With retail space at a premium and businesses needing to make the best use of every inch of space to maximise profits, a mezzanine floor will likely be a great addition to add extra floor space within retail premises without increasing the overall footprint.
Mezzanine floors are a great way to create cost-effective extra space and the choice of whether to increase the range of products on sale, provide additional storage to hold more stock onsite or add a café to encourage shoppers to stay longer and spend more. Whatever your reason for choosing a mezzanine floor, you will want to make it easy to get any goods and equipment you need onto the level safely and efficiently.
Getting access
A mezzanine floor lift is a great addition to help you make your mezzanine floor more accessible and efficient when moving heavy or bulky items between levels.
Also known as mezzanine goods lift, they consist of a platform which can be raised and lowered. They generally offer a safe working load of up to around 1.5 tonnes, with platform sizes between 1.5 and three metres square. However, companies such as Mezzanine Floor Lifts offer bespoke sizing, so you can be sure there is always a solution for your particular space and needs.
Optimising your retail business using a mezzanine goods lift
There are several key reasons such a lift could be beneficial, including:
- Improved safety – a mezzanine floor lift removes the need for employees to carry goods up and down stairs between floors and reduces much of their need to lift heavy or bulky items. This will improve safety and reduce the risk of injury or accident.
- Greater flexibility – mezzanine goods lifts can offer increased flexibility, making it easier to move bulky or oversized items that are difficult to move using conveyors or standard lifts.
- Improved productivity – whether you use your mezzanine floor as storage or additional retail space, a purpose-built mezzanine floor lift will help you increase productivity when moving products between floors. A lift retained solely for goods transport will always be available when needed and reduce the time it takes for staff to collect and move products when required.
- Reducing cost and space – Dedicated mezzanine goods lift can reduce the need to operate conveyors or separate lifts between different floors. A mezzanine lift will allow goods to be transported between multiple levels, so there is no need for numerous lifts and goods transporting equipment.
Mezzanine floor lift features
There are several customisation options to floor lifts, which can include the below:
- Internal or external fitting – if space is a premium, fit your lift to the outside of the building with bespoke cladding if required.
- Bespoke colours – keep on brand with colours to match.
- Positive pressure or dispatch and receive controls – lift operation to suit how your business works.
- Opposite or same-side or through-loading entry/exit gates – flexibility to streamline your operation.
- Bespoke fitment – depending on the supplier, a bespoke service will give you advice and flexibility to ensure you make the best choice. You should expect, as a minimum, to be able to select standard or bespoke lead-on-ramp lengths, gate heights and platform sizes to fit your business needs.
Modular goods lifts are a cost and space-effective solution that can be installed quickly with minimum disruption to your working environment. Lifts should be able to cope with constant use and include rapid fault-finding to increase operator self-fix rates by around 80%, minimising downtime. A shop floor or warehousing installation takes about a day and a half, so there is minimal disruption to your workflow. Look for a reputable mezzanine goods lift manufacturer and installer who understands the disruption caused by a non-working lift, so offers a flexible after-sales package to get you back up and running in the fastest possible time.
