SKLP Storage Building Installation

SKLP — The Auction-Lot Standard

If you've spent any time bidding on equipment lots at Ritchie Bros, IronPlanet, or GovPlanet, you've seen SKLP storage buildings. They're one of the most frequent fabric brands to come through those auctions — usually decommissioned military or government inventory, sometimes new-in-crate, occasionally the distinctive SKH20 folding accordion model. The price-per-square-foot at auction is hard to beat. The trade-off is that you're buying without manufacturer support, often without complete documentation, and sometimes without confirmation of the model number on the bill of lading.

We fill the gap. We've installed enough SKLP buildings — both the standard truss kits and the folding SKH20 — to identify what's in a crate from photos and put it up without the original instructions. Flat-rate install pricing, identical to the canonical table on our homepage. No brand surcharge, no auction-lot surcharge.

Does Max Contractors install SKLP buildings?

Yes — every SKLP model we've encountered. Standard truss kits in the common 20-, 30-, and 40-wide sizes; folding SKH20 buildings; and the rarer pre-assembled lots that come through GovPlanet government surplus.

Most of our SKLP work is auction-driven. A customer wins a lot, the crate arrives, and they realise neither the auction house nor the original manufacturer is going to send a crew. Our flat install pricing means you know what assembly costs before you bid, which lets you do the math on whether the auction lot is actually a deal once installed.

What's the difference between a standard SKLP kit and the SKH20 folding model?

Two different geometries with different on-site advantages:

• Standard truss kit: arches ship flat-packed, assembled bay-by-bay on site. More parts to inventory, more time on the frame, but easier to handle on a tight pad because each truss can be set individually.
• SKH20 folding: the frame ships pre-welded in an accordion configuration. We unpack, deploy on the pad, and the frame is essentially up in an hour. The remaining work — anchoring, tensioning the cover, installing end walls, setting doors — is the same as any standard kit. Net install day is roughly half a day less for sizes up to 30 feet wide; the difference shrinks at larger footprints because the cover and door work scales the same way.

What tends to slow us down on SKLP builds?

Three things, in order of how often they show up:

1. Missing instructions on auction lots. Roughly 60% of auction-bought SKLP kits arrive without the original assembly booklet. We work from the geometry pattern instead — once parts are laid out, the sequence is muscle memory. If you're owner-building, this is where you'd stall.
2. Hardware bags repacked or short. Government surplus and decommissioned inventory often had hardware bags opened and re-bundled at some point in their auction history. We carry a backup hardware tray on the truck and substitute on-site for common bolts, clamps, and base brackets.
3. Cover condition on aged auction stock. If the kit has been sitting in a crate for a few years, the PE fabric can stiffen at the folds. We pull tension in two passes on aged covers — once at 70% to let the fabric relax, then a final pass — to avoid putting permanent creases into the panels.

How much does professional installation cost for an SKLP building?

Flat rate by size, identical to every other brand. Common SKLP sizes:

Base installation covers crew assembly of the frame, cover installation and tensioning, and anchoring to the agreed prepared base. Equipment rentals, travel, and lodging are assessed separately after discussing your project. The kit, site preparation, foundations, and permits are separate.

How long does an SKLP install take?

• Duration is confirmed for the exact kit and site. Frame configuration, access, weather, parts, and equipment affect the installation schedule.
• Duration is confirmed for the exact kit and site. Frame configuration, access, weather, parts, and equipment affect the installation schedule.
• Duration is confirmed for the exact kit and site. Frame configuration, access, weather, parts, and equipment affect the installation schedule.
• Duration is confirmed for the exact kit and site. Frame configuration, access, weather, parts, and equipment affect the installation schedule.

What should I have ready before install day?

• Photos of the crate and any labels: send these before we roll. We can confirm the model and platform without the original paperwork.
• Pad: level, compacted gravel sized to footprint plus a 2-foot working perimeter.
• Anchoring decision: confirmed in advance. Concrete piers, helical piles, or compacted-gravel ground anchors all work.
• Crate opened and inventoried: auction lots especially benefit from a hardware count before crew day so we know what we're working with.
• Access: 1-ton truck plus a manlift on anything 40-wide and up.

Our blog post on what to expect on install day has the full site-prep checklist.

SKLP at auction — when it's a deal and when it isn't

Compare the complete project scope before buying a kit. The kit purchase and base installation are separate from equipment rentals, travel, lodging, preparation, and applicable tax.

If the auction price climbs past about 60% of new-in-crate pricing for an equivalent Suihe / Gold Mountain kit, the math gets tighter. At that point you're paying near-new pricing for a building with no warranty and no parts support. For primary-equipment storage we'd point you toward a new Cover-Tech, North Country, or Dura Shelter instead. We install all of them at the same flat rate; the difference is in the kit and the warranty.

Max Contractors installation information. Confirm the exact model, kit documentation, and site requirements before planning your build.

Last updated: April 25, 2026

Max Contractors is an independent installation company. We are not a dealer for, sponsored by, or affiliated with the manufacturers whose products we install — brand names are used only to identify the kits we work on. Where a commercial relationship exists, we disclose it.

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