One of the most important parts of handling your warehouse pallets is to make certain that the goods on them are stacked correctly. If they aren’t, at best you’ll be wasting space. At worst, the products on the pallet could come tumbling down, damaging the items and even hitting a worker. This could lead to injury or death. It’s vital, then, that the goods on your pallets are stacked correctly.
Uniform Stacking
One important rule when stacking on a pallet is to only stack goods that are a uniform shape and size. This will keep the stack fairly even and level. It’s less likely that the products on the top of the pallet will shift or fall. This also lets you stack a pallet without any space between the goods.
Know the Right Height
You don’t want to stack goods too high. Doing so increases the chance that goods on the top of the pallet will fall. There’s also the fact that a pallet with too many goods on it will not fit on a pallet rack. It’s important that you know how much space is available on the lower and the middle racks so that you don’t stack the pallets too high. You also want to make sure that the pallets on the top rack aren’t stacked too tall. Even though there may be more space there, if you stack goods too high on the upper rack, they could tumble off when loading or unloading the pallet or if the rack is bumped.
Know the Right Weight
If you’re stacking goods that are fairly heavy, know how much weight you can put on a pallet. You need to know the maximum weight rating for the pallets you’re using, the pallet racks, and your forklifts. If you overload a pallet, it could break. It’s also possible that the weight will bend your pallet racks or be too much for your forklift to handle.
Watch for Loose Goods
Some goods aren’t fully packaged in boxes or wrapped. These products must be carefully stacked and wrapped with plastic or some other form of wrap in order to keep them from falling. Make certain that all pallets that need to be wrapped in plastic are before moving them.
Stack Pallets Evenly
If your pallets aren’t stacked evenly, it’s possible that they will shift on the forklift or after sitting for a period of time. You have to make certain that the weight is evenly distributed on the pallets so that they won’t shift unexpectedly. In most cases, pallets are stacked with all of the same items. However, if they aren’t for some reason, the heavier items should be placed in the center. This way, the weight is concentrated in the center of the pallet and shouldn’t cause everything to shift. Another option is to place all of the heavy items across the bottom of the pallet. However it’s stacked, make certain that the weight isn’t unbalanced. Otherwise, the pallet will be unsafe.
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