Most people look at a mezzanine floor and wonder if it’s going to wobble when they walk on it. Nobody wants to feel like they’re bouncing around whilst trying to work.
However, a properly built mezzanine floor can handle loads that astound most people.
We’re talking about structures that routinely support forklifts, heavy machinery and tonnes of stored goods without any fuss.
Understanding Mezzanine Floor Construction
A decent mezzanine floor isn’t just some planks thrown across a few posts.
Steel-framed mezzanine flooring typically handles loads ranging from 2.5 kN/m² for basic office use to 15 kN/m² for heavy industrial work. To put that in everyday terms, the heavy-duty end can support several cars’ worth of weight per square metre.
Modern design accounts for movement, vibrations from machinery and how forces transfer down through the building structure.
Matching Strength to Your Needs
You don’t have to over-engineer everything. In many cases, businesses just need extra floor space for office work, typically around 2.5-4kN/m²:
● Regular desks, chairs and filing cabinets
● Meeting rooms with conference tables
● Normal foot traffic and everyday furniture
● Light storage and display equipment
Medium-duty applications bump up to 5-7.5kN/m² and handle parts storage, workbenches and heavier equipment while offering flexibility to change layouts as your business grows.
Heavy industrial work can require 10kN/m² or more, supporting dense storage systems, production machinery and specialised equipment.
Safety Standards Built Into Every Design
Safety and testing are obviously paramount when planning and installing mezzanine flooring.
Load calculations must comply with BS EN 1993, the adopted European standard for steelwork within buildings, while older standards, such as BS 5950, may still apply depending on the project scale.
Building regulations compliance is built into the design process from the start under The Building Regulations 2010. Key areas include Part A (structural integrity), Part B (fire safety), Part K (fall protection) and Part M (accessibility).
Mezzanine floors exceeding 200m² typically require planning permission, while smaller installations still require building control approval.
Professional installation by Spaceway ensures your mezzanine meets or exceeds compliance and safety rules and regulations.
Mezzanine Design and Construction From Spaceway
At Spaceway, we’ve been designing mezzanine floors for nearly five decades, working with everything from delicate laboratory equipment to heavy industrial machinery.
From initial survey through final installation, we handle the whole process with attention to detail that comes from decades of experience in executing these projects to perfection.
Whether you need basic office space or heavy-duty industrial capacity, we’ll design a mezzanine to suit.
Use our mezzanine calculator for immediate answers or contact Spaceway today to discuss how a properly engineered mezzanine floor can give you the additional space and strength your business needs.