A little help please

[bluebobtail]

Hi, my family own a scrap yard and where after making some more storage for cars.
The way we do it now is just by sitting them on top of each other which is no means safe.
We have looked at the ones that are available which are quite expensive.
http://www.car-rax.co.uk/

So we are thinking of making our own different in design to there systems
The question i'm after answering is there a program or does anyone know anyone who could model our design and stress test in a computer program so we know if it is viable or not.
So we don't over or under engineer it.
Thanks
Ian

 

[Shox Dr]

I don't think you could have a better more cost effective way of making them than the way the link shows, it was how I thought it would be done before I clicked the link.

If you try to make the cross members out of smaller/lighter material you will need to brace it diagonally, reducing the space.

Why reinvent the wheel, just copy theirs (so long as there are no legal reasons to do so)

 

[Jammy James]

in the link they look like timber racks that are used at builders merchants so they could be copied as they wont know wher the inspiration came from.
James

 

[slim_boy_fat]

As long as the load-bearing capacity is up to scratch [theirs is 1500kg per rack] it should be much better than piling up - easier access for later parts removal if that's appropriate.

Aren't some bigger cars more than that in weight.......?

 

[mike os]

end of the day are you really going to save that much?... and what will your insurers think? ( ok to say stuff em, but what if there is an accident or a punter complains to hse saying they "dont think its safe")

 

[boydy1989]

breaker near to me uses those car rax things.

climbing up them is harder, and the cars can still slide about on them.

still, i suppose, better in some ways than just stacking them 2 high.

 

[Hitch]

just a scaled up version of the metal racks we use at work. Happily hold more than 1.5t per shelf.

 

[GeorgiePorgie]

Damn,has Elf&Saftey also hit the scrapyard buisness?

Using the method you have llinked to will reduce valuable space rather than save it....whats wrong with Pyramiding the cars? ie 3-2-1 letting air out of the tyres to stop any rolling.

 

[bluebobtail]

Thanks for all the replys.
H and s isn't as bad as in some jobs but you can't turn a blind eye to it.
With reference to punters or customers climbing about on it we take all the parts off no customers are allowed to walk around or climb, if its out of reach the car comes down to ground level to work on.

The type i linked to does take up a lot or room.
The idea we were thinking of would be like a table..
A car underneath the "table" one on top then another table on top of that with another car on that. All front loading rather than from the side.
It can all be made out of box section with plates at either end of the horizontals and plates on the verticals to bolt to.
For the car rac type system its approx £1200 just for a rack which holds 3 cars.
We can get the box section for half that and some.
Hence why we would like the design testing on a pc program

 

[Welderpaul]

It would be quicker and cheaper to approach a Structural Engineer.
Tell him how big you want it, what load it must hold and size constraints. He would charge you a couple of hundred to specify the section, detail the connections and provide you with the calculations to prove the design works. That gives you a detailed design that will work, and covers you for the legalities of designing a structure. It is a very simple structure, i wouldnt have thought they would bother to run a stress analysis (What i presume you refer to when you say test it on a PC?), that is usually reserved for bigger structures with a lot of forces in play...and costly to do.

Why mess about in the dark trying to test the design on software that you will need to learn how to use?
I can give you a name if you wish - a few emails backwards and forwards and the job is sorted.

 

[bluebobtail]

Thankyou welderpaul I would appreciate that.

 

[Welderpaul]

Thankyou welderpaul I would appreciate that.

PM me your email, and i will send his contact details over tomorrow