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Material Storage: Pallets, Racks, Overlots and Falling Objects Stats and Facts

FACTS

  • Rack Overload Is a Structural Failure Waiting to Happen: Pallet racks are engineered for specific load limits. Exceeding those limits can cause uprights to buckle and entire rack sections to collapse without warning.
  • Forklift Impacts Damage More Than They Show: A forklift strike on a rack upright may not cause immediate collapse, but it compromises structural integrity invisibly. A hit rack that is not inspected or repaired is a hazard every time it is loaded.
  • Overlotting Creates Falling Object Zones: Stacking materials above designated height limits or beyond a pallet's footprint creates an unstable overhang. When that load shifts or is disturbed by nearby equipment, items fall into working aisles below.
  • Unsecured Pallets Are Projectiles: A damaged or overloaded pallet can fail during movement or storage. When a pallet gives way at height, the materials it carries become uncontrolled projectiles in a fraction of a second.
  • Aisle Creep Blocks Emergency Routes: Materials placed temporarily in aisles rarely stay temporary. Gradual encroachment into walkways restricts movement, reduces visibility, and blocks evacuation routes.
  • Head Injuries from Falling Objects Are Often Fatal: A single item falling from rack height can generate enough force to cause a fatal head injury, even when a worker below is wearing a hard hat.
  • Rack Inspection Is Not Optional: Damaged rack components that are not tagged and taken out of service continue to bear load. An unrepaired upright under full load is a collapse event waiting for a trigger.

STATS

  • The warehousing and transportation sector recorded an injury and illness rate of 4.8 cases per 100 full-time workers in 2022 — nearly double the private industry average of 2.7 — according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Non-fatal injuries in U.S. warehousing and transportation cost employers more than $84 million per week — over $4 billion annually — according to the National Safety Council.
  • Struck by falling or moving objects accounts for 10 percent of non-fatal injuries in the transport and storage sector, ranking among the most common incident types.
  • Approximately 90 percent of rack failures are attributed to forklift impacts, according to rack safety research.
  • From 2022 to 2023, OSHA recorded 205 accidents involving forklifts, with 128 resulting in fatalities.