The Problem with Rack Quoting Today
A customer calls. They have a building they're about to sign a lease on, and they want to know roughly how much racking will cost. They'll email you a flyer. The building is 250×400 ft with 32 ft clear. Standard B2B with 40 in beams.
What happens next? If you're like most dealers, you open AutoCAD or a spreadsheet, spend 30–60 minutes sketching, manually count bays, look up your pricing, and put together a quote document. Maybe you get back to the customer that afternoon. Maybe it's tomorrow.
By then, they've already heard from someone else.
RackCity compresses that process into about 10 minutes — including the floor plan, the elevation drawing, and the priced quote PDF.
The RackCity Quoting Workflow
1. Upload the building flyer (or enter dimensions)
Drop the customer's PDF building flyer into RackCity. The AI reads the building dimensions, dock locations, and sometimes the column grid directly from the document — and generates a complete initial racking layout. You're not starting from scratch; you're editing a draft.
If you don't have a flyer, just enter the dimensions and describe what you want. Either path takes under two minutes to get a workable starting point.
2. Adjust the layout for the customer's use case
The AI-generated layout is a starting point. You can drag zones to reposition them, delete bays that hit columns or dock doors, switch rack types for different areas, and fine-tune the configuration — all in the same canvas. Changes update the pallet count in real time so you're always seeing the current capacity number.
3. Open the BOM and price your materials
Click the BOM button in the toolbar. RackCity has already calculated the quantities: upright frames by height, beams by level count, wire decks, row spacers, and anchor bolts — all derived from your layout geometry. Enter your unit costs for each line item.
If you want to hit a specific $/pallet position target — say $95/position installed — use the $/pallet fill feature. Enter the target and RackCity scales all unit costs proportionally. More on that below.
4. Add fee line items
Below the material rows, the BOM editor has pre-built fee fields for:
- Installation
- Freight
- Engineering / Permitting
You can also add custom line items — demolition, wire deck upgrades, seismic bracing, whatever the job requires. Each fee is included in the grand total and reflected in the $/pallet position figure.
5. Generate the Quote PDF
Click "Generate Quote PDF." RackCity produces a portrait letter document with your project name, the material list with quantities and pricing, all fee line items, a grand total in green, and a $/pallet position summary. The PDF includes a disclaimer that all measurements must be field-verified before ordering — which protects you and sets the right expectation with the customer.
6. Download the CSV for procurement
For your own purchasing team or to pull into your ERP, download the BOM as a CSV. Same quantities, same line items — just in a format you can import directly without re-keying anything.
What the BOM Includes
RackCity calculates quantities for five component categories automatically from your layout:
- Upright frames — count based on bay count plus end frames, sized to your upright height setting. Footplate class (light/medium/heavy anchor) is selected based on height tier.
- Beams — count based on beam levels × bays across all zones, at your configured beam length.
- Wire decks — matched to the nearest standard wire deck width for your beam length. One deck per bay per level.
- Row spacers — calculated for B2B zones (one spacer per frame pair per row).
- Anchor bolts — calculated from footplate size and anchors-per-plate spec for your upright height tier.
All quantities update automatically if you change the layout — add a zone, remove a bay, change beam levels. You don't have to recount anything.
What the Quote PDF Looks Like
The Quote PDF is a single-page (or multi-page for large projects) portrait letter document structured for easy customer review:
- Header band — project name, date, RackCity wordmark
- Summary strip — total pallet positions, number of zones
- Materials table — description, quantity, unit, unit cost, total per line
- Fee rows — freight, installation, engineering, and any custom items
- Grand total — materials + fees combined
- $/pallet position — grand total ÷ total positions
- Disclaimer — explicit language that quantities and dimensions must be field-verified before purchase; this protects the dealer and sets correct customer expectations
The $/Pallet Fill Feature
If you know the price point you need to hit — say, $80/position for a budget-sensitive customer or $120/position for a heavy-duty application — enter that number in the $/pallet fill field and click fill. RackCity back-calculates unit costs for each material line item proportionally, scaling them to hit your target price exactly.
RackCity uses a baseline cost ratio between material types (frames cost more per unit than beams, which cost more than decks, etc.) and scales all of them by the same factor to hit your target. The resulting unit costs are editable — you can adjust individual lines after the fill if your actual costs are different for specific items.
This is especially useful for quick ballpark quotes. A customer wants to know "roughly what are we talking?" You enter their building, run a layout, set $95/position, generate the PDF, and have something credible to send in under 10 minutes. Detailed pricing comes later.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a pallet rack BOM include?
A pallet rack bill of materials includes upright frames (by height and footplate class), beams (by level count and length), wire decks (matched to beam length), row spacers (for B2B configurations), and anchor bolts. RackCity calculates all quantities automatically from your layout geometry.
How much does pallet racking cost per position?
Installed pallet racking typically ranges from $50 to $150+ per position depending on rack height, beam length, accessories (wire decks, column protectors, row spacers), freight distance, and local labor rates. Heavy-duty or high-bay applications run higher. RackCity's $/pallet position metric lets you quickly model different scenarios.
Can I customize the Quote PDF with my own pricing?
Yes. The BOM editor lets you enter your own unit cost for every material line item and add custom fee rows. RackCity generates the Quote PDF from your entered pricing — it doesn't impose any pricing of its own. The $/pallet fill feature can give you a starting point if you don't have unit costs ready.
What is the $/pallet position metric?
Dollars per pallet position ($/position) is the total project cost divided by the number of storage positions. It's the most common metric rack dealers and customers use to compare proposals and evaluate cost efficiency. A layout that holds more positions for the same total cost has a lower $/position.
Does the quote include installation costs?
You add installation as a fee line item in the BOM editor. RackCity includes it in the grand total and $/pallet position calculation, and shows it as a separate line in the Quote PDF so customers can see the material vs. labor breakdown clearly.
How much does pallet racking cost per square foot?
Installed selective pallet racking commonly runs about $5–$12 per square foot of building, but the figure dealers actually quote on is cost per pallet position ($50–$150+). RackCity's BOM and $/pallet position metric convert your layout into either number in seconds.