Selective Racking System

Selective pallet racking system is one of the popular warehouse racking systems in Malaysia. It is specifically designed to store any type of palletized goods within a structured framework of horizontal beams, with direct access provided to every location using forklifts. Access to each level is facilitated, making selective racking very popular among warehouses with high product variety or frequent stock rotation.

Advantages of Selective Racking Systems 

This makes selective racking the best alternative and affords several benefits for warehouse operations. 

• Increased Accessibility: Selective racking does not require one to pass through the system to reach any pallet. This allows simple loading, unloading, and stock management, therefore increasing the overall efficiency of the warehouse. 

• Adaptability: The selective racking system is very adaptable. The adjustable beams can be set for the accommodation of varied pallets in size and weight, thus applicable to a diverse range of products. 

• Affordable: Compared with other complex automatic storage systems, selective racking is a cheaper system. They feature simple structures, which means that the investment cost and installation costs are lower. Moreover, the selective racking storage capacity can be increased with great ease. 

• Space Optimization Potential: Although selective racking uses more floor space because of work aisles, there is the possibility of maximizing space. For example, in the case of very narrow aisle (VNA) racking, the storage system can fully maximize the potential to a great extent in a warehouse's footprint.

Disadvantages of Selective Racking Systems 

Despite its many advantages, selective racking has a number of disadvantages: 

• Space Requirements: Special work aisles for the operation of forklifts will need to be allocated when selective racking systems are used. This might work against the interests of warehouses where space is a premium, or else it brings down the total storage capacity as compared to high-density storage solutions. 

• Volume Suitability: Selective racking is best suited for low-to-medium volume of goods within a warehouse. The larger storage space that will be used and potentially greater costs compared to per-square-meter could be a slight hindrance to a high amount of pallets being housed in the facility. 

• Storage Cost Consideration: Although selective racking is an economical solution, the more efficient use of floor space may drive the storage costs slightly higher on a per square meter basis compared to compact systems maximizing space usage.

Business applications of selective racking systems

Selective racking systems are ideal storage systems for warehouses that have the following characteristics: 

• High product variety: Warehouses that handle a wide range of SKUs need the ease of access and flexibility that selective racking affords. 

• Direct access needs: In case there's a great need for regular retrieval and stocking of stocks, there is ease of access to pallets individually with selective racking. 

• Non-homogenous goods: Warehouses storing products whose shapes, sizes, or weights are not uniform find the benefits of selectivity racking. 

• Specialized product storage: Selective racking may support pallets that contain bulky items or drums, spools, or odd-shaped containers. 

• Mixed storage: When there is selective racking for heavy pallets, placing long-span shelving or carton flow rack systems below guarantees better optimization of space regarding picked lighter goods.

FAQ

1. What are the different types of selective storage systems? 

There exist various types of selective storage systems: 

• Adjustable pallet racking: The most traditional system with beams and frames for storing pallets with forklift access. 

• VNA (Very Narrow Aisle) racking: An optimized space version of adjustable racking with reduced aisle width, served by specialized forklifts.

2. Explain the difference between adjustable pallet racking and VNA racking. 

Adjustable pallet racking has a standard layout with wide aisles, hence offering room for forklift movement. VNA racking uses a similar type of structure but can have much narrower aisles that can only be managed by specialized forklifts, hence giving up storage areas to fit, which finally increases the overall density of storage.

3. Double deep and mobile pallet racking are fully selective systems. 

No, these systems are adaptations of selective racking and increase storage density at the expense of complete selectivity.

• Double-deep pallet racking allows storage of two pallets deep, but the front pallet must be moved to access the one behind. 

• Mobile pallet racking, however, uses bases fitted onto wheels to form a very compact storage block. Only the chosen aisle for access permits direct retrieval of pallets.

4. When would a warehouse select VNA racking instead of adjustable pallet racking? 

In warehouses where the problem of available space is acute and which have vast volumes of palletized goods, VNA racking may be an excellent option to maximize storage. But taking specialized forklifts and narrower aisles into account, the operational complexity and picking speeds may be compromised.

5. What are some limitations of mobile pallet racking systems? 

While mobile pallet racking provides high optimization of space, it can have its disadvantages; for example, when a particular aisle is to be opened for access, more time may be taken, therefore causing disruptions in work that goes on in the other aisles. Also, these systems may not be fit to store very heavy pallets due to the limitation in weight applied on the mobile bases.