Cantilever racking is a storage system made up of vertical uprights fitted with horizontal, cantilevered arms, with no front upright to get in the way of loading. It's designed for long, bulky loads, tubes, bars, boards, metal profiles, panels, that a standard pallet rack, with its closed bays, cannot accommodate properly.
Racking designed for oversized loads
The structure of a cantilever rack rests on a central vertical column, often anchored to the floor with a wider base for stability, on which height-adjustable horizontal arms are fixed. These arms can be single-sided (access from one side only) or double-sided (two opposing sets of arms on the same column), depending on the aisle configuration. Unlike a pallet rack, there is no front beam: loads rest directly on the arms and can overhang freely at the front, which makes it easier to load long items with a forklift or a crane.
This type of racking typically equips building-materials merchants, metalworking, the timber industry and plastics processing, where the loads to be stored don't come in a standard palletized format. The price of cantilever racking generally ranges from €200 to €3,000 per column depending on height, number of arms and load capacity, with used units negotiated at 50-70% of the new price.
As with any load-bearing racking, cantilever use is governed by safety requirements close to those for standard pallet racking (load plate, regular inspections), even though the NF EN 15635 standard is primarily aimed at beam-type pallet racking; it's advisable to check with the manufacturer for the specific inspection rules that apply to a given cantilever system.
The choice between single or reinforced arms, and between single- or double-sided configuration, depends mainly on the weight and length of the loads to be stored: heavy metal tubes require closer, sturdier arms than light wooden boards. The number of arm levels per column and the spacing between columns determine, as with a standard pallet rack, the total capacity of the bay and must be sized upfront with the manufacturer based on the actual load weight.
FAQ
What is cantilever racking used for?
It's used to store long, bulky loads, tubes, boards, metal profiles or panels, that the closed shape of a standard pallet rack can't accommodate. The horizontal cantilevered arms allow free loading, with no obstruction at the front.
What's the difference between cantilever racking and standard pallet racking?
Standard pallet racking stores pallets in bays closed off by front and rear beams. Cantilever racking has only cantilevered arms, with no front structure, which suits long loads that would far exceed the dimensions of a standard bay.
Related terms
Pallet racking · Anatomy of a pallet rack · Drive-in racking · Mezzanine · Warehouse / logistics platform · Forklift truck.
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