SEMA guidelines & the HSE in HSG76 recommend fitting row spacers to all back to back racks. SEMA take the view that row spacers add significantly to the robustness of the rack design particularly if the rack is accidentally damaged in some way by a fork lift truck. Their presence can stop a minor incident becoming a major collapse and also add to the stability of back to back racks. The cost of these items is small in relation to the cost of the racking system as a whole and SEMA consider the marginal increase in cost is more than justified by the extra security achieved.
For racks installed before 2010 they should be fitted adjacent to the frame nodes starting at the first horizontal brace and thereafter at intervals not exceeding 2.5m with a final brace adjacent to the top node.
Racks installed from 2010 onward should comply with the updated 2010 SEMA guidelines § 7.17 with row spacers fitted at the top bracing node and at not more than every second node or 3.6m intervals adjacent to nodes (max 225mm from nodes).
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