Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/1266845
BLOG FROM NATURE'S PACKAGING 36 PalletCentral • May-June 2020 palletcentral.com WOOD PALLETS – Y ou have just been tasked with reviewing your company's existing wood pallet procurement pro- gram. Or, your company is just starting to ramp up and now it's time to choose the most practical pallet for the job. One question that shippers and corporate buyers often ask early in their process is whether new pallets or recycled pallets provide the best solution. In 2016, 508 million new wood pallets were produced in the United States. Bottom line, if new pallets didn't make sense for many pallet buyers in the first place, there would be no fresh influx to help sustain the overall pallet pool and no recycled pallets for buyers who prefer them. Spoiler Alert! There isn't a "one size fits all" answer. It all depends upon your application. Here are some considerations for determining whether new or recycled wood pallets provide the best match for your supply chain needs. Why Choose a New Wood Pallet? There are a few good reasons why many buyers choose new pallets including: consistency, exact specification, and lack of alternatives in the recycled market. New pallet production allows for highly consistent products. Pallet components, like wood decking and wood stringers, are all of a uniform size with minimal size variation in the manufacturing process. That kind of predictability is required in certain types of automation where uneven deck board height or other dimensional variability could jam a production line and cause costly system downtime. Another example of the precision offered by new pallets is through exact deck board placement. This may not be possible with recycled pallets that are typically repaired by hand in several different pallet recycling businesses during their lifespan. By having deck boards that provide support where needed the most you can better optimize the movement of the unit load on the pallet and likely reduce transportation costs. New wood pallets are typically built by machine to specific requirements. Using industry software – such as the Pallet Design System™ – a pallet is designed that meets the needs of the application in the supply chain in the most efficient way possible. Also, from a liability standpoint, shippers and receivers alike wish to ensure that their pallets are rated to safely handle the loads they carry. This outcome is more likely when new pallets conform to a specification created in the pallet design software. Aside from material handling performance, sometimes the decision to use new wood pallets simply comes down to marketing and aesthetics. Bright new wood pallets are more attractive to consumers when they see them on the shopping floor and they can enhance the overall customer experience. rom a iaiit standoint shiers and receivers aike wish to ensure that their aets are rated to sae hande the oads the carr.