3 Common Uses for a Crossover Ladder in a Warehousee

You probably haven’t thought that much about the common uses for crossover ladders, but warehouse managers, workers and others that have anything to do with storing and retrieving items from one location to another quickly and efficiently think about it quite a bit.

Today’s warehouses are laid out like stadiums with mile high shelving and thousands of products, supplies and other boxed items, which require the right kind of equipment to maneuver from aisle to aisle, row to row and over floor areas.

If you are unfamiliar with just how often one of these ladders is needed in a warehouse situation, you will soon come to realize how one or several of them in different sizes and configurations can quickly remedy just about any dilemma that involves storage and retrieval on any level. Here are a few common uses for crossover ladders you may not have been aware of until now.

1. Shelving Access

In a warehouse situation where there are usually rows of shelving that contain assorted boxes, loose products and other items stacked at varying heights or levels, a crossover ladder can be a valuable piece of equipment.

“A crossover ladder is a convenience for accessing warehouse shelving for retrieval or storage,” said Platforms & Ladders. Walking across the top of a sturdily built crossover ladder makes it easy to get to the opposite side of an aisle and row to repeat the same action without having to get down, reposition a stepping stool, extension ladder or some other piece of equipment to repeat the process.

When you can simply walk over a flat platform that extends enough to cover two directions, the process is a lot smoother, faster, more efficient and less tiring. A regular type of ladder slows down a worker. Going back and forth from aisle to aisle and row to row can be much easier with a crossover ladder, plus the ladder can be easily positioned to remain stationary or moved when it has caster wheels, which can either be freed for rolling, moving or positioning in almost any space. It can be a rolling work platform as well as a fixed piece of equipment.

2. Up and Over

Getting up and over a busy work or production areas in a warehouse is another common use for crossover ladders. Crossovers of all types can be utilized over conveyors that are transporting warehouse items to and from locations within a warehouse as well as positioning them over other work stations where machinery, duct work, utility boxes or other hindrances and obstacles would obstruct walking or transporting items. Crossovers are also helpful in clearing areas for ease of transport for workers who are using motorized devices such as forklifts, power pallet trucks, and other motorized conveyance type machines. They move about more freely with a crossover ladder freeing up floor space.

3. Isolation and Protection

Another common use for a crossover ladder in a warehouse would be for isolation purposes around danger zones and hazardous areas that still need to be accessed and approached but require protection and isolation and are safely secured.

If there are dangerous chemicals and other substances that are being stored in a warehouse that need shielding or have to be worked with from a staging area, hazardous work areas can be accessed by workers from a crossover ladder without direct contact. Also, a crossover ladder can be positioned properly to isolate a floor area that needs to be avoided by other workers. It allows those working in a danger zone to have access yet is stationed in a position where other workers don’t have to be diverted away from where their work is located.

Crossover ladders are versatile pieces of equipment that are usually predominant features within the landscape of any warehouse, and they can serve a number of purposes to maintain the fluid operation within a warehouse. With the various kinds of crossover ladders available today that are made to meet safety standards, there is no end to the kinds of storage and protective measures that can be gained with their use. When climbing a ladder becomes a burdensome and tiring operation, crossover ladders become the kind of replacement equipment that warehouse operators love to have in their warehouse space.