guards protect the lowest beam and the separator from impacts.

In older Eastern Boulevard plants with narrow aisles, guards are worth the few inches they take. Mark the floor where operators stand to pull the front load so traffic keeps clear of that spot.

Ours is a division of Warehouse Equipment & Supplies Co., a company supplying and installing storage since 1997.

See the Essex service area page or the pallet flow rack page, then tell us material weights, pallet types and usage rates. We will sketch the pallet flow racking free.

Baltimore Pallet Racks

1400 W. Lombard St.

Unit #687

Baltimore, MD 21223

Monday - Friday: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Can pallet flow rack feed a production line in Essex?

Will drums roll on pallet flow?

How many levels fit an older building on Pulaski Highway?

How deep should production supply lanes be?