Bradbury & Son, of Buxton in Derbyshire, is an international cheese importer and one of the largest independent importers of Edam in the UK. As such, the company must ensure that its storage and handling systems’ cleanliness and safety continue to meet the stringent controls associated with food hygiene.
Until recently, the company had been operating from three smaller warehouses but decided to build one major warehouse when it acquired a plot of land in 2002. The new facility would also provide a dedicated storage and handling system as well as preparatory rooms for each of its clients, which comprise all the major supermarkets in the UK.
The solution was created by Concept Storage Systems (CSS), a specialist in total storage and materials handling systems, based in Bawtry near Doncaster, South Yorkshire, which had been working closely with the importer for four years. CSS designed a bespoke plan housing pallet racking running from north to south and east to west, from wall to wall and floor to ceiling, together with a structural plan to construct the chill store building.
The racking system was based on Premierack from Hi-Lo and was designed by Concept Storage Systems to accommodate wide aisles and high lift reach trucks. It covers 1,365sq m and has an internal height of 10m, integrating a total of 2,500 pallets, three pallets per beam level and 12 pallets per bay.
Two single-sided racks along the north and south walls were fitted with back stop beams and floor-mounted angle stops to prevent pallets being pushed through and damaging the wall insulation panels. In addition, heavy-duty crash barriers and mesh overhead decking panels were located to the underside of both pedestrian and forklift truck access aisles to prevent accidents.
CSS worked closely with Jungheinrich – the German manufacturer supplied all of Bradbury & Sons’ materials handling equipment – to ensure complete integration of the whole system.
David Reep, managing director of CSS, says: “This was a very exciting project in terms of its 12-month time-scale and work process. We began installing the storage system in September at the same time as Multi-build, the main contractor, was putting the finishing touches to the overall structure. The whole project was completed for hand-over by the middle of October.”
Gordon Cossar, managing director of Hi-Lo, adds: “It was imperative that the storage system could meet the safety demands of the storage and handling environment. Premierack’s flexibility allowed the system to integrate back stop beams and floor mounted angle stops, ensuring the cheese stock, personnel and forklift drivers were protected at all times.”
Hi-Lo’s Premierack frame incorporates a 50mm pitch and a totally reversible upright with bolted bracing, available in a variety of gauges, helping to reduce waste and maximise storage space. The beams are available in open, box or stepped form, allowing greater adjustability, and the stiffening ribs and rolled edges of the five-hook connector offer increased stability. Other benefits of the Premierack system are an innovative footplate with two front tabs to secure each upright to the floor, offering improved frame stability when loading and unloading the racking and preventing the frame from rotating if it is struck. n
