UNEX Gravity Flow Rack Systems
In today's fast-paced supply chain environment, businesses in manufacturing, warehousing, order fulfillment, and logistics are encountering a myriad of challenges amidst growing trends. Globalization is stretching supply chains thin, while the continued surge in eCommerce is driving the need for quicker, more efficient operations. Increasing costs, especially on transportation, labor, and warehouse space are among the top challenges supply chain professionals are faced with solving. But when it comes to reducing costs and alleviating some of these burdens, UNEX offers several space-saving solutions that can help in each of these areas.
UNEX Roller Rack is a convenient gravity flow rack system that can help businesses across the supply chain save time, space, and money to offset rising costs and remain competitive as consumer demand continues to increase with no signs of slowing. Roller Rack is a dynamic storage solution for manufacturing, warehousing, and order fulfillment. It is a carton flow rack and track system that offers superior flexibility, adaptability, and ease of use compared to other similar solutions on the market. In this article, we will unpack everything there is to know about UNEX Roller Rack so you can evaluate how this transformative solution can help you increase operational efficiency in your facility. Let’s get started!
What is Roller Rack?
In brief, Roller Rack is a pre-engineered gravity flow rack. Instead of purchasing pallet rack and shelving for said pallet rack separately, Roller Racks are pre-configured structures that come with UNEX racking and dynamic carton flow tracks out of the box. Roller Racks are easy to assemble and offer greater flexibility than traditional pallet racking can for a wide range of applications. Roller Rack is designed to optimize efficiency, safety, and first in first out (FIFO) rotation in a multitude of settings.
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Roller Rack Features, Benefits, and Specifications
UNEX Roller Rack provides carton flow for the various storage mediums used in order picking operations. Our Roller Racks are manufactured with welded uprights and roll-formed crossbeams for a heavy-duty standalone structure. Roller Racks are pre-configured, easy to assemble, and ready when facilities need them.
Roller Rack Features and Benefits
- Drop-in beam clips for fast installation and adjustability
- Modular design for maximum flexibility
- Adjustable pick trays and knuckle track positions available
- Speed pick rates
- Free up space for additional SKUs
- Create bays seven times denser than pallet position storage
- Reduce picker travel time by up to 80%
- Maximize flexibility to create standalone carton flow units or add units to create carton flow bays
- Quick and easy to build and install
- Allow for compact storage, reduced freight costs, and less damage
- Improve access and visibility, reduce strain on workers
- Replenish inventory from the back without interrupting processes in the front
Roller Rack Specifications
- Available Widths: 4' and 8'
- Available Depths: 4', 6', and 8'
- Beams: 14 ga., 1-5/8" x 3-1/2" High, 3000 lbs. capacity over uniformly distributed load per pair — 4' and 8'
- Uprights: 84" High x 24" or 48" Deep
- Carton Flow: SpanTrack Lane or SpanTrack Wheel Bed, Knuckle or Straight
- Color: UNEX Blue RAL #5005
Roller Rack Applications and Use Cases
Integrating Roller Rack into your operation is a simple way to boost efficiency. Whether you're building a manufacturing supermarket, optimizing part picking in your assembly operation, or looking to improve sight lines and increase throughput in your order fulfillment warehouse or retail backroom, Roller Rack offers many benefits.
Roller Rack for Manufacturing
When it comes to manufacturing and assembly operations, Roller Rack can be utilized in numerous ways. Key manufacturing applications where pick shelves can be beneficial include but are not limited to:
- Manufacturing Supermarkets: A manufacturing supermarket mimics the functionality of a retail supermarket. Factory workers pull components from shelves as needed for manufacturing, similar to how shoppers pull products from grocery store shelves. Roller Rack is perfect for manufacturing supermarkets due to its durable, flexible, and modular design. Utilizing Roller Rack with SpanTrack Lane or SpanTrack Wheel Bed will increase space utilization in your manufacturing supermarket area by 50% or more, reducing workers' search and travel times and streamlining replenishment.
- Lineside Storage: In assembly environments, storing bulk items lineside takes up valuable real estate, even when the material requirements are minimal. By storing only what is necessary for an hour, shift, or production run on the line, manufacturing facilities can reduce storage space requirements, shorten their production lines, and improve productivity. Roller Rack can be used to create space-efficient lineside storage racks to prevent the overstocking of parts in this critical area of the plant.
- Presentation Racks: Presentation racks make it easy for workers to pick small parts out of multiple-sized totes in assembly operations. Roller Rack presentation racks utilize UNEX SpanTrack with knuckled end treatments that angle parts toward the picker. These racks can be utilized in many areas of a facility to store essential tools, parts, and other resources needed for manufacturing and assembly processes.
Roller Rack for Order Fulfillment
- Order Picking: With the proper warehouse storage solutions and order picking strategy, fulfillment centers can improve storage density, increase order accuracy, reduce labor costs, and boost order picking productivity. For order picking operations where overhead storage is not required or ceiling height is limited, Roller Rack is a great solution. Roller Rack with SpanTrack Lane or Wheel Bed can accommodate each picking or case picking. Roller Rack ensures FIFO stock rotation, reduces travel and search time, and saves space, making it a game-changer for those looking to increase efficiency and save money on operation costs.
- Pick Modules and Mezzanines: Pick modules are multi-level, engineered systems comprising various storage mediums designed to move SKUs throughout a fulfillment operation. Pick modules are found in fulfillment operations across industries including retail, eCommerce, grocery, wholesale distribution, pharmacy, beer, wine, and liquor distribution. Roller Rack is the ideal gravity flow rack for optimizing pick modules since overhead space is often limited, eliminating traditional pallet racking as an option. UNEX Roller Rack outfitted with SpanTrack Lane or Wheel Bed can maximize space in your pick module and increase throughput by up to 150% compared to picking from pallets!
Because of Roller Rack's adaptability, you can store products above or below warehouse mezzanines without redesigning them or installing pallet racking. This allows you to make more efficient use of the space in your warehouse, particularly around tricky areas like pick modules or mezzanine. - Retail Backroom and Customer Pickup Areas: Retailers can leverage innovative retail storage solutions to optimize eCommerce fulfillment by maximizing storage density and accessibility in small spaces in the retail backroom and other areas of brick-and-mortar retail stores, like customer pickup areas. Roller Rack is a great option for optimizing your retail backroom and customer pickup areas for maximum storage density and faster order fulfillment.
The Roller Rack Difference
There are many applications where Roller Rack can not only improve but also revolutionize manufacturing and order fulfillment operations. But when there are so many storage solutions to choose from, how can you be sure UNEX Roller Rack is right for your facility?
Unless you require overhead storage of pallets, Roller Rack will always be the best choice for standalone carton flow racking. Roller Rack outpaces standard pallet rack with SKU storage that is 7x more dense, which reduces travel time between picks by 80%. That’s hard to beat, but here are just a few more key factors that highlight the Roller Rack difference:
Roller Rack Makes Your Life Easier
Roller Rack is a convenient purchase. Roller Rack and the SpanTrack used within it can be purchased and shipped from a single point - UNEX. You won't have to go to a pallet rack distributor and then to another location that sells carton flow tracks or shelving. Roller Rack is engineered in 4’ and 8’ widths, and 4’, 6’, and 8’ depths, meaning you won't have to search a distributor's inventory to find beams to fit your specific application. Roller Rack removes many of the inconvenient variables involved in purchasing the right carton flow rack for your specific operation.
Plus, it is very easy to assemble. Roller Rack provides extreme flexibility for whatever your carton flow needs may be, with a variety of standard sizes that can function as a standalone bay or be assembled to create rows of multiple carton flow bays. Its knock-down design makes Roller Rack easy to build, move, ship, or store as needed. Because Roller Rack does not need to support heavy pallets, it uses less steel than a traditional pallet rack solution, which means it also costs much less than solutions utilizing traditional pallet racking.
Roller Rack is Flexible and Adaptable
Roller Rack offers better adjustability than your typical pallet racking. The modified teardrop punching in the Roller Rack posts is two inches on center. Pallet rack can range anywhere from three to six inches on center. Roller Rack’s closer punching means you can adjust the levels of your beams to more exact heights than regular pallet rack. Roller Rack also has smaller posts and beams than typical pallet racking, which offers better sight lines throughout your facility. The beams take up less vertical space, providing higher-density storage and lower pick elevations.
Roller Rack is a fantastic solution for situations where carton flow is required but overhead clearance is limited. If standard pallet racking is not an option due to height limitations and you do not require overhead storage of pallets, Roller Rack is the best solution for the job.
Increase Operational Efficiency with UNEX Roller Rack
Maximize space and save on operational costs when you choose Roller Rack gravity flow racks. Whether you’re designing a new facility or redesigning an existing one, Roller Rack is a powerful dynamic storage solution that can make a significant impact on your operation’s overall efficiency. UNEX offers total solutions for your storage needs, including free engineering support on all projects. Contact us today, and our team of product specialists will help you determine the right combination of dynamic storage solutions for your particular needs.
