Carton Flow is a form of shelving that uses gravity feed rear-load design. This storage system helps to keep the product more organized because it is automatically rotated on a FIFO basis. One type of carton flow that you may find helpful is the skatewheel carton flow. It blends the concepts of both full width roller and wheel track into a fixed width bed of skatewheel.
Its beds can be inserted to cover the entire bay width so that no gaps are present. Lane entry guides or full length dividers are used to separate lanes.
The wheels can be aligned or staggered depending on the manufacturer and are typically much larger than those on wheel track rails. Wheels ride on an axle and are held I place in various ways.
Skatewheels offer many benefits as a storage system, including:
- There is no loss of pickable space since the entire bay is one big carton flow section.
- The lane entry guides are adjustable to accommodate any product size or changes.
- The number of wheels per foot can typically be adjusted by changing the axle centers, which mitigate costs.
- It has larger wheels which provide less friction and more alignment with the full width roller surface area. This lessens the chances of boxes forming around the wheels in high humidity.
- This system is also very easy to install.
With these many benefits, though, come some drawbacks, such as:
- Higher costs due to its full bay coverage, number of wheels, and larger axle sizes than other options.
- The product may skew during transit if the entry guides are not full length.
- Depth is usually limited to beam to beam depth of the pallet rack unless using a standalone rack.
If you’re interested in the skatewheel carton flow or any of our other storage solutions contact us today to speak with a warehousing solutions expert!