Drive-In Rack Systems in Columbus, OH

Drive-in rack replaces internal storage aisles with lanes. The forklift drives inside the structure and sets pallets on continuous rails, which can store bulk pallets with fewer access aisles than selective rack. The cost is access: only the pallets at the open end of the lane are reachable until you work through the ones in front.

That makes it the right call for large volumes of a small number of SKUs - bulk buffer stock, seasonal inventory, freezer product - and the wrong call the moment SKU variety climbs. Drive-in loads and unloads from one end for LIFO; drive-through is open at both ends for FIFO, at the cost of a few positions and a second access aisle.

For Columbus bulk storage near the freight corridors, we lay out drive-in around your specific lift truck's dimensions and your SKU depth, then put the position count next to a selective plan of the same footprint so the density gain is a number, not a sales claim.

Grove City and the I-71 south corridor run a meaningful amount of bulk beverage, building products, and seasonal inventory, where a small number of SKUs occupy a large share of the building at volume - exactly the profile drive-in rack is built for. Removing aisles in favor of continuous rails packs bulk pallet positions into fewer access aisles than selective racking, which matters most in buildings along the south side where floor space, not ceiling height, is the limiting factor.

We lay out lane dimensions around the specific lift truck entering the structure - mast height, overall width, and turning clearance all drive lane width and rail elevation, since a lane dimensioned for a generic truck wastes positions or risks contact with the rack. For Columbus operations holding a mix of bulk SKUs and faster-turning items, we typically model a hybrid: drive-in lanes for the bulk reserve stock, selective rack at the pick face, so put-away speed on the fast movers isn't sacrificed to the density gain on the slow ones.

Guide rails, column guards, and rail-end protection get specified into the drive-in layout from the start rather than added after the first contact, since a lane that takes daily forklift traffic in a busy Columbus distribution operation is a lane that needs that protection built in from day one.

The design starts with the forklift, not the rack. Mast height, overall width, load backrest, and turning clearance decide lane dimensions, so truck specifications get collected before anything is drawn.

Next we look at SKU depth. Drive-in rewards deep lanes of a single product and punishes variety - if a lane never fills, you've built an expensive way to store less than you could have with selective. Where the inventory profile is mixed, we'll usually recommend a hybrid: selective at the pick face, drive-in behind it for reserve.

The quote itemizes frames, rails, rail supports, guide rails, and column protection, with a CAD drawing showing lane depth, rail elevations, and total positions. Installation partners anchor, plumb, and align every rail run, then verify a loaded pallet travels the full lane before handing the system over.

Because drive-in lanes can take contact from lift trucks, the handover includes component identification and capacity information. Ask us about replacement rails and guarding before damaged sections return to service.

Recent Installations

A sample of racking projects completed across the region.

Drive-In Rack Questions for Columbus

Where We Work

Located in Columbus, we serve the entire Greater Columbus region with industrial pallet racks and warehouse storage solutions.