Solid Shelving (part 1.5)

Prior to continuing the discussion on Solid Shelving I need to point out that I made a mistake in the last blog post. I used the photo below that I took off of the internet and referred to it as Cantilever Racking. This is an example of how as I age, my eyes are not as good as they used to be. I could clearly see the rack upright on the front part of the rack but could not see it on the back leg of the rack. If you look closely, you can see the rack upright on the back portion of the rack. It was pointed out that these are stacking frames that are individually transportable to any other location and does not represent cantilever racking. Cantilever racking is shown in Photo 2 below. Note the difference in that there is no front rack upright.

Photo 1: NOT Cantilever Racks

Photo 2: Cantilever Racks

I received comments from several individuals, and I appreciate them reaching out to me. In the final document I will correct the photo, but I found interesting the responses of two of the individuals who contacted me. One stated that sprinklers cannot be provided within the rack structure because of the stacking nature of the racks; while the other pointed out that the product is non-combustible, the racks are non-combustible and there is a general lack of combustibles in the building. Both gentlemen questioned the feasibility and the need for sprinklers in the racking. My response to both gentlemen was that the standard requires sprinklers in these racks (assuming that the building is required to be sprinklered) and that common sense or an equivalency/variance or alternate means is subject to negotiations with the official. (Contact your fire protection consultant for assistance).

As stated, the next blog post will return to the original discussion on solid shelving. Thank you to those individuals who reached out to me.

As always, I welcome your comments: j.schultz@the-fpi.com

Jerry Schultz, P.E.