High-bay warehouses (HRL) are automated or semi-automated storage systems featuring tall rows of racking, in which goods are stored on pallets or in containers with a high storage density. The height of the structures can exceed 40 metres.
Designs differ according to operation: manual HRL (operated by forklift trucks), semi-automated HRL (ride-on forklift trucks with operator on board), automated HRL (stacker cranes, RBG), shuttle systems (autonomous shuttles per level) and vertical carousel storage systems for small parts.
Leading manufacturers/system integrators include SSI Schäfer, Dematic, Jungheinrich, Mecalux, Kardex, Swisslog, Westfalia, Hänel and the Stow Group.
High-bay warehouses are used in distribution and e-commerce logistics, in production supply chains with a wide product range, in food logistics, in pharmaceutical logistics, in the automotive supply industry, and in frozen food logistics.