Whether you’re running a metal fabrication shop or laser cutting center, or stocking raw materials for manufacturing, sheet metal storage can make you faster. It makes the stock easier to reach, protects valuable materials and prevents injuries. However, the wrong solution means injuries, wasted time and damaged materials. In this article, I’m covering a range of solutions, from simple floor stacking to semi-automated carousels, analyzing for fit, safety, access and cost.

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In 2025, the U.S. labor market is undergoing a significant demographic shift. Approximately 4.18 million Americans reach retirement age this year (about 11,400 turn 65 each day). The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the labor force will grow at a modest 0.4% annually from 2023 to 2033, reaching 173.3 million by 2033. The problem: we’ll need to fill 192 million job openings, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center.

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Cisco-Eagle named its inaugural Core Values award winners in June 2025. These are employee-owners who embody our core values–the principles we aspire to. Those values were established over thirty years ago and remain unchanged since. “They are universal and timeless,” said CEO Darein Gandall. Our founder, Warren Gandall, has often said that he wants to treat his suppliers, customers and employees the way he wants to be treated.

Our values reflect that vision, and so do the 2025 winners of these awards.

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When pedestrian safety meets forklift traffic, there’s no room for error. That’s where AisleCop® comes in. And now, with the launch of Gen5, Cisco-Eagle has made it faster, easier, and more scalable to deploy than ever before.

We sat down with Markus Green, head of our Safety Automation department, to talk about what’s new, why Gen5 was developed, and how it’s helping safety managers and operations teams move faster.

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Loading and unloading pallet conveyors with forklifts is an everyday, all-day task.

Done right, it’s fast and efficient. Done wrong, product damage, collisions, injuries, and workflow bottlenecks happen. I’ve seen it in dozens of warehouses, even in highly automated operations, and most of them tend to bridge the shipping dock and the end conveyor lines with forklifts (these days, AGVs and AMRs often do this work). Pallets are large, heavy and in motion when they’re transported on conveyors. That combination of size, pressure and movement can result in damage or injuries when not properly controlled.

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For this employee spotlight, we sat down with Christine Perry, Cisco-Eagle’s Employee-Owner of the Year for 2024-2025.

Christine is renowned not only for her professionalism and commitment to excellence but also for her dedication to supporting her colleagues and promoting the values of employee ownership.

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Just how many pallets can you store in a 100′ x 100′ area? It can range from not that many–X with selective racks that let you pick or place any pallet at any time–or “Y” using incredibly dense, using pallet flow or drive-in systems that restrict how and when you can access pallets. The balance between storage density and selectivity is always critical, but there are other factors in play: cost, efficiency and safety.

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You may have noticed that at Cisco-Eagle, we say “employee-owner” rather than “employee.” This is something we do with great intention as an ESOP. When we recognize our employee-owner of the year, for example, we’re recognizing someone who isn’t just a great employee, but also embodies the spirit of ownership.

For 2024-2025, that someone is Christine Perry.

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It started with a simple question: What’s your biggest operational challenge?

We didn’t expect leaders in manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution to respond with such clarity, but they did. And what we heard wasn’t vague. It was precise, urgent, and reflective of a sector that’s evolving in real time.

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As we’ve discussed previously, labor is hard to find these days – and it will get harder every year. Cultivating your labor pool eases the need (and high costs) of hiring, training and retaining workers. One of the best ways to do this is to optimize as much as possible for ergonomics.

As the saying goes, what you appreciate appreciates.

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