The Tray™ Issue #23 – Mobile Racking Systems for Streamlining and Maximizing Space

Miller Industries is a leading name in high-performance car carrier manufacturing and reliable towing services, but somewhere along the line their operations began to suffer from an organizational breakdown.

52,000 sq.ft. Storage Challenge with 5 Locations

Because of all the products that Miller offers and the services they render, Miller spread its operation over five off-site warehouses of around 52,000 square feet total. The business even used its own tow trucks to transport materials and equipment between different locations, which cost it big in transportation expenses, extra wear and tear on its vehicles, and precious time its employees and technicians preferred to give back to their customers.

There had to be a better way.

Could Miller Industries meet its goal of reducing its warehouse space and preserving its reputation as home to the hardest-working professionals in the industry?

Mobile Racking System Space Saving Solution

Industrial operations require industrial equipment. No prefabricated racking was used here. Miller installed three Saferak® 32P’s and one Saferak® 60P heavy-duty powered mobile racking systems with literally tons of storage capacity built into each rack.

Safety and reliability are important to Miller. What else would you expect from a tow truck manufacturer and service provider?

When it came time to select powered mobile racking systems, they required storage equipment that did more than drastically reduce their storage footprint with the press of a button.

For added safety, in-aisle emergency stop buttons, high-visibility strobe lights, and audible buzzers on each Saferak carriage were installed. To prevent downtime in case of a power outage, each system included mechanisms for opening the aisles manually using ratchets.

Even without power, Miller could still serve its customers around the clock.

Benefits of Mobile Racking Systems

Thanks to careful planning and collaboration with Miller Industries, Miller was able to decrease its storage footprint to 25,000 square feet, representing over 50% space savings (from 52,000 sq.ft. originally).

Consequently, they can now keep all their winches, valves, hosing, and other materials at a single facility. No more unnecessary off-site storage or costly trips between locations.

“After implementing the Saferak System, we have seen several major benefits. We’ve been able to eliminate an entire 52,000 square foot facility, and we were able to bring all those products back in-house. Further, we’ve been able to save in building costs and logistics costs, and to streamline our processes to get our product out the door faster at our main warehouse,” said Jillian Seymour, the Manufacturing Services Manager at Miller Industries.