Mezzanine inspired choice

The additional capacity and flexibility in the new building has enabled Inspire Community Trust to consolidate its operations, stock additional items, add new services and respond more quickly to the needs of the community.

“We have invested to ensure everything is on a single site which allows us to provide a better service and greater value to our community,” says Keith Francis, Project Manager at Inspire Community Trust responsible for commissioning the new building. “We were initially looking for extra warehouse space but we’re very pleased we did it this way. Without the lift it would have been impossible to make the best use of the additional storage capacity on the mezzanine floor.”

Schedules were tight and the organisation opted for a design-and-build approach. The warehouse was initially designed for pallet racking and shelving served by a small lift truck. As construction proceeded the organisation asked storage specialist Romstor, which works with a number of public bodies, for advice on the best way to configure the facility. After assessing the existing stores and the new building Romstor identified that a mezzanine with shelving would make far better use of the available space than conventional racking. This supported greater flexibility to accommodate a wider variety of items, a key consideration for Inspire Community Trust as its service capability continued to expand.

Because the building had been designed for standard racking Romstor and Inspire Community Trust had to take into account the point loadings resulting from the mezzanine. Major modifications to the building and floor were not an option but after consulting a structural engineer a suitable configuration was agreed. Romstor completed the installation of the mezzanine and supplied new shelving for the downstairs.