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Your racking layout drives productivity. The right design reduces travel time, increases storage capacity, and improves safety.

Here are three real world layout examples and when to use them.

1. Small Warehouse Layout

Scenario
• 10,000 square feet
• 22 foot clear height
• 300 pallet positions needed
• Mixed SKUs
• Standard sit down forklift

Goal
Maximize storage while keeping access simple.

Recommended Layout
Selective pallet racking with standard aisle widths.

Key design choices
• 8 to 10 foot aisles for forklift turning
• 3 to 4 beam levels depending on pallet height
• Back to back rows with row spacers
• End of aisle guards for impact protection

Why this works
Selective racking gives you direct access to every pallet. In a small warehouse, flexibility matters more than extreme density.

Example numbers
If each bay holds 8 pallets and you install 40 bays, you reach 320 pallet positions.
With 4 levels high, you use vertical space without pushing lift limits.

Best for
• Distributors
• Importers
• Operations with varied inventory

2. High Density Storage Layout

Scenario
• 50,000 square feet
• 30 foot clear height
• Large quantities of the same SKU
• Lower SKU variety
• Limited floor space

Goal
Store more pallet racks in uae per square foot.

Recommended Layout
Drive in racking or push back racking.

Option A, Drive In Racking

• Forklift drives into the rack structure
• Pallets stored several deep
• Fewer aisles

Benefits
• Up to 60 percent more storage than selective racking
• Ideal for large batches

Tradeoff
• Last in first out inventory flow
• Slower selectivity

Option B, Push Back Racking

• Pallets sit on rolling carts
• Stored 2 to 5 deep
• First in last out flow

Benefits
• Higher density than selective
• Faster loading than drive in

Example
If selective racking gives you 1,000 pallet positions, a high density system may increase that to 1,500 or more in the same footprint.

Best for
• Food and beverage
• Manufacturing
• Bulk storage

3. Fast Moving SKU Layout

Scenario
• High order volume
• Daily pallet turnover
• 20 percent of SKUs drive 80 percent of picks
• Multiple pickers operating at once

Goal
Reduce travel time and speed up order fulfillment.

Recommended Layout
Hybrid layout with selective racking and pallet flow.

Key design choices
• Fast movers near shipping area
• Pallet flow lanes for high volume SKUs
• Wider main aisles for traffic flow
• Clearly marked staging areas

Pallet Flow Advantage
• Gravity fed rollers
• First in first out flow
• Forklift loads from the back
• Pickers pull from the front

Example
If a fast moving SKU sells 50 pallets per day, placing it at the back of the warehouse adds hours of forklift travel each week. Moving it near shipping reduces labor time and fuel use.

You can measure impact.
If each forklift trip takes 3 minutes and you reduce 40 trips per day, you save 120 minutes daily. That equals 10 hours per week.

Best for
• E commerce fulfillment
• Retail distribution
• High volume wholesale

Layout Design Principles That Apply to All

• Match rack type to inventory flow
• Use vertical space within forklift limits
• Protect high traffic impact zones
• Separate fast and slow movers
• Plan for future growth

Your layout should reflect how your inventory moves, not just how much you store.

If you are planning a new setup, start with data.
Measure pallet count, turnover rate, SKU count, and average pallet weight. Then choose the racking system that supports your operation, not just your floor space.

A well planned layout lowers labor cost, reduces damage, and improves throughput from day one.