What an industrial bay actually is
A bay means two different things in industrial property — a structural module and a leasable unit. Confusing them is the most common mistake in the market.
The reference
Everything about industrial bays
16 guides covering how an industrial bay is built, sized, serviced, zoned, leased and inspected. Written for people who have to make a decision about one — no rent figures, no market forecasts, no filler.
- Guides
- 16
- Categories
- 6
- Glossary terms
- 23
- Market figures used
- None
2 guides
The basics
What a bay is, how they are sized, and the vocabulary landlords and brokers use.
Industrial bay sizes, and what actually fits in them
Micro, small, mid and large bays — the size classes used in multi-tenant industrial, what each one holds, and how to size the space you need.
3 guides
How a bay is built
Structure, height, loading, floors and the services that decide what you can do inside.
Clear height: what it means and why it decides everything
Clear height is the single most consequential dimension in an industrial bay. What it measures, where it is measured, and what each range of height allows.
Loading: dock doors, grade doors and the choice between them
Dock versus grade loading, typical door sizes, levellers and ramps, and how to work out which configuration your operation actually needs.
Floors, columns and structure inside a bay
Slab thickness and point loads, column grids, demising walls, drains and sumps — the structural facts that limit what you can put in a bay.
3 guides
Services and systems
Power, heat, ventilation, sprinklers and the utilities that most often break a deal.
Power in an industrial bay
Amps, phases and voltages explained for tenants — how to read what a bay has, work out what you need, and understand what an upgrade involves.
Heating, ventilation and make-up air
How industrial bays are heated in a cold climate, when you need make-up air, and the ventilation requirements that catch tenants out.
Sprinklers, fire protection and what you are allowed to store
Why the sprinkler design, not the ceiling height, sets your storage limit — and how commodity class, rack configuration and insurance interact.
2 guides
Rules and approvals
Zoning, permitted uses, permits, occupancy and the licences you need before you open.
Zoning and permitted uses for industrial bays in Alberta
How Calgary and Edmonton zone industrial land, the difference between a permitted and discretionary use, and why the lease is not permission to operate.
Permits, inspections and getting to occupancy
The permit sequence for an industrial bay fit-out, who is responsible for what, and why occupancy is the date that actually matters.
3 guides
Cost and lease terms
How industrial leases are actually structured, and what you pay beyond the net rent.
How an industrial bay lease is structured
Net rent, additional rent, term, escalations, deposits and the clauses that matter most in a small-bay industrial lease.
Additional rent explained
What operating costs actually contain, how your share is calculated, where the disputes are, and what to check before you sign.
Buying an industrial bay condominium
How industrial condominium bays work, what the condo fee covers, the documents to read before you buy, and how financing differs from a lease.
3 guides
Choosing and moving in
Working out what you need, inspecting it properly, and getting through possession.
How a bay is measured, and why two 3,000 sq ft bays are not the same
Gross, rentable and usable area, where the measurement lines are drawn, how mezzanines are treated, and why measurement disputes happen.
How to choose an industrial bay
A working process for defining the requirement, shortlisting, inspecting properly and negotiating — with the checklist to take to every viewing.
Moving into an industrial bay: the possession checklist
Utilities, insurance, licensing, keys, signage and the condition record — what to do in the weeks around taking possession of a bay.
Ready to look
Bring the requirement, not just the reading
Once you know the size, height, loading and power you need, we can search the whole Alberta record against it.