This quick and dirty primer on the most common types of pallet racks will help you determine which type is best suited to a particular application. To the untrained eye, it can be hard to distinguish between a raven and a crow. But birders know that ravens are bigger than crows, have a different call, and sport a wedge-shaped—instead of a fan-shaped—tail. Similarly, to the untrained eye, one rack can look pretty much like another. But if you hang around distribution centers and warehouses long enough, you know there are many different types of racks and that each boasts unique characteristics. Just as wildlife guides can help you identify which birds and animals you’d expect to find in which environments, the following field guide to racks can help you distinguish between some of the most common types of manual pallet racks. Ultimately, this information, coupled with a good understanding of your operation, should help you decide which racks are best for you. SELECTIVE RACK If you’re mentally picturing a rack right now, chances are you’re imagining a selective rack. Featuring the most basic of designs—two upright frames and shelf beams placed between them—selective racks are like the pigeons or sparrows of the rack world. Walk into just about any distribution center or warehouse, and you’re likely to see selective racking somewhere in the facility. Selective racking is only one pallet deep, and racks can be placed either against a wall or back to back. In a single bay of selective racking, you can have multiple beam levels, with forklift trucks generally used to place the pallets on the shelf beams. This type of pallet rack is called "selective rack" because it has a high level of selectivity, meaning that you can access every pallet in the racking system. The […]