Wickens have been manufacturing their heavy duty racking for 30 years so why are so few people aware of its potential? This is so much the case that Alan Cross, Wickens Sales Director, jokes that it is their “best kept secret”. “I think people see it as a heavy, more expensive pallet rack, when really it solves a variety of storage problems where pallet racking isn’t an option” Alan explains “It can support up to 20 tonnes a level or easily support very wide loads. It is generally better suited to robust environments or demanding applications.”
When Yamazaki Mazak approached Wickens for a durable racking system at their Worcester site Wickens immediately suggested heavy duty racking. Although a more costly solution to other proposals which recommended standard pallet racking, Wickens felt they needed a more robust and durable rack.
In addition, with space at a premium Mazak needed a flexible racking system, as Rob Harvey explains: “We don’t need all items in stock all of the time – we needed a rack which wasn’t dedicated to one product. Now we have an organised storage system with all our components being easily accessible.” One of the advantages over pallet racking is that heavy duty racking can cope with very wide bays, meaning Mazak could store various pallet widths on the same racking.
Wickens also recently worked with Varlin Storage Ltd, who specialise in air cargo storage, to design and install a heavy duty rack system at Heathrow Airport as a result of existing pallet racking systems becoming damaged too frequently. Cargo crates are frequently moved on and off the racking and a more robust solution was required to suit the airport’s needs. Wickens works together with its distributors to solve the specific storage problem and design a racking solution fit for purpose.
“Heavy duty racking is much more flexible than pallet racking – it has unlimited capabilities and can be designed to suit the exact application” argues Alan, “At Heathrow the racks were designed with integrated security cages and at Mazak the racks were galvanised for external use. It may appear to be more costly but in many situations can simply be designed to better suit the job.”
Wickens Engineering Ltd
Tel: 01905 456780
Email: sales@wickens.co.uk
www.wickens.co.uk
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