Warehouse Blog

Warehouse Rack & Shelf Can Help You Go Green

Happy Earth Day!

As I was driving out of my neighborhood this morning in my Chevy Tahoe I noticed some of my neighbors were walking down the street with their children. I remembered that my kids school had sent a letter saying that they were encouraging parents to walk their children to school today for Earth Day. 

Since its inception in 1970, Earth Day has been an annual campaign to inspire awareness of and appreciation for the Earth's environment. Earth Day and the green movement seems to have gained more recognition in recent years. Most of my neighbors put out their recycling bins each week on trash day. I think "going green" has become popular not only because it helps the environment but because it's become profitable.  

Warehouse Rack & Shelf LLC offers a variety of environmentally friendly, sustainable green products. Our green products include the following:   

Plastic Pallets

Plastic Collapsible Bulk Containers

Wire Containers, Wire Decking & Wire Pallets

Steel Folding Gates

Perforated Metal, Expanded Metal, Corrugated Metal Decking & Bar Grating 

Our metal, wire and plastic products are all manufactured with 50% recycled materials. The true green value of our recycled metal and plastic products is that it continues to be recyclable for future generations. Choosing Warehouse Rack & Shelf's products with recycled content may help your next project have a green impact on our environment. I look forward to discussing our sustainable product options with you. Let's "go green" together!

  

Send Me A Funny Picture

Thank you for the great pictures. Keep them coming. Send them to brad@rackandshelf.com.  Warehouse guys have the greatest sense of humor. I hope these pictures don't offend anyone. Have a great day! 

 

Pallet Trucks With The Turn@bout Adapter Can Turn In 72% Less Space

There are not too many things more difficult to maneuver than a pallet jack, especially when empty.

Pallet jacks are engineered to move heavy loads. As a result, they are unwieldy and difficult to maneuver when empty. Pulling a pallet jack is not easy for most workers. They don't track well: corners get scraped, displays knocked over and people potentially run into.

Now there is a NEW, unique solution!

No more wide turns or having to kick or wrestle the pallet jack into position. Not only does the Turn@bout by Grand Steer, Inc. easily glide under pallets, the pallet jack follows you like a new puppy. It tracks around the warehouse like its an extension of your arm. You get where you are going safer, faster, and it is easier to pick up your load when you arrive.

The Savings Of Used vs. New Pallet Racks

Yes, there is a saving on used vs. new pallet rack. I see a larger savings (per piece) on smaller quantities of used pallet racking. The rack factories get very aggressive when pricing large quantities of new pallet rack. If you have 2-3 weeks to wait for production pricing you can get large quantities of new pallet rack shipped directly from the factory to your dock at tremendously low prices. The factories have to keep their production lines running.

With the advent of teardrop uprights with bolted bracing I find that the difference in price between the cost of new vs. used uprights is very slim. Although the savings is much greater on used vs. new beams. The combination of new uprights and used beams can offer you the greatest savings.

It is important to purchase rack that is located close to the job-site. You will find that the savings of used racking can disappear quickly in extra freight cost. The largest rack factories and dealers have shipping locations strategically located across the Country with one near you.  

Why ia there not a greater savings in used vs. new pallet racks? The answer is that there are many costs associated with used racking.  There's disassembly costs, handling costs, freight cost to get the material back to my warehouse, warehousing costs, etc.  By the time you pay to recondition the rack much of the savings is gone. New or used, call me at 800-763-9020 x222 and let me get you the lowest prices on your next pallet rack purchase. 

       

  

6 Sigma Black Belt & The Kaizen Philosophy Of Continuous Improvement

I had an interesting conversation with Patrick Russell, Terminal Manager at Active USA in Chillicothe, OH. He is a Six Sigma Black Belt and he is implementing the Kaizen philosopy of lean manufacturing with value added items. According to Wikipedia, Six Sigma is a business management strategy, initially implemented by Motorola, that today enjoys widespread application in many sectors of industry:

Six Sigma seeks to identify and remove the causes of defects and errors in manufacturing and business processes. It uses a set of quality manufacturing methods, including statistical methods, and creates a special infrastructure of people within the organization ("Black Belts" etc.) who are experts in these methods. Each Six Sigma project carried out within an organization follows a defined sequence of steps and has quantified financial targets (cost reduction or profit increase).

Patrick's goal is to reduce waste by 20%. By implementing some Kaizen steps he has been able to cut