Mobile pallet racking increases capacity and productivity in new cold storage facility

Internal logistics in distribution centers involves numerous challenges. SSI SCHAEFER supplies systems for organising the storage and transport of goods efficiently. The company has been a supplier of, among other things, compact storage systems for many companies for many years, including Müller Fresh Food Logistics. For the logistics provider's new cold store in Lekkerkerk, SSI SCHAEFER developed, supplied and installed a complete solution with mobile pallet racking. This increased storage capacity and productivity in the new building.

Jan-Peter Müller has been a regular customer of SSI SCHAEFER for many years. When the family company took over Prins Transport in Lekkerkerk in 2018 and subsequently built a new distribution center, it also called on this specialist from Oosterhout to design and assemble a suitable storage system. "At Müller Fresh Food Logistics, there is continuous investment in sustainable growth. During a meeting at headquarters in Holten, the management presented its plans for an expansion at the Lekkerkerk site. In addition to the existing building, a new cold storage warehouse with a total area of 2,400 m² was to be built. We were commissioned to implement a suitable storage system," explains Dorothee Steverink, Account Manager Netherlands Dynamic Systems at SSI SCHAEFER. "As we had opted for a system with mobile pallet racking at the headquarters in Holten, we decided to integrate an equivalent solution in the new building. This way, the available storage space is optimized and the required floor space is limited. After all, no aisle is needed between each rack. An additional advantage: there is optimum utilization of the energy required for climate control in cold storage and freezer storage, since almost twice as many goods can be stored with this system. As a result, the impact on the environment is reduced."

Mobile pallet racks 

The solution at Müller Fresh in Lekkerkerk consists of two zones of mobile racking thirteen meters high, with five and four trolleys respectively. Each rack row includes eleven sections, each good for 24,000 kg, allowing more than 500,000 kg of goods to be stored in each trolley. In this cold store, the logistics provider can store more than 6,000 pallets. As with the other projects, SSI SCHAEFER specialists were involved in discussions with the customer at an early stage. The pallet racking actually forms the basis of the building, around which the general contractor built an insulated freezer cabinet. In the first phase, the rails were installed on the pre-constructed foundation, based on detailed drawings. The dimensions of this foundation must match the rail plan. After installation of that rail plan, this is checked. Since the top of the rails is also the top of the concrete floor, the rails must be level throughout. During the pouring of the concrete, the rails are incorporated into the floor, and it is important that they are well underfilled. This will prevent subsidence in the future. 

"If the track installation does not meet the specified requirements, warping, wear or reduced even running can occur. In the worst case, the system may even jam. This then leads to a shorter life of the wheeled system. Only when the entire field of the system is completed can the other construction partners return to the site. In the next phase, the mobile pallet racks are then assembled in the space," explains Rienk Broekhuizen, product manager of dynamic systems. "At this freezer house of Müller Fresh in Lekkerkerk, the height of 13 meters presented a great challenge in terms of assembly and logistics. After all, we had to think carefully, about how we could get all the long components into the hall without problems. After assembly, we were also responsible for the complete inspection of the installation, because it is our responsibility that everything works perfectly."