Is your fiber laser cutter idle while operators dig for material?
In high-mix, low-volume metal fabrication, the bottleneck isn't usually the cutting speed—it's the feeding speed. Traditional floor stacking or static racks force your team into "secondary handling," wasting 15-20 minutes just to retrieve a single bundle of stainless steel tubing. Our Roll Out Cantilever system eliminates the forklift dance, allowing direct overhead crane access to 100% accessible drawers. Feed your machine faster, protect high-purity surfaces, and reclaim 50% of your floor space.
For operations managers running Trumpf, Bystronic, or Mazak tube lasers, the metric that matters most is "Beam-On Time." However, the logistics upstream of the machine are often stuck in the dark ages. If you are storing raw bundles of 20ft (6m) stainless steel or aluminum profiles on the floor or in static cantilever racks, you are familiar with the "FILO" (First-In-Last-Out) trap.
To get to the specific gauge needed for the next job, a forklift driver often has to move three other bundles out of the way. This secondary handling creates three critical problems for precision fabricators:
Figure 1: Electric Roll Out Cantilever Rack allows operators to extend fully loaded drawers (up to 11,000 lbs) with a remote, eliminating physical strain.
The Telescopic Cantilever Rack changes the retrieval physics. Instead of reaching into a rack with a forklift tines, the rack shelf extends out to you. Each level functions as a heavy-duty drawer that can be cranked out (manual) or powered out (electric) to reveal the entire length of the tube bundle.
This "open top" accessibility means you can use your shop's overhead crane (bridge crane) with a vacuum lifter or nylon slings to pick material straight up. This is a game-changer for feeding laser tube cutters:
Figure 2: The system is designed specifically for overhead crane loading, bypassing the need for forklifts in the storage zone.
For a Steel Service Center or OEM manufacturer handling high volumes of raw tube stock, the ROI comes from density and speed. See the operational difference below:
| Feature | Standard Cantilever Rack | Telescopic (Roll Out) Rack |
|---|---|---|
| Retrieval Method | Forklift (Requires wide aisles) | Overhead Crane / Hoist (Zero aisle) |
| Material Access | Filo (Buried stock requires moving others) | 100% Selectivity (Direct access to any level) |
| Damage Risk | High (Forks scraping adjacent bundles) | Near Zero (Vertical lift, no sliding) |
| Footprint Efficiency | Low (50% floor space used for aisles) | High (Up to 400% more storage per sq. ft.) |
We understand that a bundle of 6-inch solid bar stock or heavy-wall structural tubing isn't light. Our overhead crane accessible racking is built with structural steel I-beams, not roll-formed light gauge steel.
Whether you are storing 20-foot raw lengths for a Bystronic laser or short stock for a CNC lathe, the drawers are engineered to handle loads from 2,000 lbs up to 11,000 lbs per level. The rack base is anchored securely to your concrete slab using heavy-duty expansion bolts, ensuring stability even when fully extended.
Figure 3: Maximize vertical space. A single rack can hold dozens of different tube specifications, keeping your laser feed organized.
For clients like GHWA producing sanitary stainless components, ferrous contamination is a concern. We offer optional UHMW (Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene) liners for the cantilever arms. This ensures your stainless steel tubes never touch carbon steel racking components, preventing rust transfer and preserving surface integrity before the laser even touches the metal.
Q1: Can I place this rack directly next to my laser tube cutting machine's auto-loader?
A: Yes. Because the drawers extend fully, many clients position the rack within the crane's reach of the laser's loading magazine. This creates a "Point of Use" storage system that drastically reduces travel time for raw materials.
Q2: We store polished stainless steel tubes. Will the rack scratch them?
A: No. Unlike forklift loading where bundles slide over each other, our system allows you to lift bundles straight up using nylon slings or a vacuum lifter. We can also equip the arms with UHMW plastic protection strips to prevent any metal-on-metal contact.
Q3: What happens if the power goes out? Can we still access the electric roll-out racks?
A: Our electric models are equipped with a manual override clutch system. In the event of a power failure, you can use a manual crank handle to extend or retract the drawers, ensuring your production line never stops due to rack power issues.
Q4: Do you support standard US lengths like 20ft and 24ft stock?
A: Absolutely. Our racks are custom-fabricated to match your specific material lengths. For 20ft or 24ft tube stock, we typically configure the rack with 4 or 5 vertical columns to provide adequate support and prevent material sagging (deflection).
Q5: How much aisle space can I actually save?
A: By switching from forklifts to overhead cranes for retrieval, you can eliminate the 12-15ft wide aisles typically required for maneuvering long loads. You only need enough space for an operator to walk safely beside the extended drawer, often reclaiming 50% or more of your floor area.
