Museum Collections Storage

Archives and museum collections storage areas sometimes need to be updated to reflect best practices and accommodate new acquisitions. These improvements need to be carefully designed to optimize space, protect collections, and promote convenient access.

We’re here to help. We work with you to understand the needs of your collections and design high-density systems that will preserve and maintain access to the precious objects in your care.

Steel Museum Cabinets

Protect collections in steel museum cabinets from Spacesaver. Choose from a variety of options and accessories to create the best cabinets for your space and your collection. All cabinets can be stationary or mounted on compactors, and a variety of sizes are available.

Preservation Cabinet

The Viking 920

Reconfigure the interior of this versatile cabinet as your collections change over time.

Oversized Cabinet

Over-sized Museum Cabinets

Store extra-large specimens securely

Flat-file Cabinet

Flat-file Cabinets

Store maps, architectural drawings, and two-dimensional art with flat file cabinets in a variety of sizes. Optional glass tops allow patrons, staff, and researchers to view contents.

Entomology Cabinet

Entomology Cabinets

Conserve resources and keep specimens organized and by incorporating your existing drawers into new cabinets.

Botany Cabinet

Botany Cabinets

Our botany cabinets are designed to ensure proper ventilation and protect from infestation.

Stretch Your Budget

A Place for Everything

The Nantucket Tray and Drawer system is a value-engineered alternative to our museum cabinets. Providing museum-quality drawers and trays inside a 4-Post Shelving shell, this system is ideal for storing collections that don’t need the welded frame and sealed interior environment that our cabinets provide.

spacesaver shelving with trays

Good

4-Post Shelving with Nantucket Drawers and/or Trays

spacesaver steel shelving cabinet

Better

4-Post Shelving with Nantucket Drawers and/or Trays with Frame-Mounted Doors

spacesaver preservation museum cabinet

Best

Spacesaver’920 Series: Preservation Cabinet

Modular Art Rack


Modular Art Rack

Stay flexible for the future with modular art racks that can be expanded over time.

Art Racks

Store hanging art compactly and securely with moving art racks (also called art screens). These heavy-duty steel art screens are ideal for storing framed art, stained glass, and other heavy pieces.

Because floor loading considerations and other factors can vary from building to building, we offer a variety of options to suit any space.

Which art rack style is right for your space? Check out the options and give us a call. We can design a system that works best with your building’s structure and floor-loading capacity.

Lateral Art Racks

Lateral Art Racks

Lateral art racks slide on rails and can be installed in existing buildings or in new construction. Racks can be nested for even more space savings.

Pull-Out Art Racks

Pull-Out Art Racks

We offer two types of pull-out art racks. Your MOTUS museum consultant can help you decide if the floor-supported or overhead-supported option is right for your facility.

Carriage-Mounted Art Racks

Carriage-Mounted Art Racks

Art racks can be installed on new or existing high-density storage systems to compactly store framed art.

Wall-Mounted Art Racks

Wall-Mounted Art Racks

Turn unused wall space into a productive collections care area.

Museum Shelving

Provide a sturdy platform for collections with durable, high-quality steel shelving. We offer museum shelving options to protect and store a wide variety of objects.

4-Post Shelving with Trays & Drawers

4-Post Shelving with Trays & Drawers

The Nantucket Tray and Drawer system is a value-engineered alternative to our Viking Museum Cabinets.

Widespan Shelving

Widespan Shelving

Widespan shelving is ideal for larger objects. Solid or perforated decking ensures optimal collections care and compliance with fire codes.

Perforated Shelving

Perforated Shelving

Provide ventilation for rare books with perforated shelving.

Four-Post or Case-Type Shelving

Four-Post or Case-Type Shelving

Standard shelving is made in the USA and can be adjusted as needed, without special tools.

Cantilever Shelving

Cantilever Shelving

Keep boxes, scrolls, and other long items accessible with cantilever shelving.

Flag Storage

Flag Storage

Flags and other textiles can be rolled onto tubes to prevent wrinkles from forming along fold lines. The arms supporting the tubes can be adjusted to compactly store textiles while still keeping them accessible.

Textile Preservation

Textile Preservation

Configuring rolled textile racks is easy and can be done without special tools. The cantilever arms can be moved up or down and left and right to compactly store textiles of various sizes.

Rolled Textile Racks

Textiles such as flags, rugs, and quilts are often rolled onto tubes to prevent creases from forming along folds. Our versatile rolled textile racks can be sized to perfectly fit your collection.

Cold Storage

Cold storage extends the life of photographic film and other unstable materials. It’s expensive, though, which is why it’s important to store these materials as compactly as possible.

Learn how to identify items in your collection that need cold storage and get layout design insights in our cold storage brochure.

Photography Collection Preservation

Photography Collection Preservation

The Denver Museum of Nature and Science consolidated its photography collection and other materials onto compact shelving systems inside its cooler and its deep freeze.

Historic Film Storage

Historic Film Storage

Storing more historic films in less space helped this museum save money and reduce resource use.

High-density Display

High-density Display

This museum wanted to minimize vibration and light exposure while also giving visitors visibility into its pottery collection.

Glass Top Cabinets

Glass Top Cabinets

Flat-file cabinets with glass tops protect collections while also letting museum visitors see maps, drawings, and other two-dimensional artworks.

Visible Collections Storage

As museums seek new ways to engage with their communities, visible storage provides a way to protect collections while also allowing visitors to gain a better understanding of collections.

Compactors

Virtually all our museum collections storage products can be mounted on high-density storage systems, also called compactors or compressed storage. Save space by eliminating idle aisles, and open aisles with your choice of powered or hand-operated systems.

Combine Hanging & Shelving Storage

Combine Hanging & Shelving Storage

This museum is improving its collections storage in stages, as it acquires funding for more projects.

Textile Roll Storage

Textile Roll Storage

A federal agency used Spacesaver compactors to consolidate museum cabinets and textile racks into a small space.

Smart Safety Features

Smart Safety Features

A federal agency used Spacesaver compactors to consolidate museum cabinets and textile racks into a small space.

Pull-out Art Racks

Combine Hanging & Shelving Storage

Specimens stored in fluid have special storage requirements. We offer special rail-and-carriage systems that minimize vibration.

Ready to start planning your collections area?

Get expert insights on museum collections storage.

Keeping your museum’s collections protected, organized, and accessible is your top priority, and we can help. We offer expert space planning services to help make the best use of your space.

In addition to insights gained from other museum projects, we offer enduring museum collections storage solutions like steel museum cabinets, art racks / art screens, rolled textile racks, museum shelving, flat-file cabinets, and more. All our products can be mounted on Spacesaver compactors to save space while preserving access to collections.

Best of all, our commitment doesn’t end after your new products are installed. We’re close by to provide long-term maintenance and customer service.