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Wolter Gases it Up

The Wausau, Wisconsin, warehouse of Northwest Petroleum was a mess. As the petroleum equipment manufacturer accrued inventory and out-of-model equipment, its storage room became cramped and unorganized, which made finding inventory and parts difficult and inefficient.

The company was looking for a way to consolidate storage and keep high-value products like point-of-sale consoles and electronics more secure than the current storage system allowed. To combat the issue, Northwest Petroleum investigated constructing a building-supported mezzanine to store the equipment. They were discouraged when they learned that the warehouse would have to be structurally engineered to meet building codes, that their operations would be disrupted during the construction, and that property taxes would be due on the structure, which would be assessed as a permanent fixture. This approach did not fulfill another objective that any solution offers flexibility if the company moved or remodeled. Northwest Petroleum turned to Wolter’s Wausau WI location.
Wolter inspected Northwest Petroleum’s warehouse and found that the company was using its vertical space very inefficiently. We suggested building a rack-supported mezzanine.

Wolter worked with Steel King and came up with the solution to decrease the storage area from 40 ft. x 80 ft. to 40 ft. x 60 ft. and increase the storage height from 8 ft. to 16 ft. while quadrupling the storage space using Steel King SK2000 pallet rack. The use of a mezzanine increased vertical storage. The long runs and narrow aisles bolstered horizontal space while maintaining the flexibility that Northwest Petroleum desired. A lockable gate on the top level of the mezzanine added a level of security for the storage of Northwest’s expensive electronic components.

The planning process for the $49,000 project took more than two months. In fact, Northwest Petroleum is so happy with the solution they have shown it to two other customers who are looking for similar solutions.
NW Petroleum Case Study

NW Petroleum Case Study

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