Improve Your Warehouse Design and Functionality with Industrial Shelving

Maximizing the potential of your warehouse space is key to not only keeping your business running, but also ensure its growth in the future. Making the most out of any warehouse space really comes down to two things: quality storage units and good planning. If your warehouse feels like it is pushing its storage limits day after day, it isn’t necessarily time to move to a bigger space — investing in good industrial shelving can instantly make your warehouse feel twice as big if not bigger. 

For warehouses in Arizona, good storage and planning is not just beneficial— it’s an absolute must, thanks to our frequent high temperatures and intense sun. All warehouses ideally should be insulated and not have any sun-exposed areas, and it is also important to keep items sufficiently elevated off the floor to avoid dirt, dust and sand contamination. For more information on Arizona warehouse design and layout, just contact the experts at KACO Warehouse Outfitters! 

In the meantime, it’s worth noting the different types of industrial shelving work best under different situations. At KACO, we are proud to offer a wide range of shelving solutions to assist with Arizona warehouse design and re-organization. 

Types of Industrial Shelving to Know 

• Steel Shelves – This type of shelving is ideal for many warehouses, as it provides maximum strength for heavy products and large loads of materials. Steel shelves also come in a wide range of sizes, shapes and heights, fitting into almost any kind of warehouse.
• Boltless Shelves – This type of shelving takes only minimal time to install, and it can serve as a quick solution for warehouse spaces that are packed to the brim (or about to be). This type of shelving does not contain screw-in bolts and can be secured with just a simple rubber mallet. Because they do not have side brackets, they can also be loaded from any direction, making them a highly efficient solution. 
• Closed Shelves – For loose materials or those that otherwise need to be secured, closed shelving units offer both protection and organization.
• Wire Shelves – Wire shelving units have become increasingly popular over time, as they are effective, highly customizable and attractive in appearance. While used primarily in service industry settings, wire shelves are also very suitable for lighter warehouse materials and warehouse office storage space. Wire shelving usually comes in a shiny chrome finish, but it can also come in stainless steel, zinc, and more. 
• Widespand Shelves – Also known as “bulk shelving”, widespand shelves are ideally for large-shaped, bulky items. And with a typical weight capacity of between 1,000 lbs and  2,500 lbs, they are also a wonderful solution for heavy and/or stacked products. These kinds of shelves are offered in a range of sizes, but the most popular ones are between 6 ft and 8 ft high. 
• Mezzanine Shelves – This type of shelving essentially adds another floor to the warehouse. It is most suitable for large warehouse spaces with a lot of height.

Things to Consider Before Choosing Industrial Shelving

Industrial shelving is certainly not “one size fits all”, since warehouses comes in all shapes, sizes and purposes. While one of the first things to consider are the types of materials that need to be stored, there are some other things that must be accounted for:

• Warehouse aisle space and width – Warehouse workers and visitors will still need to be able to move around the shelving and safely transport materials.
• Potential storage weights – Even if any materials currently in stock are not very heavy, that doesn’t mean there won’t be a need for heavier storage capacity in the future.
• Warehouse equipment – What kind of equipment or moving vehicles are being used / will be used in the warehouse? There needs to be plenty of space for items like fork lifts to move around, and shelves will also have to be strong enough to withstand being accessed by them. 

At KACO Warehouse Outfitters, we are happy to help with both shelving and warehouse storage planning. We provide a number of high-grade shelving solutions for a wide range of products and materials. Please feel free to contact us if you have questions about warehouse arrangement, Arizona warehouse design in particular, and / or what storage solutions may be best for your specific needs