A mezzanine is a raised floor built inside the warehouse, between the ground and the roof. In a tall building it adds usable area without adding to your footprint, and often without adding to your rent. Used well, it frees the ground floor for the work that needs trucks and forklifts.
Good uses for a mezzanine
- Offices and meeting rooms. Staff work above the noise and dust, often with a view over the floor.
- Light storage. Spare parts, packaging, documents and slow-moving stock that is carried by hand.
- Packing and e-commerce picking. Small items that do not need a forklift.
- Staff areas. A rest room or prayer area, depending on the layout and approvals.
Heavy pallets and frequent forklift work are usually better kept on the ground floor.
Check the load it can carry
Every mezzanine is designed for a certain load per square metre. Offices need much less than dense storage. Ask for the design load before you place shelving, safes, archives or machines on it. Overloading a mezzanine is a serious safety risk.
Plan how people and goods get up
- Stairs. Wide enough for people carrying boxes, with handrails.
- Goods access. A loading gate where a forklift can place a pallet, or a goods lift if you move a lot of stock up and down.
- Edges. Guard rails and kick plates along every open edge so nothing falls on people below.
Light, air and fire safety
Heat rises, so the mezzanine level gets warm. Plan for ventilation or air conditioning if people will work there. Make sure lighting covers both the mezzanine and the area underneath it, and that the space below is still covered by the fire system. Adding or changing a mezzanine may need civil defence and municipality approval, so check before you build.
Make sure height is not wasted
A mezzanine only works when the building is tall enough for useful space both below and above it. In a warehouse with 10 m clear height you can keep comfortable working height underneath and still have a full floor on top.
Al Maha warehouses in Sajaa have 10 m clear height. Visit a unit and see how a mezzanine fits your operation.