Mezzanine Safeti-Gates, Inc., an innovator in the design and manufacturing of pallet drop safety gates that provide fall protection in distribution centers, warehouses, and manufacturing and material handling facilities, announced that the Rack Supported safety gate designs can now include product containment netting. The Product Containment add-on offers high strength, and high visibility netting on the ledge gate to prevent products from falling from elevated rack systems.

Fall protection topped the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) list of most frequently cited standards in 2023, and in 2020 the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported almost 17% of worker injuries were caused by contact with objects or equipment, which includes being struck by falling objects. The Product Containment option for the Rack Supported safety gate design eliminates both the risk of employees and products falling from ledges of pallet drop areas in pick modules or large rack storage systems.

“Today’s material handling environment emphasizes speed when moving products through facilities, which can sometimes lead to pallet jacks and other equipment accidentally knocking product out of place,” said Aaron Conway, president of Mezzanine Safeti-Gates, Inc. “This brings not only a risk of product falling and striking an employee but also the human tendency to reach into the loading zone to grab that object.”

Product containment netting systems for mezzanine safety gates prevent items two (2) inches or larger from falling from the elevated pallet drop area. When the area is being loaded with material, the ledge gate is open with the netting compacted out of the way, into the system. After loading is complete, the ledge gate is closed and the netting extends from the deck to the top frame of the gate, providing full-length coverage on the ledge side. In addition, the netting prevents employees from inserting their hands into the loading zone.

Used in thousands of locations throughout the world, pallet drop safety gate systems offered by Mezzanine Safeti-Gates fully comply with OSHA’s Walking-Working Surface Fall Protection regulations as well as ANSI fall protection standards. Safety gate designs can be purchased in a variety of sizes including standard stock single and double wide pallet widths, and custom-engineering to accommodate specific requirements. Power, remote operation, radio frequency sensors, photo eyes, and integration with WMS systems can be added to all models.