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WINERY & VINEYARD EQUIPMENT 84 WINES&VINES November 2017 Fermentation and seismic safety are the two main areas in which barrel rack manufacturers are innovating. Suppliers have added new rack types and features to either make it easier to assist barrel fermentation or help keep barrel racks standing in the event of an earthquake. Wines & Vines checked with major suppliers about new and existing products. The Wines & Vines Product Focus feature is not intended to provide a definitive listing of all available products in a particular segment or provide any comparative analysis, but rather serve as an overview of what's new or available and also of potential interest to readers as determined by the magazine's editorial staff. WORKSAFE TECHNOLOGIES A new interlocking barrel pallet system is the latest offering by Seismarack Systems, which is produced by Worksafe Technologies in Va- lencia, Calif. The new pallets feature male and female connectors on the sides of the rack that provide a secure link between stacks. Interlocking bumpers on the front and back of the racks snap together, provid- ing further stability. The pallets also feature flexible stainless steel or urethane grip sup- port bands on which the barrels rest. The bands are the point of contact on barrels when the pallets are stacked. The first rack of any stack also can be leveled with adjust- able feet that can be preset to match a floor slope or adjusted as needed. worksafetech.com TOPCO As well as refurbishing old barrel racks, Topco in Grover Beach, Calif., manufactures new racks and the Topcap to help secure stacked barrels. The Topcap is a single bar, two-barrel rack designed to be strapped to barrels at the top of a stack. Secured with a ratchet strap, the Topcap helps ensure the top barrels of a rack aren't launched off their racks during an earthquake, causing other stacks to topple. barrel-racks.com PRODUCT FOCUS Barrel Racks New options for safety or to support winemaking By Andrew Adams TITAN RACK Based in St. Louis, Mo., Titan Rack produces double-bar two- and four-barrel racks as well as a half rack for two barrels. The company also makes a removable center rack that can be used to rest a single barrel securely in a two-barrel rack. titanrack.com Worksafe Technologies