In warehouses, there’s many different ways products need to be stored, some more securely than others.

For the safety of your workers, the integrity of your warehouse itself, and the protection of your goods, certain items like flammable products or sensitive electronics need secure storage away from items that may damage or affect them before they can be processed and shipped back out.

To further complicate things, not all of these items can be stored or secured the same way. To help you prepare for these changes, here’s five warehouse items that need secure storage, and what you can do to help get them put away safely.

The Item: Pharmaceuticals

How to Store Them: Pharmaceuticals have a number of different storage requirements. Many of them need to be kept under lock and due to their status as controlled substances, and a lot of them need to avoid contact with one another to prevent cross-contamination. To that end, most pharmaceuticals need to be kept on sterile medical shelving to keep them safe from contamination or germs, and wire storage lockers should be used to prevent theft, loss, or damage. Always check with your local laws to make sure your pharmaceutical storage is up to state and federal ordinances governing controlled substance storage.

The Item: Gas Canisters

How to Store Them: If your warehouse deals in any type of compressed gas like propane tanks, helium, or welding gas, the canisters need to be stored away from potential fire hazards or ignition sources. Keep enough distance between your gas canisters and anything that may cause sparks, and try to separate them with partitions or guard rails to prevent accidental collisions.

The Item: Electronics

How to Store Them: While most electronics these days are packaged and designed to survive transportation, you still want to keep an eye on them when they arrive. Try to use plastic shelving to prevent static buildup and reduce the risk of corrosion, as plastic can prevent moisture from accumulating around sensitive electronic areas. Adding lockers or security partitions around these areas is a great way to reduce the risk of theft or loss as well.

The Item: Flammable/Combustible Goods

How to Store Them: Even consumer goods like cleaning chemicals or firearms ammunition can post a severe safety risk to both themselves and your warehouse staff. Keep these items under lock and key, ideally higher up on your warehouse shelves to reduce the risk of them being exposed to sparks or other accidental ignition sources.

The Item: Tools and equipment

How to Store Them: Even if your warehouse doesn’t sell tools, you probably have internal supplies like warehouse tools and safety gear your staff needs to get things done. To prevent loss, breakage, or theft, provide individual equipment lockers for your team to lock up everything they use during the day and keep their tools safe for when they’re needed next.