As the saying goes, a business owner has to wear many hats. After you've owned a business for a while, you really come to understand how true this is. Even if you have employees who do a lot of your day-to-day marketing, ordering, and accounting, the responsibility for these tasks is ultimately your own.
If you are starting to feel overwhelmed with the many hats you're required to wear, you have stumbled upon a good resource. We created this website to share knowledge about all of those hats — all of those roles you have to play as a business person. Start reading, and you'll not only gain helpful advice, but also realize that you're not alone.
Options For Customizing A Vertical Lift
Whether you have a multi-story building or a high, open warehouse with different levels of shelving, you need to have a way to move furniture and materials to the upper levels/stories. While an elevator may be used, it is not always effective when you need to get something to the other side where there isn't one. This is where a vertical lift or vertical reciprocating conveyor comes in handy. They are different from an elevator in that they are not designed to carry people. In fact, safety regulations prohibit people being in them. Another difference is the ability to customize them as you need. Here are a few way you can customize a mezzanine material lift.
Enclosed or Open
Unlike an elevator, a vertical lift does not have to be enclosed. This can be very handy if the materials you need to lift are larger than the enclosure. You may choose to have an enclosure that is removable if the need be, too. Many users prefer to have a simple railing set up around the platform that can be partially or fully removed if needed.
Mobile
When you have a large warehouse, you may need to move materials to a higher level in many different areas of the building. You can purchase a vertical reciprocating conveyor that has wheels or is able to be moved by a forklift or other vehicle. You do not have to have multiple lifts to get your things on the upper shelves or levels where they need to be.
Platform Size
Another option for large items is to have a larger platform. When you need to lift items that are larger than what would be considered a normal size, you can have a platform created for this purpose. When you move all differently sized materials, customize the lift so that you can swap between different platforms. Using a larger platform than what is needed can be a safety hazard, so always use a platform size that is right for what you are lifting.
Trying to move whole pallets of items up and down in an elevator with people getting on and off at each floor can be difficult. You need to have some type of lift that is used only for materials. This could be a permanently placed freight elevator, or you could have a customized mezzanine material lift. Take a minute and consider the materials you will need lifted and where they need to go. A vertical reciprocating lift is often the best option. Use resources like dumbwaiters.com to learn more.