Last week we completed the installation of a small storage mezzanine floor for a Leeds based company. The project involved the supply and installation of a mezzanine floor, staircase, handrails, and pallet gate.

The company needed to store raw materials that were stored on oversized pallets. Due to the varying sizes of pallets and lack of space within the warehouse for pallet racking, the company looked to utilise the space above existing machines within the warehouse. If a solution was available above the machines (which was otherwise going to waste) the company could benefit from an additional 100 square metres of space which would provide storage for 40+ pallets.

These pallets were currently stored off-site, which was costly and required a lot of planning to arrange pallets to be delivered as and when they were required. By installing a mezzanine (for sub 20k) The company would recoup their money within 18 months and benefit from being able to take bulk deliveries and have access to the stock as and when they needed.

• The main challenge of designing the storage mezzanine floor was the need for the mezzanine to be positioned above existing machinery within the warehouse. From an installation perspective the machines could not be moved so a safe build method had to also be factored into the design to protect the machines from damage.
• Downtime needed to be kept to a minimum, so evening and weekend work was a consideration to allow the company to keep up production during the day.
• A survey was completed of the existing premises and the existing machinery so these could be positioned accurately on the plan to allow an accurate design.
• During the design stage, the mezzanine columns were placed in positions that straddled the machines and the cross bracing (which is needed to brace the mezzanine to stop it moving) were positioned in areas that did not compromise the access required to maintain and utilise the machines.
• The underside height of the storage mezzanine floor was determined by the highest point of the machines which in turn determined the finished floor level. There was plenty of head height available, however as the floor was relatively high this had an impact on the size of the staircase.
• Therefore, the staircase was strategically positioned between two of the existing machines which ultimately had no impact on the access to the machines which was required for maintenance.
• Due to the oversized pallets, we designed a large pallet gate which could accommodate the 3000x1000mm sized pallets. This was eventually positioned in the centre of the floor so that the space on the mezzanine was maximised, but also allowed access for the fork truck to load the pallets safely onto the mezzanine floor without the need to travel into pedestrian areas.
• The company keep a very tidy warehouse, so the aesthetics of the mezzanine floor were taken into consideration. We powder coated the staircases and handrail system in the company’s RAL grey to be in-keeping with the rest of the warehouse (Staircases and handrail systems can be powder coated to be in-keeping with your company brand).

• The intended use of the mezzanine floor was for storage purposes only, with only occasional access required. This allowed the floor to be non-fire rated. The fact the floor does not exceed 20metres in length and falls short of the 50% building footprint meant the need for fire protection was alleviated completely.
• Due to the size of the floor and the proximity of the foot of the staircase to the final exit, the mezzanine floor only required one staircase, which could be positioned at one end of the mezzanine as the travel distances from the furthest point on the mezzanine to the foot of the stairs was within the allotted permitted distances allowed by building regulations.
• To the underside of the floor, building control stipulated that suitable lighting was required (to include emergency lighting) and smoke detectors linked to the fire alarm were installed to provide early warning detection to anyone on the floor.
• The last condition was that warehouse concrete (slab), could accept the mezzanine column loads and would not be overloaded. More reading on this subject can be found here 

• The installation of the storage mezzanine took place over a two-day period and provided very little disruption to the business. The main machines were left in situ and any small items (such as packing benches, shelving etc) were temporary relocated whilst the build took place.
• The machines were protected with dust sheets and a scaffold tower was erected to allow a safe build method over the machines.
• Ultimately it was decided that the company could spare two days of downtime for the mezzanine to be constructed. The chosen days were Thursday and Friday which allowed spillage into the weekend if required, meaning the company could be guaranteed to be fully operational by the Monday morning.
• Site plans were provided which showed scheduled delivery slots, the areas to be cleared by the client, how materials will be manoeuvred into the building, and the area required for the build to take place.
• All RAMS were provided taking the above points into considerations that a safe build could take place whilst maintaining a safe working environment for our installation teams and the clients employees.