For businesses looking to expand the usable floor space in their warehouses, installing a mezzanine floor is an excellent option. Mezzanines are essentially intermediate floors between a warehouse’s main floor and its ceiling.
However, mezzanine floor systems are not considered completely new floors in a building. They’re generally a supplementary structure that is added after a warehouse’s initial construction.
Mezzanines are most commonly used as semi-permanent structures in warehouse facilities, but people can also utilize them in various environments, such as distribution centers, industrial plants, and factories. This additional floor space can serve several purposes, including the following.
- Expanding the available storage space in your building
- Providing additional space for work activities
- Providing easier access to equipment and inventory
- Providing an easier way for people to move around without disrupting operations
Because of the flexibility and affordability of construction methods, mezzanine floors are popular in multi-functional warehouses. This extra floor space can be extremely valuable, whether you need more space for offices, equipment, machinery, product manufacturing, or picking and packaging stations.
The Various Types of Mezzanine Floors
Storage Mezzanines
Businesses in the racking and storage industries were some of the first to discover the full benefits of mezzanine flooring, which they used as platforms in their warehouses to accommodate extra shelves and expand their storage capacity.
Mezzanine floors pay for themselves if you need extra storage space because they’re reasonably inexpensive to install and aren’t subject to business rates because they’re a free-standing structure. Additionally, they can also be set up fast and with little disruption to your daily operations.
Office Mezzanines
Businesses change and grow, and having some extra floor space can help you adapt by allowing you to expand your existing office space or customize the layout of your new office space. Office mezzanines also enable you to expand cost-effectively, saving you a significant amount of time, money, and aggravation.
Industrial Mezzanines
Industrial mezzanine flooring is a robust and versatile choice if you need to increase your production area or move into a new facility that you need to upgrade to suit your business’s needs. This additional flooring allows you to expand your workspace and increase productivity considerably by utilizing available head height.
Free-Standing Mezzanines
Free-standing mezzanines are supported by columns rather than existing buildings or racks. They provide the most efficient use of floor space and total usage of the additional flooring.
Lighting, sprinkler pipes, electrical conduits, and HVAC ductwork can travel under or through the structural framework of the platform, removing impediments and increasing the usable area of the ground floor.
Shelving-Supported Mezzanines
Shelving-supported mezzanines are storage or warehouse floors constructed with the storage rack system as the primary structural support. Because the supports are used for both the rack and the mezzanine systems, this support structure can help save money and space.
Manufacturers of racking and shelving systems can include a multi-floor layer mezzanine structure in the rack system. These aid with the storage space’s functionality and make inventory and equipment more accessible.
Catwalks
Catwalks are great for expanding the capacity of tall shelving or rack storage facilities by giving access to the upper levels of the racks via catwalks that extend from the central mezzanine.
In many circumstances, existing shelving units can support the frame, and you can add columns to provide additional support between shelves and under portions of the platform that are not covered by racks or shelves.
Full Mat Mezzanines
Full mat mezzanines combine the best qualities of free-standing mezzanines and catwalks. They’re usually supported by existing shelving or rack units that don’t extend above the platform. You can utilize the open area on the second level for bulk storage, office space, employee cafeterias, and several other uses.
3 Benefits of Mezzanines
Having additional floor space suspended above the main floor of your warehouse can provide your business with several benefits.
Make the Most Out of Your Available Space
Mezzanine flooring gives you greater value per square foot in your warehouse and the room to adapt to any company requirement, whether you’re growing in your current area or moving on to greener pastures.
Flexible Design Is Incredibly Versatile
Mezzanines are free-standing and incredibly versatile because they are not tied into the fabric of your building. You can design them to accommodate your current floor plan, existing equipment and machinery, and even shelving layouts.
Serve Many Purposes
Well-designed mezzanine floors serve many purposes. They can be used as work platforms in industrial settings, additional office space when hiring more employees, or storage for products, equipment, and machinery.
Get in Touch with BILT Industries Today
When growing a business, it can be challenging to find the perfect warehouse right from the start, and you may discover that your business has outgrown its current location or that you require additional space to complete your daily operations.
Mezzanines are a great addition to your warehouse that can be used for a range of applications and meet various requirements within a single facility. However, they are long-term investments, which means you want to make sure the right people are on board to assist you.
As Kansas City’s preferred warehouse organization solutions, BILT Industries understands the importance of improving daily business operations.
With more than 15 years of experience, we remain dedicated to giving each of our customers the tools they require to keep their businesses running effectively. Each shelving-supported mezzanine built by us is custom-made to meet your specific needs and concerns, and we only use standardized, production-line components to keep costs to a minimum.
If you’re interested in learning more about how our experts can design the perfect shelving-supported mezzanine for your business, contact BILT Industries today to speak with a BILT sales representative about your business’s needs.