Above: The SpaceSaver modular rack system has receptacles that crank out to allow quick access to material.
October, 2025- Only so much horizontal space is available on a steel service center’s floor for storing material. Steel Inc. in Commerce City, Colorado, ran into that problem and developed a roll-out cantilevered rack system of stacking material vertically as a solution. That was 61 years ago, and the service center eventually became Steel Storage Systems Inc. in Denver, which manufactures the solution as the SpaceSaver modular rack system, says Sales Manager Jeffrey Blum. “They were looking for a way to maximize their storage and at the same time lower their throughput time.”
The SpaceSaver system is well suited for companies with a high variety of long products and low volumes of each type to avoid spending the time to remove stacked material to access the needed item below it, Blum says. “Instead of going horizontal, covering a bunch of floor space and having one level to get to their material, they can go vertically.”
The SpaceSaver rack has receptacles that crank out to allow quick access to material, and the average pick time is reduced to about five minutes while material is stored safely, he adds. The system enhances safety by providing organized storage that effectively eliminates the hazards of unsafe piles, stacks and buried material to reduce potential injuries to employees.
The SpaceSaver is designed to be run with an overhead crane, Blum explains, allowing one operator to move the storage receptacle, operate the crane, pick material and move it to where it needs to go.
Blum explains that both a single- or double- hoist crane is suitable, but a double-hoist crane is preferred because it allows an operator to efficiently grab material out of tall receptacles, typically using chains and sometimes straps. With a double-hoist crane, after raising one end of the material the operator can use the controller to move the chains down the length of material to grab the other end using gravity. Whereas with a singlehoist crane, the operator has to walk the chain down to the other end and create a Vpattern on the chain. “It’s a little easier with the double- hoist crane.”
A jib crane is another option, he says, but the operator must be careful not to swing the material too much and damage the receptacles.
HIGH DENSITY
The standard system starts with receptacle racks that are three to four levels high, Blum notes. A four-level system is just high enough that an operator can operate the top level without needing a removable staircase. The lower levels have roll-out receptacles while the top level is fixed. “We’ve gone to one tall for custom [systems] up to eight tall, which are 20-foot-tall racks. You can get a high level of storage density with these.”
Because the system is modular, Blum says Steel Storage Systems is able to work closely with customers to tailor each system and address their specific needs. “We can suggest and prescribe the number of grids and storage receptacles based on the quantity of material, types of material, lengths of material.”
Steel Storage Systems suggests and prescribes the number of grids and storage receptacles for SpaceSaver systems based on the quantity, types and lengths of material.
Material lengths range from 12 to 60 feet, he adds. A rack for shorter material, such as 12- foot lengths, has two supporting grids that are bolted together to hold the roll-out arms. Material that is 40 feet and longer requires four supporting grids. “Every grid you add, you add another set of storing structure and add to the capacity of each drawer.”
Each grid, Blum explains, comes with a grid handle that is movable to the receptacle level an operator needs to roll out. It takes 10 to 15 pounds of force to roll out a receptacle, depending on how much it weighs. The control panel, which houses the internal gearing, is mounted to the front of the rack.
The SpaceSaver electrically powered models are the newest ones, he says, in which a motor is installed on each level on the first grid. The company reports that the powered rack enhances safety by eliminating the risk of repetitive motion injury. A 36-inch-wide powered receptacle takes about eight seconds to fully extend or retract, while manual cranking consumes 10 to 15 seconds. The powered receptacle option is available for all standard cantilever metal racks and single-sided cantilever rack models.
The standard models have double-sided rollout rack receptacles while single-sided rack receptacles roll out to one side only, either the right or the left, and occupies 30 percent less space than a double-sided unit.
“The single-sided ones are nice if they are lacking room or need to put it up against the wall,” Blum says.
The vast majority of SpaceSaver systems are standard models, but receptacle depth and height can be customized. The standard depth is from 20 to 36 inches wide, and standard models have receptacles that are 12 or 15 inches tall. “We can make the levels pretty much any height or width that is required.”
AVAILABLE ACCESSORIES
To support different sizes and types of materials and subdivide receptacles for enhanced efficiency, Steel Storage Systems offers a variety of SpaceSaver accessories, Blum says.
• Removable peg and welded fixed dividers are available for storing different material in the same receptacle. For the pegs, cantilever rack arms are fitted with holes drilled into the arms to accommodate 1-inch-round uprights for any spacing required. The fixed dividers are economical if the need is isolated to only a few receptacles.
• Protective UHMW polyethylene plastics liners are available for the pegs and receptacles to protect material, such as specialty metals and other alloys with fine finishes, from becoming damaged, he explains.
• Auxiliary supports permit the safe storage of items too short or limber for the distance between grids and are constructed with a 32-inch-long pan on each end and two adjustable U-shaped bolsters.
The standard depth for SpaceSaver systems is from 20 to 36 inches wide, and the receptacles are 12 or 15 inches tall.
“They are a welded structure that sits inside the receptacle, which doesn’t take away from usable space,” says Blum.
Although SpaceSaver roll-out cantilevered rack systems were designed by a steel service center for steel service centers, Blum says he is seeing more manufacturers acquiring them to store material used in their own production processes or for finished parts. Regardless of their application, the system’s study, simple design lasts a long time. “We still working with customers that have systems from 20, 30, 40 years ago.”
Steel Storage Systems Inc., 800/442-0291, steelstorage.com.
