Most businesses will struggle to find sufficient space to be able to store their goods effectively and efficiently.

The problem often is that there’s either too much stock, or too little space to store it in.

The majority of businesses can’t afford to relocate either, as retail, commercial and industrial space is now so prohibitively expensive. So it makes sense to use whatever space a business has at its disposal as cleverly and innovatively as possible, and there can be few more effective ways of storing and retrieving stock than by using a pallet racking system.

Pallet racking is unquestionably the most efficient and cost-effective way of storing large volumes of stock.

It maximises every inch of available space, and provides the ultimate, bespoke storage solution. But what can you do when space is really at a premium? How can you gain all the benefits and advantages of a standard pallet racking system in a very confined space? The answer is to install a narrow-aisle pallet racking system.

A narrow-aisle pallet racking system is ideal where floor space is limited, but a business still requires a high degree of flexibility and access to stock at all times. A narrow-aisle pallet racking system uses the same sort of layout as a standard pallet racking system, but with narrower aisles between each pallet; the clue is in the title. This doesn’t mean, however, that a narrow-aisle pallet racking system is any less effective: it offers all the same advantages of a standard pallet racking system but on a smaller footprint:

• Full access to each individual pallet.

• Prime steel construction with bolted horizontal and diagonal bracing.

• It can be used in high volume, tailor made applications.

• It can be purchased in individual modules for smaller installations.

• Full range of accessories are available.

Narrow-aisle racking is space efficient in two ways:

• It requires less floor space for the aisles, freeing up more space for storage.

• Pallets can be stacked to a greater height than with standard racking systems, which thereby further increases the available storage capacity.

However, the one disadvantage of narrow aisle pallet racking is that it requires the use of specialist fork lift equipment. It’s important to understand that this will increase costs, but some of this extra expense can be offset by the much improved space utilisation. Indeed, installing a narrow-aisle racking system, complete with special fork lifts, is a much cheaper proposition that moving to bigger premises or expanding existing warehouse space.