Pallet gates are safety gates specifically designed to protect workers and stock that are being loaded or unloaded from elevated platforms or mezzanines. The pallet gate provides a physical barrier along the edge of the platform to prevent people or items from falling while still allowing for loading and unloading activities to be carried out safely.
It is important to note that employers do have a duty of care to their employees and need to comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, Building Control Regulations as well as other legislation. Where appropriate, your gates should be installed to protect your workforce and ensure their continued safety and maintain safe working environments. Your business requirements and the size of your pallets and/or loads will influence the most appropriate pallet gate.
What is a pallet gate?
There are different styles and sizes of pallet gates to suit your needs. They generally consist of a moveable barrier that maintains the safe integrity of your platform whilst loading and unloading. This can be as simple as a seesaw-type system known as up-and-over, a counterbalanced, or a spring-loaded mechanism – there are many options. In each instance, the pallet safety gate would be positioned on the mezzanine or platform edge and often connected to your handrail system. A pallet gate can improve the safety and efficiency of material handling operations within the workplace. Advantage specialises in the specification and fitting of pallet gates across a wide range of industrial applications and can help you find the most appropriate solution.
What are the different types of pallet gates?
There are different types of pallet gates available depending on pallet sizes and business needs, such as height restrictions or how the mezzanine or platform will be loaded and unloaded. The options for pallet gates are:
- Up and over: One of the most common types of pallet gates, which has been designed so the operative or employee pulls the barrier down to expose the loading edge for the forklift truck. This style has two barriers on a balanced up-and-down mechanism, rising up to open and allow pallets to be placed or removed, and closing again to protect the loading/offloading, or exposed edge. This prevents the worker from having to go near the unprotected or exposed area and reduces the risk of the individual, product or pallet falling.
- Bi-Swing: Bi-Swing pallet gates come with two spring-loaded gates that close on the exposed edge as soon as the pallet has been moved away from the loading area. They can be pushed open for loading also allowing the worker to stay well away from any high risks edges.
- Concertina: These pallet gates rise up folding all the barriers together at the top to increase the headroom for higher loaded pallets. This style is for larger pallets and offers a range of 1300mm to over 3000mm in width, in excess of 2500mm in depth, and 1800mm to 3000mm in height. They operate in a similar fashion to the up-and-over pallet gate.
- 360-degree: Rotating or 360-pallet gates have a 3-sided barrier on a rotating base that stands just 50mm from the floor. This swings all the way round, allowing the pallet to be placed in the open end and swung round to be offloaded. These offer no restrictions on headroom other than your ceiling height. The pallet’s width and depth it less flexible and a business must be clear on what size they will be working with.
What are pallet gates made of?
There are a variety of materials that pallet gates can be made of, depending upon the environment. Typically, our gates are made of welded steel tube or box sections and come in a yellow powder-coated finish which are then assembled and installed onsite. Options can be given in stainless steel for food production environments or where hygiene is important. Our gates can also be galvanised for outdoor applications.
What to consider when choosing a pallet gate system
When you are choosing a system for your warehouse, there are some key factors that need to be considered in order to make sure you get the right one for your application:
- Load capacity is important, as the gates need to be capable of supporting the maximum load a business would potentially be working with.
- Size of the opening needs to correspond with UK or Euro pallets to ensure the opening is suitable for the size of the pallets being loaded and unloaded.
- Height, as ‘up-and-over’ or concertina gates will have a maximum that can be loaded and unloaded, and these may not be the most appropriate for your needs.
Choose Advantage for your installation
Advantage specialises in the supply and installation of pallet gates and safety barriers in warehouses and other industrial situations. Our team will work closely with you to understand the purpose of the space, pallet loading and potential risks in the business to specify the right gate for your site. The gates generally come in standard sizes – but where a more bespoke solution might be required our team are here to help. We are able to create bespoke, non-standard sizes to fit your business’s unique requirements.
Get in touch today or call us on 01905 622 830 to chat with one of our knowledgeable and friendly team for a no-obligation quote.
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