Should I Choose Shelving or Racking for my SME Business?

Are you looking for a storage solution but unsure if racking or shelving is the right choice for you?

With any business, whether big or small, a storage solution is all about making the best use of your space and storing items so you can efficiently perform everyday activities. To do this effectively, you must make the right choices on the type of storage equipment you use.

However, with the wide range of systems available, knowing whether to choose shelving or racking can be confusing and overwhelming. We look at the key difference between both storage systems.

Do I need shelving or racking?

When it comes to choosing between shelving or racking, there are no right or wrong answers. However, there are some cases where one is better than the other.

The key questions to consider are:

• What products will I store? Choose storage for the size, length and types of the products you stock.
• How much stock do I need to store? It’s no good getting storage in place and finding out you don’t have enough capacity.
• How much do the products weigh? You don’t want to risk a shelving collapse because it can’t hold the weight.
• How will you pick and pack your products? Some storage systems are better suited to handloading while others work perfectly with forklift trucks.
• How much space do you have? You want to be able to make efficient use of your space by maximising the storage capacity.

Do I need shelving?

Shelving solutions are the perfect choice for SME businesses who are just starting out. The shelving is smaller in size, when compared to the racking, making it ideal if you are working on smaller premises. It is also usually more cost-effective than racking.

Be aware that shelving cannot hold as much weight as a racking system. However, go with our Stockrax shelving and the heavy-duty option can easily hold weights up to 635kg, ideal for the requirements of most e-commerce businesses. With shelving, the stock is picked by hand – it is not usually suitable for the use of forklift trucks.

When choosing your shelving, also consider the flexibility of the system. Can you, like the modular design of our Stockrax starter bays, extend at a later date? How can you utilise the shelf space? Go with something like our Euro Shelving and you can add on a whole load of accessories that perfectly meet your stock requirements.

A pull-out drawer and pull-out shelf are great for storing documents and stationery, full or part-height dividers are helpful if you want to section your items into categories, and bin fronts are useful if you want to store small items. Alternatively go with our LinBins, which stack on top of each other, and you can make retrieving items incredibly easy when picking and packing.

Do I need racking?

If your business is already established or you’re starting out and heading into larger premises, then you might want to consider installing some racking.

As the name suggests, this storage system was designed to store goods on pallets. However, due to the shelf space available, which has an increased depth, many SMEs use this as a solution for stocking items that are larger in size and heavier in weight. With pallets, stock will need to be accessed by fork-lift trucks, although if storing cartons it is possible to retrieve items by hand. Racking systems are adjustable, and you can easily accommodate changing stock levels.

New to Storage Direct, our Link51 racking systems are a safe, sturdy and versatile option. You can choose from a huge range of standard racking systems that can be extensively configured for any storage requirement, industry or location. Whether you need a large or small racking structure right through to simple or complex. You can start off with a 2 beam racking bay, in a choice of two shelf depths, before extending all the way up to a 4 beam. Oh, and if you need to go bigger, get in touch with our sales team and they can help you take your racking and business to new heights!

How Storage Direct can help?

Hopefully our blog has helped you to decide whether you need racking or shelving. But, if you’re still struggling to know where to start, why not get in touch with our storage gurus. With no obligation to buy, they can take all the planning stress away from you and customise a storage solution that works for you. No matter how big, small or diverse, we have done it all!