Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/1514071
28 Pallet C e nt ral • Janu a r y -Fe b r u a r y 2 0 24 Process Management So ware For The Pallet And Timber Industries CALL & SCHEDULE A DEMO TODAY ThePalMateGroup.com | 877.267.8384 Reduce Redundant Entries Produc on Management Inventory Summaries Barcoding Systems Sales Reports And More! GET ACCESS TO REAL-TIME INFORMATION! T he short answer is I would expect the wood pallet demand to be similar to 2023 demand levels with a slight 5% per year over year increase for the next 1 to 3 years. I don't think that the US economy has yet found its post-COVID "new normal." As the "new normal" economy builds back stronger, so will demand for wooden pallets. During 2020/2021, the supply chain and feeding US demand was significantly interrupted for a whole host of reasons starting with the COVID crisis. Pre- COVID marketing projections were much more predictable than current post-COVID projections starting in 2022 in that the US economy had to shut down and restart during COVID. e restart has not yet completely assimilated into the business cycle resulting in some businesses going out of business, new ones entering, and surviving businesses rebalancing their capabilities. All of these factors affect the mix and utilization of new and recycled wood pallets feeding American industry and service industries. Also, the COVID crisis created confusion and left many US companies that are relying on Chinese goods and services to consider other avenues of supply such as Pacific Rim countries, India, etc. Chinese dominance in providing unlimited supply at low cost is coming to an end as China appears to be entering a recessionary cycle. e US companies who have heavily relied on products from China are looking at the above supply chain alternatives as well as creating new manufacturing facilities in the United States. US companies have to better control inventories, manufacturing cost, delivery to the marketplace, as well as other factors. Getting the US economy and the supply chain to its "new normal" will take a few more years, but it will occur and is rebuilding daily. As the supply chain improves, so will wooden pallet demand. In the meantime, evaluate your markets and adjust accordingly. John Lieber, President, Profile Technology