When storing goods in a warehouse, there are a lot of factors to consider. Ultimately, even goods that are going to be stored for a long time need to be moved eventually. However, some goods need to be moved more frequently. This is where selectivity comes into play.
Selectivity, broadly speaking, refers to how easy it is to gain access to a specific pallet. Some pallet racking stores pallets multi-deep, meaning that some pallets are stored behind others. This is the case with racking like double deep pallet racking: half the pallets on the racking are stored behind other pallets. This means that the pallets stored at the back aren’t as easily selected as the ones at the front. In a warehouse storage situation like this, pallets of the same SKU are usually stored behind each other, so the lack of selectivity isn’t necessarily problem, but for warehouse storage situations where fast and easy access to each pallet is important, higher selectivity may be required.
These storage situations, situations where high selectivity is important, are usually for warehouses that hold a lot of different pallets of different SKUs, they may not have multiple pallets of the same SKU to store multiple deep. Other situations where selectivity is important include storing items that may require high stock rotation because perishable items are being stored, or even situations where stock rotation is very low, meaning pallets that may be blocked never get rotated out.
All in all, selectivity can be important for a lot of warehouse storage situations. However, in some situations, density is more important than selectivity.
What Kind Of Pallet Racking Is More Selective?
A common type of pallet racking for a variety of warehouse storage situations is selective pallet racking. As the name would suggest, this type of pallet racking gives access to all the pallets being stored in the warehouse; no pallets are stored behind another one. Selective pallet racking is often considered the most “basic” kind of pallet racking as well as the most affordable because it’s so simple. However, just because selective pallet racking is a more basic kind of pallet racking, it doesn’t mean it’s inferior to other types of pallet racking. In fact, selective pallet racking is one of the most common types of pallet racking because it suits so many different storage situations.
If you’re in a warehouse situation where you may not being storing many pallets, or if you have many different kinds of SKUs, selective pallet racking may be the best storage solution for your business.
Another highly selective type of pallet racking is narrow aisle pallet racking. Narrow aisle pallet racking is selective pallet racking placed closer together. This allows for more pallet storage in the same space, but restricts the type of manual handling equipment that can access the aisles between the racking. With narrow aisle pallet racking, standard forklifts usually can’t access pallets, so specialised equipment is needed. It’s a good trade off though where a higher density is needed along with selectivity.
What About Denser Pallet Storage Options?
Usually, as pallet storage gets denser, selectivity goes down. Push back pallet racking, for example, can store pallets very deep, blocking some pallets from being easily accessed. If a warehouse worker needs to access a pallet at the back of the racking, the pallets in front need to be moved first.
As mentioned though, this often isn’t a problem if a warehouse is storing goods that don’t need to be moved often or if stock rotation is high enough that pallets in front are moved frequently anyway. The fall in selectivity is made up for through general warehouse operations.
In fact, if a warehouse is storing many pallets of the same SKU, and it’s likely that all those pallets will be shipped at the same time, storing them behind each other isn’t an operational problem at all. Increasing the storage density can make it so that a larger warehouse isn’t needed, saving money on real-estate space.
What’s Right For You?
Ultimately, what’s right for a warehouse’s pallet storage comes down to its specific operational requirements. Some businesses need pallet racking with high selectivity and will use only selective pallet racking. Others need a very dense storage solution where selectivity isn’t important. For others, something in the middle is more appropriate or they’ll have a mix of different pallet racking for different products or different areas of the warehouse.
All that being said, making the right decision on the best type of pallet racking for your business can be difficult. You may know your business and your product very well, but you don’t know all the different kinds of pallet racking available. That’s where we come in. Get in touch with us today to talk about your storage needs and in order to find the perfect storage solution for you.
