GB1569750A

GB1569750A - Dry rack warehouse storage

Info

Publication number: GB1569750A
Application number: GB2156978A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1978-05-23
Filing date: 1978-05-23
Publication date: 1980-06-18
Also published as: EP0015984A1; WO1979001107A1

Abstract

A demountable prefabricated building, for example for warehousing, has a roof (11) supported by at least two support modules (12) comprising a plurality of uprights (13) connected to one another by horizontal struts (14) in a 3-dimensional structure. The upper ends of the uprights are provided with flanges to which supporting elements for the roof are releasably secured. Suitable cladding (32) may be secured to the outer sides of the support modules to form outer walls for the building.

Description

(54) DRY RACK WAREHOUSE STORAGE (71) I, FRANCIS LLOYD a British Subject trading as LLOYD MORLEY COM PANY of 2 The Close, Poplar Way, Stafford, England, do hereby declare the invention, for which I pray that a patent may be granted to me and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: The present invention relates to a demountable prefabricated building including a support module for supporting the roof.

It is well known that on manufacturing sites a portion of the site must be used as a storage area for the raw materials or components used in the manufacturing process. The allocation of a large portion of the site for storage limits the area which can actually be used for the manufacturing process and all manufacturers seek to restrict the space used for the storage of raw materials and components to a minimum.

Generally the storage area takes the fonn of a warehouse in which the materials are protected from damage by extreme weather conditions although in some manufacturing industries the raw materials can be left in the open. Where it is essential to keep the stored materials under cover the warehouse represents a fixed part of the manufacturing site which can only be used for storage. If a manufacturer should wish to expand the production area into the storage area it is necessary to remove a portion of the existing warehouse. This is of course an extremely expensive procedure.

It is an object of the present invention to facilitate the provision on manufacturing sites of warehouses for the storage of materials which can be rapidly constructed at any given location on the site to provide storage facilities and which can be dismantled, when desired, and moved to a different location.

Accordingly, in the particular aspect the present invention provides a prefabricated building comprising at least two support modules supporting a roof extending between them, each said support module comprising a plurality of uprights connected to one another by horizontal struts in a three dimensional structure, the upper ends of the uprights being provided with flanges to which are releasably secured supporting elements for the roof, and at least some of said horizontal struts also serving to support storage racks or shelves.

Specific examples of the various part of a building for storing materials according to the present invention will now be described, by way of example, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a building for storing materials, Figure 2 is a perspective view of a primary roof support module; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a roof support link module; Figure 4 is a sectional elevation showing a roof supported on roof support modules; Figure 5 is a portion of an alternative roof support module; and Figures 6 and 7 are elevations, each showing a portion of a roof and the associated roof support module.

Figure 1 shows a warehouse for storing materials comprising a roof 11 supported on rows 12 formed of alternate primary and link roof support modules.

Each primary roof support module, as shown in Figure 2, consists of six vertical columns 13 interconnected by horizontal steel angle girders 14. The module is reinforced by diagonal steel angle girders 15, 16, extending between the columns 13 on one side of the module and between the columns 13 at each end of the module. The top of each column 13 is provided with a rafter connection 20 by which the module is connected to rafters in the roof 11.

Each roof support link module, as shown in Figure 3, comprises two vertical columns 19 each provided at their top with a rafter connection 20. The vertical columns 19 are interconnected by a series of steel angle girders 21 and horizontal girders 22 extends from either side of the vertical columns 19 for connection at their ends to a primary roof support module.

The connection of the link module to the primary module is acheived by means of a series of cleats 28 which connect to the horizontal angle girders 21 on the link module.

As can be seen from Figure 1 the roof 11 of the warehouse has a central ridge 23 with ridge rafters 24 on either side. The connection of the ridge rafters 24 to a rafter connection 20 of a roof support module is shown in Figure 6.

In the construction of large warehouses it is necessary to arrange two rows of roof support modules back to back between the outer wall of the warehouse and the central ridge. In this case, as shown in Figure 7, valley rafters 31 which connect to form a valley gutter 32 are used, the valley gutter 32 being connected to the rafter connections 20 of the roof support modules. The roofing rafters are covered with a suitable form of cladding, for example Perspex Nylon (Registered Trade Mark) sheet. As can be seen in Figure 1 the rows 12 of roof support modules may be used to form the outer walls of the warehouse and in this case they are also covered with a suitable cladding. In addition the roof support modules at each end of the warehouse are provided with hinges for carrying doors for closing the warehouse.

The rows of roof support modules provide racks which can be used for the storage of materials in the warehouse. In a preferred embodiment. illustrated in FigureS, a plurality of tubes 34 may be welded between the horizontal steel angle girders 18 to provide storage shelves particularly suitable for storing drums.

Alternatively steel, mesh or chipboard shelves may be carried by the angle girders 18.

As shown in Figure 6 a spray line 26 may be provided along the central ridge 23 of the roof for sprinkling water onto material stored in the warehouse in the event of fire.

It will be appreciated that the combination of rack and link modules designed for support ing the roof rafters make it possible to quickly erect a storage building of any design, shape or size.

Substantial cost savings are achieved and it has been found, in some instances, that a storage warehouse constructed of the rack and link modules according to the present invention can be erected for approximately one third of the cost of erecting a warehouse of the same size using conventional building methods.

The modules are particularly suitable for erecting a building on an existing concrete area, for example a dock and goods receiving compound, because there is no need to prepare the ground before installing the modules.

However where a previously unused area is to be used as a site for the storage building it is necessary to reduce the ground level to provide a foundation for the building. The ground level is reduced to take a hard core layer of six to eight inches which is consolidated with strips of reinforced concrete four to six inches thick laid lengthwise to correspond with the rows of roof support modules.

The roof support modules can be built in standard units on jigs and generally are nine foot long, three foot wide and eleven foot high.

In the erection of a building they are set in single rows at the sides and back to back below the valley rafters and central ridge. The primary roof support modules are eight foot eight inches apart and the link modules introduced between the primary modules. All the modules are bolted to the floor and to each other as necessary.

The roof is formed by connecting the standard roof rafters to the rafter connections on the modules, four connections being made for each sixteen foot of roof span with a maximum distance between the rafter connections of ten feet. Sheeting angles, jig made, are fitted to the rafters to mount the roof cladding.

Cladding for covering the side walls is bolted direct to the lateral angles at the rear of the modules.

It is envisaged that some of the horizontal angle girders could be movable so that the racks can be located at different positions on the modules.

WHAT I CLAIM IS: 1. A prefabricated building comprising at least two support modules supporting a roof extending between them, each said support module comprising a plurality of uprights connected to one another by horizontal struts in a three dimensional structure, the upper ends of the uprights being provided with flanges to which are releasably secured supporting elements for the roof, and at least some of said horizontal struts also serving to support storage racks or shelves.

2. A building according to claim 1 wherein at least one of said support modules is rectangular in plan view.

3. A building according to claim 2 wherein said module of rectangular plan view comprises at least six said uprights arranged at the four corners and along the major sides of the rectangle.

4. A building according to claim 2 or claim 3 wherein at least one edge of the roof is supported by two said rectangular modules arranged end to end.

5. A building according to claim 4 wherein the two said rectangular modules are secured in end to end formation by means of cleats.

6. A building according to any preceding claim wherein said horizontal struts supporting racks or shelves are provided at more than one level in at least one said module.

7. A building according to any preceding claim including shelves or racks supported by said up-rights and, their positions being vertically adjustable within the module.

8. A building according to any preceeding claim wherein at least one said module supports a central part of the roof, at least two further

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. at their ends to a primary roof support module. The connection of the link module to the primary module is acheived by means of a series of cleats 28 which connect to the horizontal angle girders 21 on the link module. As can be seen from Figure 1 the roof 11 of the warehouse has a central ridge 23 with ridge rafters 24 on either side. The connection of the ridge rafters 24 to a rafter connection 20 of a roof support module is shown in Figure 6. In the construction of large warehouses it is necessary to arrange two rows of roof support modules back to back between the outer wall of the warehouse and the central ridge. In this case, as shown in Figure 7, valley rafters 31 which connect to form a valley gutter 32 are used, the valley gutter 32 being connected to the rafter connections 20 of the roof support modules. The roofing rafters are covered with a suitable form of cladding, for example Perspex Nylon (Registered Trade Mark) sheet. As can be seen in Figure 1 the rows 12 of roof support modules may be used to form the outer walls of the warehouse and in this case they are also covered with a suitable cladding. In addition the roof support modules at each end of the warehouse are provided with hinges for carrying doors for closing the warehouse. The rows of roof support modules provide racks which can be used for the storage of materials in the warehouse. In a preferred embodiment. illustrated in FigureS, a plurality of tubes 34 may be welded between the horizontal steel angle girders 18 to provide storage shelves particularly suitable for storing drums. Alternatively steel, mesh or chipboard shelves may be carried by the angle girders 18. As shown in Figure 6 a spray line 26 may be provided along the central ridge 23 of the roof for sprinkling water onto material stored in the warehouse in the event of fire. It will be appreciated that the combination of rack and link modules designed for support ing the roof rafters make it possible to quickly erect a storage building of any design, shape or size. Substantial cost savings are achieved and it has been found, in some instances, that a storage warehouse constructed of the rack and link modules according to the present invention can be erected for approximately one third of the cost of erecting a warehouse of the same size using conventional building methods. The modules are particularly suitable for erecting a building on an existing concrete area, for example a dock and goods receiving compound, because there is no need to prepare the ground before installing the modules. However where a previously unused area is to be used as a site for the storage building it is necessary to reduce the ground level to provide a foundation for the building. The ground level is reduced to take a hard core layer of six to eight inches which is consolidated with strips of reinforced concrete four to six inches thick laid lengthwise to correspond with the rows of roof support modules. The roof support modules can be built in standard units on jigs and generally are nine foot long, three foot wide and eleven foot high. In the erection of a building they are set in single rows at the sides and back to back below the valley rafters and central ridge. The primary roof support modules are eight foot eight inches apart and the link modules introduced between the primary modules. All the modules are bolted to the floor and to each other as necessary. The roof is formed by connecting the standard roof rafters to the rafter connections on the modules, four connections being made for each sixteen foot of roof span with a maximum distance between the rafter connections of ten feet. Sheeting angles, jig made, are fitted to the rafters to mount the roof cladding. Cladding for covering the side walls is bolted direct to the lateral angles at the rear of the modules. It is envisaged that some of the horizontal angle girders could be movable so that the racks can be located at different positions on the modules. WHAT I CLAIM IS:

1. A prefabricated building comprising at least two support modules supporting a roof extending between them, each said support module comprising a plurality of uprights connected to one another by horizontal struts in a three dimensional structure, the upper ends of the uprights being provided with flanges to which are releasably secured supporting elements for the roof, and at least some of said horizontal struts also serving to support storage racks or shelves.

said modules being provided to support the outer edges of the roof.

9. A building according to claim 8 wherein the said central part of the roof is supported by two said modules arranged in back-to-back formation.

10. A building according to claim 7 or claim 8 wherein the said central part of the roof comprises a central ridge supported by at least one said module, a plurality of rafters extending from the ridge and supported by said modules at each end.

11. A building according to any one of claims 8 to 10 wherein a central portion of the roof supported by at least one said support module includes a valley-gutter from which rafters on each side extend outwardly and upwardly, their ends remote from the gutter being supported by other said support modules.

12. A building according to any preceding claim wherein modules supporting the outer edges of the roof are provided with cladding on their outer sides to form walls for the building.

13. A building according to any preceeding claim wherein the said flanges at the upper ends of the uprights are horizontal, the roof supporting elements resting directly thereon and being secured thereto.

14. A building according to any preceding claim wherein the said modules also support spraying means for spraying liquid onto the modules.

15. A prefabricated building substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.