Blank concrete doesn’t tell your team where to walk, where to drive, or where it’s safe to stand. Before a warehouse floor gets marked, someone needs to work out where everything goes, and getting that layout right the first time saves you a costly repaint down the track. This guide walks through the practical planning process: the widths, colours, and sequencing that turn an empty floor into a facility your team can navigate safely without thinking.
If you’re after the legal side of things, our guide to SafeWork NSW’s requirements covers the obligations, inspection expectations and what happens if an inspector isn’t satisfied.
This post picks up where that one leaves off: the actual layout work.
Start With a Traffic Management Plan
Before any paint goes down, map how people and vehicles actually move through the space. Walk the floor at a busy time and note where forklifts cross pedestrian paths, where deliveries queue, and where bottlenecks already form around racking or doorways. This becomes your traffic management plan, the reference document against which everything else in this guide gets marked.
Skipping this step is the single biggest cause of warehouses needing a relayout within twelve months. A marking plan based on guesswork rarely survives contact with how the floor is actually used.
Pedestrian Walkways: Widths, Colour and Placement
Pedestrian walkways should be at least 1 metre wide for single-file traffic and 1.2 metres wide when two people need to pass. In practice, most Sydney and Illawarra warehouses we work in mark walkways at 1.2 to 1.5 metres to comfortably account for two-way foot traffic.
Colour: solid yellow lines, in line with AS 1318 convention for walkway boundaries.
Placement: route walkways along the building’s perimeter where possible, keeping them clear of racking overhangs and forklift turning circles.
Crossing points: mark pedestrian crossings wherever a walkway must cross a forklift lane, using hatched yellow-and-black striping so both pedestrians and drivers get clear visual warning.
Forklift Lanes and One-Way vs Two-Way Aisles
Forklift lane width depends on the equipment you run and whether traffic moves one way or two. As a starting point:
- One-way forklift lanes: minimum 3 metres, though counterbalance forklifts handling long loads often need closer to 3.5 metres.
- Two-way forklift lanes: minimum 5 to 6 metres, to allow two loaded forklifts to pass safely without reversing.
Reach trucks and narrow-aisle equipment: aisle widths can often be reduced to 2-2.7 metres, but only if all operators use compatible equipment. Mixing standard counterbalance forklifts into a narrow-aisle layout is a common and costly planning mistake.
Mark lane boundaries in solid white or yellow, and use directional arrows at regular intervals so drivers always know which way traffic should be flowing, particularly in one-way sections.
Forklift and Machinery Exclusion Zones
Exclusion zones keep pedestrians out of a forklift’s operating radius, particularly around blind corners, loading areas and machinery with a swinging load or rotating component. Mark these with black-and-yellow diagonal hatching, and size them generously: an exclusion zone that’s too tight defeats the purpose.
As a rule of thumb, exclusion zones around active loading bays should extend at least 2 metres beyond the equipment’s operating envelope, more where visibility is limited by racking or fixed structures.
Hazard Hatching for Columns, Racking and Loading Dock Edges
Fixed structures that forklifts and pedestrians need to navigate around should be hatched, not just marked with a boundary line. This applies to structural columns, the base of racking runs, and the edges of loading docks where a drop-off presents a fall risk.
Structural columns: black-and-yellow hatching around the base, extending far enough that a reversing forklift gets adequate warning.
Racking base protection: mark the footprint of racking uprights, particularly at aisle ends where forklifts turn.
Loading dock edges: hatch the full edge of any dock with a level change, and extend it the full width of the dock door, not just the immediate opening.
Storage Zone Marking: Bay Numbering and Floor Load Ratings
Once traffic routes are locked in, mark out storage zones so stock location is unambiguous. Bay numbering should be clearly stencilled and consistent with your warehouse management system if you use one, since a mismatch between physical markings and system records causes daily friction for pick teams.
Where floor load ratings vary across the warehouse, for example between a standard slab and a mezzanine or an older section of floor, mark the boundary clearly and stencil the load rating at the entry point to each zone. This protects both your stock and your floor.
Emergency Exit Paths and Green Marking Requirements
Paths to emergency exits and assembly points should be marked in green, kept clear of any storage or equipment encroachment, and wide enough for evacuation under pressure, generally a minimum of 1 metre, more in high-occupancy areas. These paths take priority over storage convenience: if a proposed pallet position narrows an exit path, the exit path wins.
Bringing It All Together: A Simple Planning Checklist
- Map current traffic flow before marking anything
- Set pedestrian walkway width and route, keeping clear of racking overhangs
- Confirm forklift lane width against the equipment actually in use, not just what’s on paper
- Size exclusion zones around loading bays and blind corners generously
- Hatch columns, racking bases and dock edges
- Number storage bays to match your inventory system
- Mark and protect emergency exit paths in green, ahead of storage layout
A well-planned layout doesn’t just satisfy an inspector. It’s the difference between a warehouse that runs smoothly and one where every shift involves someone squeezing past a forklift they didn’t see coming.
Get Your Warehouse Floor Planned and Marked
JDA Services works with warehouse and operations managers across Sydney and the Illawarra to plan and mark floor layouts that withstand real-world traffic, not just an inspection checklist. We handle the site assessment, the layout plan and the installation, scheduled after hours where needed so there’s no disruption to your operation.
Request a warehouse layout assessment from JDA Services today. We’ll walk your floor, map your traffic and give you a clear plan before your line marking begins.
Frequently Asked Questions
A minimum of 1 metre for single-file traffic, though most Sydney and Illawarra warehouses mark walkways at 1.2 to 1.5 metres to comfortably handle two-way foot traffic.
Generally 5 to 6 metres, to allow two loaded forklifts to pass without either needing to reverse. Narrow-aisle equipment can reduce this, but only if all operators are using compatible reach trucks rather than standard counterbalance forklifts.
Solid yellow is the standard convention for walkway boundaries, with black-and-yellow diagonal hatching used for exclusion zones and hazard areas around columns, racking and loading docks.
Yes. Emergency exit and evacuation paths should be marked in green, kept clear of storage encroachment, and sized generously, taking priority over storage layout wherever the two conflict.
Any time racking configuration, traffic flow or operational zones change. A layout that was correct when it was marked can become non-compliant simply because the floor is now being used differently.