Maximizing Cubic Feet: Innovative Solutions for Vertical Storage

Whether you store your goods in a giant warehouse, the backroom of a big-box store, or the annex of a local library or university, only the best in high-density storage can maximize any space and deliver efficient storage down to the last cubic foot.

But before you invest in mobile racking or other innovative racking solutions, you must first understand that high-density vertical storage solutions, as well as good space-saving in general, cares as much as the vertical as it does the horizontal.

Checklist for maximizing vertical racked storage

Is your storage space truly maximized? It pays to know. More warehouses are increasing prices in 2025 than did in 2024, and retail space in the twelve most-profitable commercial real estate markets in the US average more than $30 per square foot.

Money aside, don’t forget that decentralized storage facilities can complicate operations or compromise your inventory. Let’s run through the checklist for maximizing your storage facility to ensure you’re on the right track:

• Are you utilizing vertical storage effectively, or at all? Higher tiers means more room to store within the same storage footprint.
• Are you utilizing verticality within the racks themselves?Your storage system should align with the size of the things you’re storing. Too narrow and you’re missing out on capacity. Too wide and you’re wasting your storage.
• How adjustable are your high-density racks? What you store today, and where you store it, could change tomorrow. Is your storage hardware adaptable, or will it become its own costly project to reconfigure?

As we mentioned earlier, vertical storage also considers the horizontal:

• Do picking or storing operations require all aisles at once? Could you reorganize your storage to place more-popular items in more-accessible places, thus eliminating the need to have every aisle accessible at once and repurposing that space for storage? (This is often the first step to planning a switch to mobile racking, either in full or in part.)
• Do your racks prevent rapid picking?
• Does your racking hardware include pesky crossbars or end panels that reduce your overall storage capacity and even make picking tricky, slow, or dangerous?

It doesn’t matter whether you’re attempting to max out your storage space without expanding your footprint or expanding your limited storage space beyond what you thought was possible—at baseline, high-density storage systems are engineered with the following principles in mind:

• Adjustability: The best way to maximize every cubic inch of space on a storage system is to improve its ability to configure itself to the things being stored, to adapt easily when the moment calls for it.
• Customizability: Everyone has different storage needs, but should not be limited to a single storage design. 
• Practicality: Everything that a racking system does should be in service to the primary mission: to deliver as much actionable space as possible. You should not have to sacrifice space, no matter how small, to bells and whistles.

How Montel HI-BAY industrial racking maximizes space

Let’s take a look at Montel’s HI-BAY industrial racking system, our premier high-density vertical storage solution, and how we’ve engineered space maximization into its design.

• Max out the vertical: HI-BAY can be designed to reach up to 35 feet tall (10.7 meters).
• Inch-by-inch adjustability: Get the in-shelf height you want easily with one-inch adjustability, no special tools required.
• Custom perfect-fit accessories: Montel engineers consult with clients on accessories like drawers and dividers to maximize organization without compromising on space utilization.
• Mobile compatibility:Mix and match static and mobile HI-BAY racking to empower operations while increasing storage capacity by reducing the need for aisles.

Check out Montel HI-BAY in action at the University of Arkansas. By utilizing as much of the vertical space as possible, its library annex can now store and access 1.7 million books.

Are you energized to finally maximize your storage? Reach out to your local Authorized Montel Distributor. Our storage partners work side by side with our engineers to deliver a free consultation with everything you’ll need to choose the mobile storage, vertical storage, or high-density racking solutions right for you:

• 2D and 3D renderings
• Planning support
• Layout customization

Do more with the storage space you have, or expand your storage capabilities with Montel and our international team of storage experts.