Forklift driver collapses entire warehouse of racks - GIF

A forklift driver bumps a shelf, and a warehouse of racks comes down like dominoes.

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Previously:

https://www.homemadetools.net/forum/...935#post109011
https://www.homemadetools.net/forum/...827#post111737
https://www.homemadetools.net/forum/...455#post116927
https://www.homemadetools.net/forum/...339#post116489
https://www.homemadetools.net/forum/...173#post121094

Single point failure like this is outrageous! Should have been some type of stop system in place before the whole place went down?

Having spent most of my life around Dexion racking with never a failure....I can only imagine this to be seriously overloaded or very light duty gear overloaded...but it would be very hard to fake that footage! Wow....
Jim

won't look good on his resume

Did I do that?

Glad that wasn't a nitroglycerine factory... Definitely an under-built & overloaded accident waiting to happen. That's a whole lot of weight balanced on those tall, spindly legs. If the racks had been suspended from a sufficiently designed ceiling, the domino effect would be practically eliminated.

I wonder if is was an Amazon warehouse? I don't know how most feel about Amazon but I don't use them.

That didnt look good for the guy just right of centre, bottom screen at 0:33

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Originally Posted by Frank S

won't look good on his resume

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Not so sure whether the driver would need to have that on his resume, or his Obit.

Oh yeah that would really make an Obit. or an engraving on the head stone.
Here I lie under a pile of rocks I buried myself under a pile of Boxes. My driving record was tarnished when I barely scraped the varnish. But to my behalf the post at most was rated for half. While I lay at rest I can only be thankful I don't have to clean up the mess.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Frank S

won't look good on his resume

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Well if he survived, maybe. However in this case we can hardly blame the driver as the fork lift was barely moving. It makes me wonder if the support legs where even bolted down. It looks like he was trying to creep by the blocking palet and as such the racking should not of failed even from accidental contact.

Personally this looks like an example of engineering that solved the simple structural problem but never addressed the realities of the work place. Crap happens and your designs need to anticipate those accidents.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Frank S

I wonder if is was an Amazon warehouse? I don't know how most feel about Amazon but I don't use them.

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Hard to say from the video, I’m certain somebody know of the origin. However this video wouldn’t stop anybody from buying from Amazon!

The video is really damning for the engineering firm that designed the rack system. It is one thing to collapse one set of racks, it is absolutely shocking that the parallel racks came down so easily. So one of two things here, either poor engineering or grossly overloaded racks.

Appears to be in Israel. Watch: Entire warehouse collapses in domino effect - Israel National News

Looks like some kind of liquid spraying out of a lot of the boxes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wizard69

Well if he survived, maybe. However in this case we can hardly blame the driver as the fork lift was barely moving. It makes me wonder if the support legs where even bolted down. It looks like he was trying to creep by the blocking palet and as such the racking should not of failed even from accidental contact.

Personally this looks like an example of engineering that solved the simple structural problem but never addressed the realities of the work place. Crap happens and your designs need to anticipate those accidents.

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You are correct this is a prime example of why it is recommended by most reputable pallet racking system suppliers that tall systems are installed with lateral bracing is used to tie the rows together at each set of columns with diagonal braces as well. There are also impact protectors available which sleeve over the bases of the columns.
It is generally not a good idea to tie the rows of racking to the building in any way due to buildings not being designed for it.
Also in the case of long rows Hero column leg frames should be installed at regular intervals. A well designed and installed racking system should be able to withstand the destruction of a single column or a racking beam being ripped form its mountings without the loss or damage to any part of the remaining system.

Serious consequences but I have to admit I laughed, to see the racks continuing to collapse even the ones two rows over was really funny.

Ralph

This is truly an epic fail with tragic consequences. In the YT video you can frame step (period forward or comma back) from about :31 on and see what actually happened. The forklift driver hit the first shelf with the top of his cage causing the containers to tip out toward him and begin the collapse. He is a foot or two away from the vertical stanchion when he hits the shelf. Typically pallet rack this tall require cross beams and shelf slats on the bottom...these have none and merchandise is on the floor leaving a tall unstructured, stanchion only, supported area at the base of the two rows of racks. The weight on the shelves is tremendous and likely liquid as hemmjo pointed out. I say tremendous because the weight of the collapse actually moves (Skids) the forklift sideways to hit the rack row opposite starting the domino effect. The real issue here imho, is the stanchion only support at the base of at least these two rows...1-800-bad-mojo for whom ever installed them and not following assembly and load bearing protocol by the manufacturer.

It's not an engineering issue unless you deem the facility engineers, structural engineers...Not. Those racks may have been over loaded...again not an engineering issue. Forklift driver make a Bad descision...not an engineering issue. Once we started calling garbage men, Sanitary Engineers things have gone down hill with blaming Engineers for everything, some rightly, most Wrongly,,,again IMHO. Just like all people and Profession their are good, mediocre and Bad...a full spectrum of qualities and attributes...I think its called being human and not necessarily a Blamable Affliction. Yet in the extremes, the case of the non-discerning a learning curve, and sociopaths, likely being an affliction.

Additionally the few Pallet Rack systems I have worked with have special spring clip pins for locking the cross beams tung and slots from lifting out, but that wont stop a crush of the cross beam on spindly legs from a good sized forklift cage. We have no idea if these were used here, and either case probably wouldn't have helped much. What possessed the forklift driver not to get the 2 guys in front to move the pallet in the middle of the isle or get out and move it himself is a 1-800-bad-idea, imho.

As for Amazon's automated warehouses; they are cutting edge, AI driven enterprise systems with automated (robotic) rack conveyance systems and conveyors that feed the packages to packaging stations where people do the final packaging, then off to shipping on conveyors utilizing Pick and place as well as humans for shipping stations. Saw a special on them a while back and was really impressed "Engineering Wise". The one thing that was missing in the special was a PM and Maintenance Schedule which is Critical, again imho. How else could you get your stuff in 2 days? Personally think Amazon has a great thing going and my experience with their customer service is that it is Exemplary. However I do like to support local brick and mortar for touchy feely and more so for Human interaction...if they know their products and as long as they don't tell me "No Problem" when I thank them for their service.

https://youtu.be/-CFTIOQCqTc

I went to a big Warehouse Logistics Conveyance Systems and Conveyors show, at the Javits Center in New York, and could hardly get past the first display it was so amazing.

Ralph

In my opinion, this shelving was hazorousdly way under designed for the load applied.
Was this the fault of the designer, or the users I cannot tell from here.
However, within loading limits, such installations need to be designed for this type of (ab)use.
-brino

Probably don't need no resume anymore. He's under all that.