Overview
The rack is load bearing structure. Inspect it like one.
Pallet racking looks solid, but it is precision engineered structural equipment working close to its design limits every day, and almost every serious failure traces back to the same thing: damage that nobody reported and an inspection regime that did not exist. The law treats racking as work equipment under PUWER, which means it must be maintained in good repair and inspected by a competent person, and the European standard BS EN 15635 sets out exactly what that looks like: a named person responsible for storage equipment safety, immediate damage reporting, regular visual inspections, an expert inspection at least every 12 months, and a measurable traffic light system for classifying damage.
This course teaches you that whole system. You will learn how a pallet rack is constructed and what every component does, how to read a load notice, how racking actually gets damaged, how to measure a bent upright with a 1 metre straight edge against the 5, 3 and 10 millimetre limits, when a defect is green, amber or red and exactly what each colour requires you to do, the golden rules of racking repair, and the day to day loading and clearance habits that prevent damage in the first place. Everything is aligned with BS EN 15635, SEMA guidance and the HSE publication HSG76, Warehousing and storage: keep it safe.
The course is fully online and self paced. Most learners complete it across several sessions, and you keep access for twelve months from enrolment. Pass the closing assessment and your CPD certified certificate is generated straight away, dated and named, ready to download and print.
What you’ll learn
What you’ll be able to do
By the end of this course you will be able to:
Explain the legal duties that apply to storage equipment under HSWA and PUWER, and where EN 15635 and SEMA fit.
Carry out the PRSES role: run the inspection regime, keep the records and control the damage process.
Name every component of a pallet rack and recognise the main racking configurations.
Read, apply and police load notices, and know why moving a beam invalidates one.
Run the three level inspection regime: immediate reporting, weekly visual checks and the annual expert inspection.
Measure damage with the 1 metre straight edge and apply the 5, 3 and 10 millimetre limits and the 2x rule.
Classify damage green, amber or red and carry out the correct procedure for each, including the amber 4 week rule.
Apply the repair golden rules: replace, never straighten, genuine parts only, inspect before reloading.
Course content
Eight modules to work through
1Racking Safety and the LawWhy racking fails, who answers for it, and the framework from the Act to the aisle.⌄
- Why racking failures are rare but catastrophic, and why minor damage matters
- The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Management Regulations
- PUWER 1998: racking as work equipment that must be maintained and inspected
- HSG76, BS EN 15635, EN 15629, EN 15620, EN 15512 and the SEMA codes
- Duty holders: employer, PRSES, employees and the expert inspector
2The Anatomy of a Pallet RackUprights, frames, beams, locks, baseplates and the protection that takes the hits.⌄
- Uprights and braced frames, and how load reaches the floor
- Beams, connectors and why every beam end needs its safety lock
- Baseplates, anchors, shims and the floor slab
- The impact zone: where trucks strike and why protection concentrates there
- Column guards, rack end barriers and why protection is sacrificial
3Configurations and Load NoticesFrom APR to drive-in, and the notice that sets the rules for every bay.⌄
- Adjustable pallet racking, double-deep and very narrow aisle systems
- Drive-in, push-back, pallet-live, cantilever and mobile racking
- What a load notice must show under EN 15629 and SEMA guidance
- Why ratings are only valid for the configuration displayed
- What to do when a notice is missing, illegible or out of date
4How Racking Gets DamagedTruck impact, overloading, poor pallets, alterations and environment.⌄
- MHE impact: the number one cause, and where it concentrates
- Overloading, shock loading and misuse of the structure
- Damaged pallets, wrong pallet types and bad load placement
- Unauthorised alterations and why mixing manufacturers is prohibited
- Floors, corrosion, temperature and housekeeping
5The Three Level Inspection RegimeImmediate reporting, the weekly walk-round and the annual expert inspection.⌄
- Level 1: immediate reporting by everyone, and the no-blame culture that makes it work
- Level 2: the planned visual inspection, checklist and nil returns
- Level 3: the expert inspection at least every 12 months, and the SARI scheme
- Setting inspection frequency by risk assessment
- The records that prove your PUWER compliance
6Measuring and Classifying DamageThe 1 metre straight edge, the 5, 3 and 10 mm limits and the traffic lights.⌄
- The green, amber and red classification from EN 15635
- Measuring bent uprights and bracing with the 1 metre straight edge
- The limits: 5 mm down-aisle, 3 mm cross-aisle, 10 mm bracing, and the 2x rule
- Assessing beams: in-service deflection and permanent deformation
- Defects that skip the ruler: dents, tears, splits, weld cracks and corrosion
7Acting on Damage: Procedures and RepairThe amber 4 week rule, the red offload procedure and the repair golden rules.⌄
- The amber procedure: tag, offload, no reloading, repair within 4 weeks
- The red procedure: offload immediately, isolate and check the neighbours
- The damage reporting flow from first report to signed-off repair
- Repair golden rules: never straighten, never heat, genuine parts only
- Close-out, verification and feeding lessons back into prevention
8Safe Daily PracticeClearances, loading habits and the operator behaviours that prevent damage.⌄
- Operating clearances under EN 15620 and why they grow with height
- Placing loads: centred, square and gentle, on sound pallets
- Operator do and do not: the habits that separate safe sites from damaged ones
- Building the reporting culture that catches damage before gravity does
- Putting it all together: scenarios from real warehouse situations
Who it’s for
Is this course a good fit?
PRSES role holders
Anyone nominated as the Person Responsible for Storage Equipment Safety, or about to be.
Warehouse supervisors & managers
Those who run the floor and answer for the condition of the racking on it.
Staff who do the weekly checks
The nominated people who walk the aisles with the checklist and record what they find.
Health & safety staff
Advisers and coordinators who write, audit and evidence the storage safety system.
Lift truck supervisors & trainers
Those whose operators work around racking every shift and report the impacts.
Owners & directors
Those who hold the PUWER duty and need to know the regime their site should be running.
Assessment
How it’s assessed
End-of-course assessment
Study details
You can pause and resume at any point, and your progress is saved automatically. There is no time limit on the assessment itself.
Certification
Your CPD-certified certificate
Racking Inspection Training — CPD Certified
On passing the assessment, your CPD certified digital certificate is available to download and print immediately, with your name, the course title and the completion date. For an employer it is dated, named evidence that the people who check your racking are trained to do it properly, exactly the kind of record an HSE inspector, an insurer or a court will ask for after an incident. We recommend refresher training every three years, or sooner if your racking, layout or throughput changes significantly.
FAQs
