Cantilever racking finance
Armed columns with no front uprights, built for timber, tube and board that would never sit sensibly on a pallet.
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Can you finance cantilever racking?
Yes, with the same caveat that applies to all fixed storage. Cantilever racking is heavy, engineered steelwork, and once erected and anchored it belongs to the building far more than to a finance agreement. Funders therefore assess it against your business rather than against the recovery value of the steel. It is funded routinely as part of a project, particularly alongside the side loader or telehandler that serves it. The mistake is assuming heavy steel means strong security — weight and liquidity are not the same thing.
Used kit: Rarely — used cantilever racking trades between merchants but funders will not normally advance against it, as removal and re-certification consume the value.
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What would cantilever racking cost per month?
Business asset finance is quoted on a flat rate, so that is what this shows — with the equivalent APR underneath, because the two are not the same number. A quick guide only; your actual rate depends on the asset, term, deposit and lender.
Representative example: on Hire Purchase, borrowing £25,000 over 48 months at a 6.0% flat rate (equivalent to 11.5% APR representative), you would repay around £646 a month; total amount repayable approximately £31,000, of which £6,000 is the cost of finance. This calculator is for illustration only — it is not a quote or an offer of finance, and the rate and repayments you are offered will depend on the asset, term, deposit and your circumstances. CW Asset Finance is a credit broker, not a lender, and may receive a commission from the lender that funds your agreement. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval. CW Asset Finance is an Appointed Representative of Rural Finance Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 630701).
How lenders treat it
Treated as semi-fixed, though with a slightly better story than shelving. Cantilever steel has scrap value at least, and heavy-duty outdoor systems with their own canopy are substantial structures. But the economics of recovery are the same as pallet racking: dismantling arms, columns and bracing, then transporting and re-erecting them for a buyer with matching load requirements, costs more than most funders will get back. Expect underwriting on your covenant, and on a leased site expect the landlord question. Outdoor installations raise an additional point, because a system set in concrete bases in a yard is unambiguously part of the land. Bundling with the handling equipment is the single most useful thing a client can do to strengthen the proposition.
Makes and models we fund
Examples of the machines we are asked to fund. This is not an exhaustive list — if what you are buying is not here, it does not mean we cannot fund it. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.
| Machine | What it is |
|---|---|
| Ohra Cantilever | Heavy duty cantilever racking |
| Ohra Outdoor Cantilever | Galvanised outdoor cantilever racking |
| Stow Cantilever | Cantilever racking for long loads |
| Dexion Cantilever | Cantilever racking for timber and steel |
| Meta Multistrong | Heavy duty cantilever racking for steel |
| Apex Cantilever | Single and double sided cantilever racking |
| Mecalux Cantilever | Cantilever racking system for long loads |
| Link 51 Cantilever | Cantilever racking for long products |
| Redirack Cantilever | Cantilever racking for bar and board |
| Storax Cantilever | Cantilever racking with roof canopy |
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Who buys one
Timber merchants, steel stockholders, plastics and tube distributors, roofing suppliers and fabrication shops with material arriving in long lengths. The purchase is usually driven by product being stored on the floor or on homemade stillages, by a growing range that has outrun a yard, or by an insurer or safety adviser raising concerns about how long material is currently being stacked.
Get a quoteor call 07581 364281
How it is treated for tax
Bought on hire purchase, business plant and machinery normally qualifies for capital allowances on the full cost even though you pay for it monthly, which is a large part of why hire purchase is the common structure. On a finance lease you generally set the rentals against profit instead. The rules change between budgets and your position depends on how you trade, so treat this as the direction of travel and get your accountant to confirm the detail before you commit.
Cantilever racking finance questions
Is outdoor cantilever racking treated differently from indoor?
It tends to be viewed even more firmly as part of the site, particularly where columns are set into concrete foundations or a canopy roof is included. That does not prevent funding, but it removes any argument that the system could be recovered easily, so the decision rests almost entirely on your trading strength.
Can a canopy or roof over the racking be financed too?
Sometimes, but it starts to look like a building rather than equipment, and some funders draw a line there. Where it is included it is generally as part of a wider project rather than as standalone equipment. It may also need planning permission, which a funder will ask about.
Does heavy-duty steel count as better security than shelving?
Marginally, because there is tonnage and therefore scrap value. But the real question a funder asks is what they would net after paying a contractor to dismantle and move it, and on that measure cantilever racking behaves much like any other fixed storage. Do not expect it to be priced as a hard asset.
We are extending an existing cantilever run. Can that be financed?
Yes. Extensions are funded in the same way as new installations, provided the supplier invoices them clearly and the system is compatible. Funders will look at the total project value, which on a modest extension may fall below a minimum advance and therefore be better combined with other purchases.
Do we need engineering calculations for the funder?
Not usually for the funder, but you need them for yourself. Cantilever systems are load-engineered for specific materials and arm lengths, and the supplier should provide load notices and design calculations. Those documents also support the installation’s value if it is ever assessed or resold.
Get a quoteor call 07581 364281
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Not an offer of finance. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval.
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