Our first question this month asks for help with Horizontal Braces and our second is for the Inspection of shelving.

Horizontal Bracing

Q. I have been led to believe that the horizontal brace at the base of a frame should be between 150mm – 300mm, is this a recommendation or is there a tolerance to what height they have to be as this was not from a SEMA document? We are using bolted racking that is bolted to the floor front and rear with a maximum of four beams per frame. Our maximum load capacity would be 6 tons when fully laden.

A. It sounds as if you might be getting into very deep water here so we would urge the utmost caution.

Different manufacturers of racking specify different floor to first horizontal bracing dimensions and while the 150 to 300mm is usual this does vary between the manufacturers and also can also vary depending on the upright that the particular manufacturer is using in a particular set of circumstances.

The strength of an upright is calculated depending on where this and other frame bracing’s join the upright together with the position of the support beams in a particular installation so variation from manufacturer’s specification on any of those can have a serious effect of carrying capacity.

As you are a rack repair specialist we would recommend you obtain the specification from the particular manufacturer for the product you are maintaining and do not deviate from this recommendation without getting their specific approval of what you are doing and a written statement from them on what the revised carrying capacity would be!

Inspection of Shelving

Q. We have a number of sites in the UK. All have an element of pallet & cable racking which I understand is subject to annual inspection. But the rest is shelving which is replenished and picked from by hand, is this therefore exempt from annual inspection?

A. The short answer is yes, shelving is subject to the same recommendations as pallet racking so it does need to be inspected at similar intervals.

Plainly there are differences and while shelving is not usually subjected to the same magnitude of load as racking it is made from much thinner and lighter materials so damage can be caused more easily. Sometimes incorrect handling techniques such as standing on a lower shelf to pick from a higher one rather than getting a set of steps can cause serious damage to the shelf and in some circumstances can result in the rack being pulled over.

Shelving has a different set of problems and needs regular inspection because of this.

SEMA Annual Safety Conference 2017 – a date for your diary

The 2017 SEMA Safety Conference has been scheduled for Thursday, 2 November; the venue will be the National Motorcycle Museum, Solihull.

SEMA Rack Safety Awareness and Inspection Courses

Aimed at end users, giving an indepth look at the need for inspections, how to conduct an assessment and what actions to take when this is completed.

SEMA Approved Rack Inspectors Qualification

Aimed at professionals who conduct rack surveys as an integral part of their duties. It involves delegates in undertaking an indepth SEMA Course, together with an examination and practical assessment. CPD will be an important part of the qualification, demonstrating to end users that SEMA Approved Inspectors maintain a high professional standard.

SEMA USERS Club

SEMA runs a USERS Club designed to be of benefit to purchasers and users of storage equipment. Members receive newsletters, access to specialised events and discounted rates on publications and codes of practice.

SEMA

www.sema.org.uk

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