{"id":18649,"date":"2020-05-21T08:00:29","date_gmt":"2020-05-21T13:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/?p=18649"},"modified":"2025-11-05T09:23:27","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T15:23:27","slug":"how-to-add-carton-flow-to-pallet-racks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/2020\/05\/21\/how-to-add-carton-flow-to-pallet-racks\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Add Carton Flow to Pallet Racks"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px; max-width: 650px; height: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/images.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Carton-Flow-Pallet-Rack.jpg\" alt=\"Carton flow tracks set into pallet rack in a distribution center\" \/><br \/>\n<em>Above: flow storage installed on pallet rack beams in a distribution center<\/em><\/p>\n<p>To increase warehouse productivity, reducing the time it takes for people to execute a task is always going to pay off. One way to do that is to concentrate on picking areas so that people are able to get what they need faster and more efficiently. A common gravity flow application is to mount shelves of flow storage on pallet rack so you can mix &amp; match gravity flow and bulk pallet storage in the same structure for both existing and new rack systems.<\/p>\n<p>Whether you&#8217;re adding flow storage to an existing rack system or building it from new, this guide should help you get started.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<aside class=\"tldr-summary\" style=\"padding: 10px 20px 15px 25px; margin-bottom: 50px; border-radius: 15px; border: 2px solid #e4dddd; margin: 4px 10px 4px 10px; box-shadow: 0 4px 8px 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2), 0 6px 20px 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.19);\" data-type=\"summary\">\n<h4>TL;DR \u2013 Integrating Carton Flow with Pallet Racks<\/h4>\n<p>Adding carton flow tracks to an existing pallet rack system is a highly effective way to combine bulk storage with an efficient picking operation. Most rack types can be easily adapted, requiring careful measurement of beams and proper setting of the lane pitch to ensure loads flow smoothly by gravity.<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{\n  \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n  \"@type\": \"BlogPosting\",\n  \"headline\": \"How to Add Carton Flow to Pallet Racks\",\n  \"name\": \"How to Add Carton Flow to Pallet Racks\",\n  \"description\": \"Adding carton flow tracks to an existing pallet rack system is a highly effective way to combine bulk storage with an efficient picking operation. Most rack types can be easily adapted, requiring careful measurement of beams and proper setting of the lane pitch to ensure loads flow smoothly by gravity.\",\n  \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/2020\/05\/21\/how-to-add-carton-flow-to-pallet-racks\",\n  \"datePublished\": \"2020-05-21\",\n  \"author\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Person\",\n    \"name\": \"Scott Stone\"\n  }\n}\n<\/script><\/p>\n<h3>What types of rack work with flow systems?<\/h3>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%; float: right; margin-left: 12px; max-width: 250px; height: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/images.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/low-profile-connector.jpg\" alt=\"installing low profile connectors\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Most carton flow types work in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/792\/steel-king-tubular-racks\">tubular (roll-form)<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/1289\/structural-rack\">structural pallet racks<\/a> from most manufacturers most of the time.<\/p>\n<p>Common upright and beam types can usually be adapted for carton flow, even older rack systems, and newer systems may require little or no modifications at all. There may be a few types of specialized racks that require extensive drilling or other work for adaptation to carton flow, but that tends not to be the case for most rack systems.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Systems like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/161\/low-profile-flow-tracks\">low profile tracks<\/a>\u00a0require simple tek screws to attach connectors to the beams<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/164\/high-profile-flow-tracks\">High profile systems<\/a> sit atop rack beams and require retainer angle installation<\/li>\n<li>Others, like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/175\/deck-span-track\">deck systems<\/a>, are built to drop directly onto pallet rack beams with notches that rest on step beams without additional hardware<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px; max-width: 490px; height: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/images.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/deck-track-dropin.jpg\" alt=\"flow rack deck system drop onto rack beams\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em>Above: drop-in carton flow on a single-deep rack system<\/em><\/p>\n<h4>Specifying your beam type<\/h4>\n<p>Beams must be measured and defined to ensure you get the right carton flow type for your application. The standards are different for step and structural &#8220;C&#8221; beams. Here&#8217;s what you need to know:<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%; float: right; margin-left: 12px; max-width: 300px; height: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/images.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Beam-Measures2.jpg\" alt=\"beam measurements for carton flow\" \/><\/p>\n<ol style=\"list-style-type: upper-alpha;\">\n<li>(Step) dimension (inches) <em>total height<\/em><\/li>\n<li>(Step) dimension (inches) <em>total depth<\/em><\/li>\n<li>(Step) dimension (inches) <em>step height<\/em><\/li>\n<li>(Step) dimension (inches) <em>step depth<\/em><\/li>\n<li>(Structural) dimension (inches) <em>total height<\/em><\/li>\n<li>(Structural) dimension (inches) <em>beam depth<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>We can help you with multiple beam types and other questions about your rack. It&#8217;s always useful to know the dimensions, beam width, beam capacities, the measurements above and model numbers if available.<\/p>\n<p>Beam ties are recommended for wider beams to reduce bowing. Beam heights of 3.5\u201d minimum are recommended. For double deep racks, intermediate supports may be required for added flow track capacity and to increase structural integrity.<\/p>\n<h3>Setting the pitch<\/h3>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%; margin-bottom: 1px; max-width: 576px; height: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/images.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Pitchbeams.jpg\" alt=\"setting pitch on rack beams\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Teardrop and bolt-connection frames usually have the right mounting openings for carton flow systems. When you&#8217;re using rack beams to support the tracks, the amount of adjustability relies on the available beam spacing\u2014the more adjustable, the better. Most teardrop systems allow 2&#8243; increments, but you&#8217;ll need to confirm how much your rack allows. You can adjust the flow storage pitch by offsetting front and rear beams. The general guideline is 1&#8243; of offset per 1&#8242; of rack depth (or 4&#8243; for a typical rack). This is a general guideline and will always vary by rack type, flow type and load.<\/p>\n<p>When you install a carton flow level, we recommend that you install one at the recommended angle, test your load(s) and then proceed with the final installation.<\/p>\n<h3>More resources<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/147\/gravity-carton-flow\">Carton flow racks<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/2020\/05\/05\/first-in-first-out-storage-considerations\/\">First-In, First-Out Storage Considerations<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/235\/pallet-rack-flow-modules\">Preconfigured Racks with Flow Storage<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/category\/3075\/flow-rack-information\">Carton Flow Specification Resources<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Above: flow storage installed on pallet rack beams in a distribution center To increase warehouse productivity, reducing the time it takes for people to execute a task is always going to pay off. One way to do that is to concentrate on picking areas so that people are able to get what they need faster [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[43,827],"series":[],"class_list":["post-18649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pallet-rack","tag-order-fulfillment","tag-picking"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2027-04-16 19:16:30","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18649","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18649"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18649\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33156,"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18649\/revisions\/33156"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18649"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18649"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18649"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cisco-eagle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=18649"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}