An industrial materials handling system including a base member having a loading end with a first senor that detects when a first carriage or second carriage is positioned in a loading/unloading position at the loading end, and an operator end with a second sensor that detects when the first or second carriage is positioned in the loading/unloading position, a controller coupled to the first sensor and second sensor, the first carriage coupled to the base member and a first drive mechanism controlled by the controller to move the first carriage, the loading end, and the operator end, the second carriage coupled to the base member and to a second drive mechanism configured to move the second carriage between the loading end and the operator end under the control of the controller, and a bypass mechanism to move the second carriage between the loading end and the operator end.