With the holiday shopping season just around the corner, economic forecasters are already trying to make sense of the numbers. How will retailers fare this year? Will consumer spending rise or fall when compared with last year’s numbers? When will 2012 retailer profit levels move from red to black? Chaille Brindley’s recent article in Pallet Enterprise takes this discussion one step further, using the upcoming holiday shopping season to explore connections between the growth of online retailing and the future of pallet demand. Read more…
Five Keys to Optimal Pallet Design
November 16th, 2012Pallet Enterprise’s archived article titled “Balance Your Pallet Design” explains how optimal pallet performance is achieved by striking a balance between five interacting design considerations: strength, stiffness, durability, functionality, and cost. By focusing on the interaction between these variables and taking the time to consider specific product and distribution environments, logistics professionals and suppliers have the best chance of specifying the proper pallet for a given application. What follows is a brief summary of each consideration. Read more…
Clarifying IPPC- ISPM 15 Standards for Recycled Pallets
August 9th, 2012The ISPM-15 standard is designed to prevent the spread of insects and disease via overseas wood packaging materials such as crates, dunnage, and pallets. The ISPM 15 logo stamp certifies that a wooden pallet has been manufactured using debarked lumber and heat treated or fumigated, making it free of insects and safe for export use. Although the ISPM 15 standard for new pallets is quite unambiguous, the same cannot be said of recycled pallets. Because recycled pallets constitute a significant component of the available pool, the National Wooden Pallet & Container Association (NWPCA) recently sought clarification from American Lumber Standard Committee (ALSC) to eliminate discrepancies in how various ISPM-15 certification agencies view recycled pallets. Read more…
How Pallet Selection Can Reduce Your Carbon Footprint and Logistics Costs
August 7th, 2012We have arrived at the dawn of a new age of pallet marketing where “less” is becoming a popular area of consideration for decision makers in the logistics and materials handling fields. Although much of today’s promotional pallet literature still touts more – more size and material choices, greater strength, or increased resistance to mold and insect infestations – the notion of less is taking off in marketing circles. Nowhere is this better illustrated than in the carbon footprint discussion, as Rick LeBlanc suggests in a recent article appearing in Pallet Enterprise. Read more…
CHEP v. 9BLOC and the Case for Molded Presswood Pallets
July 20th, 2012Attempts by Wal-Mart, Costco, and other mass retailers to minimize product damage and create greater handling efficiencies have helped the block pallet supplant the stringer pallet in recent years. Initially, the big box block pallet preference prompted many manufacturers to consider solutions from CHEP, a global leader in the pallet rental market, servicing over 300,000 customers worldwide. Although CHEP offered a universally accepted big box pallet solution, the ubiquitous sea of blue came with a price. Some manufacturers disliked the notion of a forced partnership with a distant, corporate entity capable of exercising such control over the supply and demand of the pallet pool. With fewer suppliers contributing to the pool, manufacturers found themselves facing a pallet market fraught with uncertainty. Other manufacturers were reluctant to end longstanding relationships with local pallet suppliers. Despite these concerns, the tide had shifted, and at least in the mass retailer world, traditional stringers lost favor to newer, more expensive block pallets. Read more…
Reduce Shipping Costs and Go Green with Custom Boxes and Litco Pallets
July 12th, 2012A recent online survey conducted by Peerless Research Group for Packsize International cites reduced shipping costs as the primary concern of logistics and materials handling professionals seeking to improve operational efficiencies. The study was based on findings from 521 logistics and materials handling managers responsible for the daily shipment of more than 2,000 packages from their respective facilities.
Although this survey is welcome news to executives at Packsize International, a company specializing in the manufacture of lean corrugated packaging systems used to create custom size boxes, this research also reinforces the message we share with our prospects and customers: lighter pallet solutions can substantially reduce shipping costs. Read more…
