The Challenge: Fitting a Massive Film Archive into a New Facility
A major Release Print Company, specializing in audio-visual post-production, duplication, and distribution for the entertainment industry, needed to establish a new archive facility in Los Angeles to handle increasing demand.
The company retained a design consultant who proposed a traditional high-bay storage solution that relied on rolling ladders for access. This plan was soon identified as inefficient for handling the client’s vast, growing film inventory.
The core problem was two-fold:
- Limited Capacity: The initial design failed to maximize the Vertical Space available within the building.
- Operational Inefficiency: Retrieving film from high-bay shelves using rolling ladders is slow, labor-intensive, and requires wide aisles, consuming valuable floor space.
The client needed a solution that would deliver exceptional density and highly efficient access to their thousands of reels and assets.
The WPSS Solution: Multilevel Catwalk Shelving
Western Pacific Storage Solutions (WPSS) re-evaluated the client’s spatial requirements and operational flow. We proposed a superior concept: a custom-engineered Multilevel Catwalk System built using our robust Deluxe Industrial Shelving.
The Deluxe Industrial Shelving (the modern equivalent of the original Pacific steel clip shelving) was chosen for its durable, modular structure, which provides a rigid, reliable foundation for multi-story applications.
Key components of the WPSS solution:
- Multilevel Systems Design: Instead of relying on ladders, the design incorporated a Catwalk System that created intermediate floor levels. This allowed personnel to safely and efficiently access film rolls at multiple tiers.
- Space Optimization: The design focused on density, allowing the client to consolidate film storage by significantly narrowing the required aisle width.
- Custom Engineering: WPSS provided a full Computer-Aided Design (CAD) layout drawing that clearly demonstrated the operational and cost benefits of the Catwalk System, easily winning over both the client and their design consultant.
Quantifiable Results & High ROI
The implementation of the Deluxe Industrial Shelving Multilevel Catwalk System resulted in a dramatic improvement in efficiency and profitability for the Entertainment Archive Distribution Center.
| Metric | Result | Benefit |
| Storage Capacity | Doubled the amount of film stored in the building compared to the original design. | Maximized the building’s cube utilization, preventing costly expansion. |
| Aisle Width | Aisles were cut down from over five feet to just three feet. | Gained back thousands of square feet of valuable space. |
| Operational Efficiency | Personnel could pull film faster and more efficiently. | Enabled the company to achieve more retrieval work with less labor. |
| Return on Investment (ROI) | The final design proved to be significantly more economical than the initial high-bay plan. | Provided the client with a higher ROI and ability to generate more revenue. |
WPSS demonstrated that for valuable archives such as film, documents, or high-value inventory, a properly designed Multilevel Systems approach using high-quality Industrial Shelving is the most cost-effective path to high-density storage and efficient retrieval.
Ready to work on your next project? Big or small, WPSS has experts ready to assist! We provide layout guidance, spec sheets, and recommend best-practice clearances to ensure an efficient and space saving design. Contact us today for a quote.