Do plastic pallets work on drive-in rails?

Many do, if their bottom deck is stiff enough to span the rails. We check the specific pallet model and may adjust rail spacing.

Can one lane hold more than one production lot?

It can, but newer lots then block older ones. Most Hanford food plants assign one lot per lane to keep release simple.

Is drive-thru worth the extra aisle?

It is when product must leave in production order. If whole runs ship together, single-face lanes save more space.

How do coolers affect the rack?

Cold, damp rooms can call for a different finish. Condensation and washdown also influence how we detail base plates.

Hanford, California

Drive-In Rack in Hanford, CA

Drive-in rack in Hanford tends to serve food processors that run one product for days and need somewhere to hold the output. Plants around the Hanford Industrial Park and along SR-198 produce cheese, dairy ingredients and packaged foods in long, uniform runs.

Those runs create stacks of identical pallets waiting on trucks. Lanes put them on rails, several levels high, without forcing a forklift aisle between every row.

For a Hanford cheese plant, drive-in rack can turn a crowded cooler into an organized one. Each lane holds a single make date, and supervisors can see at a glance which lanes are on hold. Compared with floor stacking, the block adds levels without loading weight onto the cartons below.

(559) 620-5206

Drive-In Pallet Rack in a Hanford Food Plant

Dairy and cheese often sit in coolers before shipment. Cooler space is expensive to build and run, so a block with few aisles often fits the room better than selective rows.

Ingredient storage is different. Released and on-hold lots must stay separate, so we often assign entire lanes by status rather than mixing lots inside one lane.

Fresno Pallet Racks is part of Warehouse Equipment & Supplies Co., a supplier and installer since 1997, and our Hanford recommendations come from that long view of food warehousing.

We also see drive-in pallet rack used for packaging reserve in Hanford food plants. Film, cartons and trays arrive in bulk and leave steadily, a clean fit for lanes.

Free warehouse consultation

CAD layout with position counts

Installation by trusted installation partners

Drive-in pallet rack lanes fitted with continuous rails

Drive-in warehouse racking loaded with bulk pallets

Lacey Boulevard Shipping and SR-43 Inbound

Finished goods heading east on SR-198 and ingredients arriving via SR-43 often use opposite sides of a Hanford plant, which can suggest a drive-thru arrangement.

Food processing

Manufacturing

Parts distribution

What a Hanford Quote Includes

We need your pallet type, load weights, average run size, forklift models and room dimensions. Photos of the cooler and its door openings speed things up.

Rows are assembled by experienced installation crews we schedule and manage and anchored to the floor. In food plants we coordinate around sanitation and production schedules.

When comparing quotes, check that each proposal states the rail profile, upright size and lane opening, not just a pallet count. Two drive-in rack quotes with the same position count can differ in truck clearance by several inches. For Hanford plants running plastic pallets, ask how the rails support the pallet deck. Drive-thru racking adds a second aisle, so compare the extra floor against the value of production-order release.

Read more on the Hanford service area and the drive-in rack page. Shorter lots may fit Hanford pushback rack; strict rotation may point to Hanford pallet flow.

Cheese and dairy coolers

Long production runs

Status-segregated ingredient lots

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Choosing Drive-In or Drive-Thru Racking in Hanford

The question is whether product can leave newest-first or must leave oldest-first. Hanford coolers often run electric reach trucks. Their narrow chassis can allow tighter lanes, but lift height inside the lane still needs checking against the load and mast.

Single-face lanes

Drive-in lanes have a closed back. They store the most pallets per square foot and suit finished goods that ship as complete runs.

Two-face lanes

Drive-thru lanes are open at both ends. Production loads one side while shipping pulls from the other, approximating first-in, first-out.

Cooler details

Condensation and washdown can affect finishes. We review the room conditions and recommend an appropriate coating.

Rail spacing

Rails are spaced for the pallet in use. Plastic pallets common in food plants may need a different setup than wood.

Recent Installations

Racking projects completed for warehouses across Fresno and the Central Valley.

View More Projects

Get a Drive-In Rack Quote for Your Hanford Warehouse

Send the basics and we will follow up with a layout and pricing. Prefer to talk it through? Call (559) 620-5206.

Fresno Pallet Racks

5730 N First St

Ste 105 #252

Fresno, CA 93710

(559) 620-5206

Monday - Friday: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM

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