Carton Flow

Carton Flow is a form of shelving that uses a gravity fed rear load design.

Each unit consists of one or more inclined runways.  Merchandise is stocked in the rear of the Carton Flow rack and moves toward the picking station in front on an inclined shelf equipped with specially designed roller track. As an item is removed from the front, the item directly behind it slides forward in place of the previous carton. With Carton Flow rack, the product is automatically rotated on a first in first out basis.

The main advantage of Carton Flow Rack over static rack or shelving systems is that merchandise remains better organized and easier to find/pick. Restocking and picking typically offer the greatest opportunity for improving efficiency within order picking operations. Compared with static racks, carton flow rack systems labor savings of up to 75% can be noticeable almost immediately.

Because items are picked from the front and stocked from the rear, both functions can be performed without interference and with minimized travel. The fact that just one carton of each line item is located on the pick face means that a large number of SKU’s are presented to the picker over a small area.

When a carton is picked from the front of the station, gravity does the restocking work rolling the next one in line to the front. Carton Flow rack always keeps items within reach, inventory is easier to monitor and control since products are fully visible at all times. In many cases, carton flow rack can be incorporated into Selective Pallet rack.  The idea is to utilize the vertical space in the warehouse, using the lower space for carton flow, with the upper space used for reserve storage.

Carton Flow Rack Benefits:

• Drop-in design allows for easy addition to existing racks
• Gravity-driven inventory rotation
• Travel/Walking time is drastically reduced which often equates to a significant labor savings
• Order picking is done on a First-In/First-Out basis, which ensures inventory rotation
• By separating the stocking aisle from the picking aisle order picking is more efficient
• Can convert static pallet racks into high capacity gravity flow rack picking systems
• The tilted shelves in a carton flow system help improve visibility and order accuracy

Carton Flow rack is often integrated with conveyors and other product storage solutions to create multi-level pick modules which enable the user to take advantage of their storage available in their warehouse whereby freeing up valuable floor space for additional storage and better efficiency.

THE BOTTOM LINE is Carton Flow rack saves space, time and reduces overall labor costs. Valuable floor space is saved because less picking and stocking aisles are needed to access the same amount of products.