STORAX Cantilever
How to save on space and Cut Overheads

When a Metal bar and tube manufacturing company bought out a major competitor, it wanted to rationalise its Extruded Products Division to one site, to maximise returns.

But 'fitting a quart into a pint pot' gave them some problems as their Customer Services Manager relates: "we invested in new casting and extrusion equipment, and because we needed to have all the operations on one site at Aldridge, we needed more space in which to house the extra machinery and to store the finished products.

"We did not want to extend any of the buildings, because of the high cost to build new accommodation, and because extensions would take too long, and incur even higher rates bills, so raising our overheads".

An additional complication was the manner in which the company stored its finished products - a mixture of fairly basic static racking and stacked metal stillages.

The only way to remove the products was by means of overhead cranes and slings. And all too often the product required was at the bottom of a stack which all had to be moved to extract the needed goods.

They made use of a specialist Engineering company to design the plant's new layout and prepare specifications for the contract, and handle the project management tasks. This work led to them placing an order for STORAX mobile cantilever racking from Storax Racking Systems. Rails were laid on the existing floor, and bedded in a new concrete overfloor, quickly, and with minimum disturbance to the current operation - another plus point as far as they were concerned.

"We saw an immediate two fold benefit from the installation of our first STORAX racking" says the Customer Services Manager. "First, it saved us the required space, second our storage and retrieval system is far more efficient, which saves us even more on our operating costs". Indeed, the first installation was so successful that phase two, with more than twice the storage capacity of phase one, was installed soon after.

A spokesman for the company concluded "some people here had their doubts about the system to start with, but it is apparent that installing it was a good move, and that STORAX helped us achieve our objectives as far as saving space and money are concerned".