Drive-In Rack in Halethorpe, Maryland

A railcar holds far more pallets than a truck. When it is one item, deep lanes absorb it neatly. Drive-in pallet rack stores the car's contents in a few lanes, one SKU each.

As orders ship, lanes empty from the front and wait for the next car.

Railcar weeks are busy, so schedule these walks for the quieter days after a car is cleared and before the next one is spotted at the door.

Packaging distributors off Southwestern Boulevard carry corrugated and film in bulk. Their staple items often hold enough pallets to fill a lane, while specialty items stay selective.

Halethorpe has many older, lower-clear warehouses, some near Relay and the Patapsco industrial area with uneven column spacing. Lanes are laid between columns, and the truck needs a square approach to each.

Clear height and the truck's guard determine how many pallets high a drive-in rack can go.

Single-entry lanes ship the last pallet in first. If the previous car must ship before the new one, drive-thru racking loads from the rail side and unloads toward the truck docks.

That layout fits rail buildings well, since product already flows from one side to the other.

Corrugated pallets are light but tall, and some lean if not wrapped. Rails support pallet edges, so pallets must be sound and loads stable.

Heavier film pallets set the rail and upright capacity.

The lane is built around the truck: width, mast and guard. Floor guides center it and post protectors absorb bumps. Send specs for every truck that will enter.

Non-air-conditioned buildings get hot in summer, which affects install crews and can soften stretch wrap. We plan installation by zone and recommend stable wrap for tall light loads.

For SKUs with a few pallets each, pushback rack in Halethorpe keeps trucks outside the lanes. For moderate depth with strict rotation, a Halethorpe pallet flow layout works well.

Depth follows the car. If a car brings sixty pallets of one item and you stack five high, three lanes of four deep hold it.

Splitting a car across several shorter lanes often beats one very deep lane, since each can empty independently.

Place the drive-in rack between the rail door and the truck docks. Freight then crosses the building once.

Keep the approach aisle wide enough for a counterbalance truck to turn and enter squarely, usually about 12 to 13 feet.

Rail crews and shipping crews then work from opposite sides without crossing paths.

Between cars, while lanes are low, walk each lane and look for bent rails, damaged posts and loose anchors. Empty lanes are the best time to see damage.

Clear debris from lane floors so trucks enter cleanly.

A short log of what was found and fixed helps spot lanes that take repeated hits, which often points to an approach problem worth correcting.

We are a division of Warehouse Equipment & Supplies Co., with rack supply and installation work going back to 1997.

The Halethorpe service area page and the drive-in rack overview have more; send railcar contents, pallet types and truck specs for a free layout.

Baltimore Pallet Racks

1400 W. Lombard St.

Unit #687

Baltimore, MD 21223

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

Can drive-in rack hold a full railcar of one item in Halethorpe?

Can drive-in ship older railcar lots first?

Do tall, light corrugated pallets work in drive-in?

Does drive-in fit older buildings near Relay?