One Aisle Instead of Many

Aisles take the floor space in a fixed cantilever store. Under a gantry, the carrier must drop between two rack faces, so a fixed layout keeps an empty aisle beside every rack pair.

Motorised mobile cantilever racking (also called mobile cantilever racks on floor rails) removes most of those aisles. The rows stand side by side and shift as a group. When the gantry needs a storage unit, the rows on one side move apart and open a single aisle at that rack. The space that fixed aisles would use becomes extra rack rows.

The trade-off is time. Before the gantry can lower its carrier, the rows must move. Plan for this when your store must deliver many units per hour from different rows.

How the Gantry and the Rack Rows Work Together

Retrieval starts in the software, not at the rack. The sequence below follows one storage unit from its location to the loading station.

Four-step diagram: closed mobile rack rows, rows moving to open an aisle, gantry carrier lowering into the aisle, storage unit lifted above the racks

The operator calls a material at the control panel or the WMS. The WMS finds its location.
The mobile bases drive the rack rows along their floor rails until an aisle opens at the target rack.
The gantry moves above that aisle and lowers its carrier to the right level.
The carrier lifts the storage unit from both ends and raises it above the racks.
The gantry carries the unit to the double-deck loading station, and the WMS books it out.

In a typical project, the gantry travels at up to 25 m/min (82 ft/min) and lifts at up to 8 m/min (26 ft/min). Storing a unit follows the same steps in reverse.

Specifications for the Mobile Configuration

Values below come from a typical mobile-rack project unless they are marked as design limits. Your layout sets the final numbers.

Group	Item	Value
Capacity	Load per storage unit	Up to 5,000 kg (11,000 lbs) design limit; usually 3,000 kg (6,600 lbs) for 6 m material
Capacity	Rack groups	12 mobile rack groups in a typical project; set by hall length and width
Dimensions	Storage unit	6,600 × 400 × 300 mm (260 × 15.7 × 11.8 in) for 6 m material, typical
Dimensions	Rack height	Up to 7 to 8 m (23 to 26 ft), design limit
Dimensions	Gantry height	Up to 10 m (32.8 ft), design limit
Operation	Mobile base speed	8 m/min (26 ft/min)
Operation	Gantry travel / lift	Up to 25 m/min (82 ft/min) / up to 8 m/min (26 ft/min)
Operation	Positioning	±2 mm with servo drives and encoder feedback
Floor	Slab load	1.51 t/m² (309 lb/ft²) distributed, 1.9 t (4,200 lbs) point load, typical
Power	Supply	380 V, 50 Hz, 3-phase; installed power calculated for each layout
Construction	Rack and base steel	Q355 structural steel, typical; powder coated

Load ratings assume the material is supported along the full storage unit. The quotation states whether the storage unit's own weight is part of the rated load.

Orange gantry robot over a long, densely packed row of blue cantilever racks with a yellow guardrail

Protection for Moving Rows

Every mobile row carries two separate protections: a laser distance sensor and an anti-collision device. They keep the rows at the right spacing and stop contact between rows.

A runaway row cannot push the rest of the block. The base motor is sized for one row, and it has overload protection.
The gantry's servo drives also monitor current and stop on overload.
An aisle-entry alarm is available as an option. Nobody may walk into an open aisle while the gantry or the rows are working.
The rack area has no manual mode without power. In a power cut, stock stays in place until power returns.

End view diagram of a double-sided mobile cantilever rack on a motorised base and floor rails under a gantry, with rack and gantry heights

Mobile or Fixed: Which Suits Your Store

Mobile racks are the better choice if

The hall cannot grow, and you need more storage units on the same floor.
Many sizes are stored, but each size is called a few times per shift.
Your slab can take floor rails for both the gantry and the rack bases.

Fixed racks are the better choice if

Most retrievals come from many different rows in quick succession. Fixed aisles avoid the wait for rows to move.
The floor cannot be cut or levelled for extra rails.
You want the shortest installation. Fixed racks need gantry rails only.

Both versions use the same gantry and WMS. If you still plan to serve the racks with a crane, look at the double-sided roll-out cantilever rack or the hand-cranked roll-out cantilever rack. For mobile racks without a gantry, see the crane-served mobile racks on our main website.

Rails, Slab and Installation

Two rail systems go into the floor: one for the gantry and one for the rack bases. Both can be recessed into the slab or fixed on its surface.

We check slab capacity first, then mark rail centre lines, fit the rails, install the gantry and set the racks on their bases.
Recessed rails need slab cutting before installation. Surface rails save civil work.
Keep 1 m (3.3 ft) around the rack block clear of stored material.
A factory engineer commissions the system; commissioning usually takes about one week. The handover includes a load test and operator training.

Yellow gantry robot beside blue cantilever racks loaded with long steel material in a workshop

Software and Control Panel

Location records matter more in a mobile block, because nobody can see into closed rows. The WMS shows every storage unit by material, quantity and location.

Storage rules assign free locations; first in, first out is the usual picking rule.
Stock counts, low-stock alerts and stock-age alerts, with handheld barcode terminals.
Automatic rebalancing: if a rack becomes unevenly loaded, the system moves units to restore balance.
A separate PLC control panel, in English and Chinese as standard; other languages from your translation.
ERP or MES connection, assessed for your system before the order.

Blue gantry robot beside a dense block of steel storage units, with yellow mesh fence and loading tables

Delivery and Certification

Production and shipping take 60 to 90 days after order, including a trial assembly and function tests in our factory. Warranty is 1 year, extendable, with a 24-hour response by phone or email. The racks are a patented design (China utility model patents). We are CE certified and hold ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 certificates.

FAQ

Q: How long does it take to open an aisle?

A: It depends on how far the rows must travel. Mobile bases move at 8 m/min (26 ft/min) in a typical project. Ask us for an estimate for your layout, since row travel and the gantry route differ in every store.

Q: Can a loaded mobile row tip or run into the others?

A: Each row has a laser distance sensor and an anti-collision device. The base motor cannot push other rows, and it has overload protection.

Q: Can people walk between the rows?

A: Not while the system is working. An optional aisle-entry alarm warns when someone enters. Maintenance access follows the procedure in the manual.

Q: Can we keep our existing fixed cantilever racks?

A: Possibly. The same gantry can also serve fixed cantilever racks. Whether your racks can stay depends on their strength, arm spacing and the floor, and we check these on site.

Q: Can two storage units come out at the same time?

A: Yes. A double-deck loading station holds two storage units, so the next unit can wait while the operator works on the first.

Q: What happens during a power cut?

A: The rows and the gantry stop, and they cannot be moved by hand. Stock is reachable again when power returns.

Get a Mobile Rack Layout

Send us these details, and we will reply with a layout drawing and a quotation.

Hall length, width and clear height, plus a photo of the floor
Material types, lengths and the heaviest bundle
Number of sizes and the storage units you need now and in five years
Retrievals per hour at peak, and where the material goes next

Request a mobile cantilever layout and quote.

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Automated Mobile Cantilever Racking With Gantry Robot