Mobile shelving solution for document storage

Client

The London Metropolitan Archives preserves and manages historical records of London spanning from the Middle Ages to the present. Its documents are used by researchers, genealogists, historians, and others interested in the city’s history. It is one of the most important archives in the United Kingdom.

Need

The renovation of this archive building included the improvement and expansion of storage areas.

The project design had to address the following needs:

• Maximize storage capacity in the smallest possible space.
• Incorporate storage options that fit both the standard dimensions of record storage boxes and larger items such as maps and plans.
• Guarantee quick and direct access to all stored archives.
• Integrate the building’s support beams and fire sprinkler systems into the layout design.
• Ensure that the condition of the floor (previously used to store heavy machinery) would not affect the proper functioning of the mobile shelving.
• Comply with the country’s specific regulations regarding archival documentation storage.

Solution

Considering the project’s needs, an additional storage space of 13.5 km of shelving with trays was created. Equipped with both standard archive shelving and shelving on mobile bases.

• 120 alignments of double shelving units with 6 to 8 modules per alignment.
• Shelving with up to 12 levels of trays in height.
• The mobile shelving is easily operated thanks to the ergonomic manual crank design.
• The mobile bases roll on parallel rails embedded in raised platforms for proper floor planimetry.

POLYPAL’s tray shelving has increased efficiency in the location and handling operations of documentation. Furthermore, the installation of mobile archive shelving has optimized storage capacity to the maximum.