Different Kinds of Shelving Units Used in Warehouses

April 26, 2021 7:50 am

Determining the exact type of shelving most suitable for a warehouse is directly dependent on several considerations. First of those is the type of wares it is intended to store. In order to make the correct decision and maximize warehouse efficiency and capacity, it is important to make an informed decision. In order to do that, let’s examine the different types of shelving, going over options such as bin shelving units, steel shelves, and more.

Common Shelving Varieties
As we just observed, shelving comes in many shapes and sizes and is widely used across a multitude of industries. Let’s go over a few of the options in this wider category.

Industrial Steel Shelving
This is a rather wide category in its own right, which includes open and closed steel shelving of the heavy duty variety. While closed shelf designs provide increased structural durability and create a more organized look, open steel shelving is more accessible. It is easier to reach by forklift for picking and restocking, making it more versatile. Either can be used as bin shelving units for a more efficient organizing of smaller inventory items.

The three major types of industrial steel shelves are boltless, welded or assembled using fasteners or bolts.

Rivet or Boltless Steel Shelving
This type of steel shelving is very popular due to the fact that it’s assembled using minimal tools (although it does require professionals for this!). It can also be completed faster than welded shelves for this same reason.

The rivets are used to fit into teardrop shaped slots in the upright posts, and hammered in using a mallet. Afterwards the shelf is secured in place under its own weight and the weight of items stored on it. Those are used mostly for open steel shelving systems.

Bin Shelving Units
This type of unit was mentioned above but is in fact a category in its own right. Closed steel shelving of this variety utilizes full height dividers in order to create small separate compartments for organizing smaller inventory items.

This type of shelving is available in a variety of sizes, with repositionable dividers with increments of 2” allowing for maximal versatility. As a result one shelf can hold anything from magazines to PC computers and other smaller or larger items.

Multi-Level Shelf Systems
Those complex structures deserve a separate article but we will mention them here briefly. Multi-level systems are equipped with stairs, railings, catwalks and other connecting features that make the most of high structures’ vertical spaces. Widely used in apparel storage with wireframe open steel shelving for maximum visibility.

Those are of course only a few of the shelves produced by WPSS. Please feel free to get in touch with us directly or visit our website at https://www.wpso.com/pacific-steel-shelving/solutions/

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