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Industrial Storage Solutions
Pallet rack, shelving, automated retrieval, and modular storage systems engineered to maximize warehouse capacity and streamline operations.
Why Industrial Storage Matters
Every square foot of warehouse space costs money. When inventory is scattered across the floor, stored on mismatched shelving, or piled on pallets without a system, you lose time on every pick, every restock, and every count. Industrial storage solutions are the backbone of an efficient operation. The right system puts the right product in the right place so your team can find it, move it, and ship it without wasted steps. Material Handling USA has been helping warehouses, distribution centers, manufacturing plants, and government facilities design and install storage systems for over 30 years. Whether you need a single row of pallet rack or a fully automated retrieval system, we can help you find the right fit for your space, budget, and workflow.
Types of Industrial Storage Systems
Selective Pallet Rack
The most common warehouse storage system. Every pallet position is directly accessible by forklift, making it ideal for facilities that store a wide variety of SKUs. Available in roll-formed and structural steel configurations to handle load capacities from standard consumer goods to heavy industrial parts.
Cantilever Rack
Designed for long, bulky, or irregularly shaped items such as lumber, pipe, steel bar stock, and furniture. Open-front design with no vertical obstructions allows forklifts to load and unload from the side. Available in single-sided and double-sided configurations.
Rivet Shelving
Boltless assembly makes rivet shelving one of the fastest storage solutions to set up. Each shelf can support 750 lbs or more, and heights are adjustable in 1.5-inch increments. Works well for parts rooms, stockrooms, retail backrooms, and archive storage where items are picked by hand rather than forklift.
Wire Shelving
Open wire design allows air to circulate freely and light to pass through, which makes wire shelving the standard for foodservice, healthcare, and cleanroom environments. NSF-certified options are available for direct food contact. Chrome, stainless steel, and epoxy-coated finishes resist corrosion in wet or humid conditions.
Carton Flow Rack
Inclined roller tracks let cartons glide from the loading side to the picking side under gravity. This first-in, first-out (FIFO) system is built for high-turnover environments like e-commerce fulfillment, food distribution, and pharmaceutical warehouses where product rotation matters.
Pushback Rack
Pallets are loaded from one aisle and stored two to six deep on inclined carts or rails. Each new pallet pushes the previous ones back. When a front pallet is removed, the next one rolls forward automatically. Pushback rack works well for facilities with moderate SKU counts and high pallet volume per SKU.
Vertical Carousels and Vertical Lift Modules
Automated storage machines that bring items to the operator at an ergonomic height. Vertical carousels rotate trays in a loop, while vertical lift modules (VLMs) use an extractor to retrieve trays from two columns. Both systems can recover up to 70% of floor space compared to static shelving and reduce picking errors with light-directed or software-guided picking.
Mobile High-Density Shelving
Shelving units mounted on tracks that slide together to eliminate wasted aisle space. One access aisle serves an entire bank of shelving, which can double or triple storage capacity in the same footprint. Common in government records storage, law enforcement evidence rooms, museum archives, healthcare supply rooms, and office file storage.
Industries We Serve
Industrial storage needs vary widely by industry. A pharmaceutical warehouse has different requirements than a lumber yard, and a military armory has different security needs than a retail stockroom. We design systems around the specific demands of each environment.
Manufacturing and Distribution
Pallet rack, carton flow, bulk shelving, and mezzanines for raw materials, WIP inventory, and finished goods.
Government and Military
Weapons racks, TA-50 gear lockers, high-density shelving for records, and secure evidence storage for law enforcement.
Healthcare and Laboratories
Wire shelving, modular casework, fume hoods, and automated dispensing for clean, organized clinical and research environments.
Automotive and Dealerships
Parts room shelving, tire carousels, vertical lifts for small parts, and bin systems for organized service departments.
Food and Beverage
NSF-certified shelving, cold storage solutions, FIFO flow racks, and corrosion-resistant materials for health department compliance.
Retail and E-Commerce
Pick modules, conveyor integration, carton flow for order fulfillment, and mezzanines to expand vertical picking space.
How to Choose the Right Storage System
Picking the right industrial storage system starts with understanding your operation. There is no single best solution. The right answer depends on what you store, how you access it, and how much space you have to work with.
1. Assess Your Inventory Profile
What are you storing? Heavy pallets need pallet rack. Small parts need shelving with bins. Long items need cantilever. Sensitive items may need climate-controlled or enclosed storage.
2. Measure Your Space
Clear height, floor dimensions, column spacing, and door locations all affect what systems will fit. Vertical solutions like carousels and VLMs can take advantage of unused overhead space.
3. Understand Your Access Patterns
Do you need to access every pallet position directly? Selective rack is best. Can you store pallets multiple deep? Pushback or drive-in rack saves space. Do you pick small items frequently? Carton flow or automated systems speed up fulfillment.
4. Plan for Growth
A good storage system should scale with your business. Modular systems like rivet shelving and pallet rack can be expanded or reconfigured as your inventory mix changes. Automated systems can be upgraded with additional units over time.
Why Choose Material Handling USA
30+ Years of Experience
We have been designing and installing industrial storage systems since the early 1990s. We understand what works in real-world warehouse environments.
Free Layout and Design
Our team can create a storage layout based on your floor plan, inventory profile, and workflow requirements. No obligation.
Nationwide Delivery and Installation
We ship storage systems across the United States and coordinate professional installation with experienced crews.
Multiple Product Lines
We carry shelving, racking, automated storage, modular buildings, security cages, and more. One source for your entire facility.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ready to Upgrade Your Storage?
Tell us about your space and we will recommend the right system for your operation. Free consultation, free layout, no obligation.