Shelf safety and warehouse inventory

Pallet shelving carries many tons of goods high above the heads of people working below it. An overloaded, damaged or incorrectly mounted shelf can collapse and kill. Shelf safety is therefore not just the warehouse manager's responsibility — as an employee you are the one who sees the damage happening and can stop it in time.

A typical pallet rack consists of vertical ladders (frames) and horizontal beams that carry the pallets. The rack is dimensioned for a specific load per beam and per bay and depends on it standing plumb being anchored correctly and having its safety components — such as impact protection on exposed ladders and locking splitters that hold the beams in place.

Racks are technical equipment. The executive order on the use of technical equipment covers equipment «used at work, including for transport and storage» (BEK no. 428 of 05/04/2022 § 4, no. 1). That is why the inspection requirement also applies to racks: The inspection must be carried out by a competent person according to the manufacturer's instructions, and if the manufacturer has not stated an interval, at least every 12 months (§ 25). The European standard for rack inspection, DS/EN 15635, describes inspection and damage in more detail, but it is paid, so its limits are not reproduced here.

Each shelf must have a clear load-bearing plate indicating its maximum load — typically the maximum load per beam/pair and per bay. These values are calculated based on the shelf's construction. Never exceed them: a shelf that just barely holds an overload today can fail when a colleague randomly sets one more heavy pallet in. If you cannot find the plate, ask — never guess at capacity.

The Danish Working Environment Authority's guideline on the design of workplaces says that floors between storeys, mezzanines, ramps, driving plates and the like must have information about — and where relevant be marked with — the maximum permitted load (VEJ no. 10132 of 01/10/2026).

• 01Place the pallet completely in so the load rests correctly on the beams, not on the edge.
• 02Use whole pallets in good condition — broken pallets can fall through.
• 03Observe the maximum stacking height and do not allow load to protrude into the aisle.
• 04Distribute weight evenly and place the heaviest pallets where the shelf is designed for it.

Most shelf damage is caused by truck collisions. A bent ladder loses a large part of its load capacity even if the damage looks small. Therefore the warehouse must have a system for inspection: employees keep a continuous eye out and report damage immediately and a thorough documented inspection is carried out by a competent person at appropriate intervals (typically annually). Damaged components are unloaded and replaced — they are not just straightened out.

• 01Report immediately any bent ladders, loose girders or missing safety pins.
• 02Relieve a severely damaged rack immediately — remove the load from the bottom up.
• 03Seal off so no one works under a shelf waiting for repair.
• 04Repair only with original, approved parts according to the supplier's instructions.

Impact guards on exposed corners at aisles and intersections take the inevitable truck impacts. Clear marking of aisles and a good traffic plan that separates trucks and pedestrians reduce the number of impacts. Prevention is far cheaper — and safer — than replacing a collapsed shelf.

The chart shows when Denmark's warehouse buildings were built, according to the Danish Building and Dwelling Register (BBR). Notice that most were built in the 1970s and 1980s. So many warehouses are 40-50 years old. In an old warehouse it is extra important to know the racks' load signs and keep up the inspection. In total there are 51,456 warehouse buildings in the BBR (measured 06-10-2026 via Grundfast).

The chart only counts the BBR's code 323, «warehouse building». Farm barns and mixed-use buildings are not included.

Shelf safety is about respecting load limits, keeping an eye out for damage and reporting it immediately. When the whole team does it, the shelves safely carry what they should – and only what they are built for.