Mezzanine Safeti-Gates, Inc.

Rack Supported Roly Safety Gate.

Statistics from the United States Department of Labor show that two-thirds of all workplace fall fatalities occur from positions higher than ground level. Many material handling employees working on upper levels and elevated platforms need to work quickly when materials are being loaded and removed. Devices ensuring employee safety must be in place, regardless of the existing structures in the facility.

Many of today’s warehouses and distribution facilities use a range of picking modules. Often, high-lift forklifts serving multiple levels are used in material handling operations. Space for safety devices on elevated platforms is often non-existent, but nonetheless, these devices are a necessity.

“Pick modules are an effective and economical method of delivering and separating products,” said Aaron Conway, vice president of Mezzanine Safeti-Gates, Inc. “It is common to see rack modules with four, or even five, picking levels high in order to maximize cube space utilization. However, modules this high create a serious safety concern for the employees working the pallets. Often the employees are invited into the pallet drop area to pick from the pallets with little to no protection. Lanyards are only effective when used correctly, and there is question of satisfying code requirements. Any single barrier solution, like a swing gate or movable netting, is only effective when someone remembers and makes an effort to close the barrier. As a result, the barrier is often left open. Many of these systems do not allow the barrier to close whenever a pallet is in place.

“In comparison, all of our safety systems use dual counterbalanced gates that maintain a safe environment at all times,” Conway continued. “There is no need to remember to close the barrier, as one gate is always closed. What separates us is our ability to integrate with most rack systems, which means we can attach our units directly to rack uprights, which maximizes space in the pallet drop area and reduces costs. The savings in both space and money becomes significant in large AS/RS systems or multi-level pick modules.” The Rack Supported Roly Safety Gate from Mezzanine Safeti-Gates is a dual-gate system that can attach to existing rack components from any manufacturer. Formed channels of the unit attach to rack uprights. The gate creates a totally enclosed, controlled access workstation that provides complete protection for both the employee and materials during loading and off-loading of palletized materials. The economical Rack Supported Safety Gates utilize existing support structures in pallet areas, and can be manufactured in custom sizes to accommodate oversize pallets, even those deeper than the unit uprights. The safety gate takes up only 4 inches in width inside the rack bay, with 2 inches on each side.

Pallet Flow Pick Module Swing Gate.

Mezzanine Safeti-Gates offers another type of rack supported safety gate, the Rack Supported High Pallet Pivot gate. This device was designed for situations that involve stacker crane operations. The Rack Supported High Pallet Pivot gate provides a totally enclosed workstation that prevents exposure to pallet-drop ledges during all phases of material delivery and removal. The unit allows materials of up to 80 inches in height to be easily loaded and off-loaded from elevated mezzanine ledges. The unit’s 14 pivot points allow the gate to be easily moved over the pallet and high load height.

Another safety gate that can be used within rack systems is Mezzanine’s Pallet Flow Pick Module Swing Gate, which was designed for picking bays with multiple deep pallets in which pallet flow prohibits the use of dual gate safety devices. The gates open automatically when the pallet is pushed into position on the pallet flow rails, and close automatically when the pallet flows into the picking position of the system. The safety gates fit into all manufacturers’ rack, and can be designed for new construction projects or retrofitted into existing systems. Hinge brackets attach to existing rack, and the gates attach to the brackets. Adjustable torsion springs allow the gates to open and close automatically. Pre-engineered units have few moving parts, and meet or exceed OSHA and BOCA requirements. Standard gates are 42 inches in height, and are available in various widths. Gate depth is minimal, and the installation of the gates has a minimal reduction of the pallet-drop area width.

Rack Supported Roly and High Pallet Pivot safety gates are available in the standard, two-rail OSHA compliant model or a four-rail BOCA/UBC/CAL-OSHA model. Individual or multiple line single-wide or double-wide units can be ordered. Gates can be custom designed for specific rack depth, bay width and upright height requirements. Custom units are easily ordered by simply supplying the brand, height and size of existing rack components, beam length, and upright depth and column shape. The standard, all-steel Rack Supported Safety Gate comes in high visibility yellow with contrasting blue or green support frames. Units can be painted to match existing rack components.

Rack Supported Roly safety gate units are manually operated, but power operation can be applied to the gates. A 110-volt, one-half horsepower, 1,000 rpm commercial motor with one three-button switch for open, close and stop is supplied with the safety gate. The push button station is positioned on or adjacent to the unit, while a second station can be added on the ground level to be accessed by the forklift driver. The power motor also includes a safety clutch that will engage if the gate is obstructed when closing. When desired, radio frequency controllers can also be used for remote operation of the gates by a forklift operator.

Many companies are using the Mezzanine Safeti-Gates’ Rack Supported gate, including All American Gourmet, Circuit City, CVS, Grocery Supply Company, Pfizer, Sears Canada, Starbucks and Walgreens. In the case of Grocery Supply Company, an entity of GSC Enterprises, Inc., the company found that using the power-operated Rack Supported Safety Gates provided its employees added confidence, as well as safety.

Mezzanine Safeti-Gates, Inc.,

174 Western Ave., Essex, MA 01929-1110

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