PALLETS: FRONT AND CENTER
average wood pallet lasts five to eight trips while you can expect to get between 150 and 200 trips from a quality plastic pallet.” In addition, Robbins says, plastic pallets are worth the extra upfront cost for one-way shipping needs in an open loop due to the “true cost” of using plastic iterations. “Plastic pallets weigh less than wood,” Robbins says. “This makes them easier for employees and customers to handle. “They also reduce weight on the truck, which can increase the amount of product you can ship as well as reduce freight costs,” he adds. “If you use a nestable plastic pallet, you fit as many as 2,370 empty nestable 48 x 40 pallets in the same amount of space you need to store 540 empty wood pallets. “Also, they look better and customers often end up using the pallet themselves and see more value than a wood pallet,” Robbins says. “There is also less chance of product damage.” Companies are turning to plastic pallets in an effort to be more sustainable. Companies recognize that using 100% recycled plastic pallets that last 40 times longer than wood and that will be recycled again when their usefulness ends is “a sustainable solution that helps them achieve their environmental goals,” Dunham says. PNEUMATICO MAKES BUILDING YOUR OWN PALLETS A FLEXIBLE, AFFORDABLE OPTION Few companies consider the possibility of building their own pallets. When they do, however, they discover a straightforward, cost-effective solution that can be a particular blessing for businesses that require custom or large pallets on short notice. Pneumatico nailing machines are a proven, reliable opportunity to build your own pallets, and the company is fast gaining clients around the world. In the past five years, Pneumatico, a brand of Polish-based Airfix, has installed its pallet-making machines for customers in Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Ireland,
Investing in pallets should align with a company’s overall supply chain strategy, taking into account the full life-cycle return on investment.
the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands, Poland, Israel, and the United States. Clients include manufacturers, logistics companies, and pallet manufacturers. The popularity of Pneumatico’s machines can be attributed to several factors, including that they are easy to use and provide operators with newfound flexibility at an affordable rate, explains Bartosz Wojciechowski of Pneumatico USA. Pneumatico machines allow an operator to build standard or custom pallets in either block or stringer format, including large pallets up to 130 inches wide. Building your own pallets with a Pneumatico machine can be done on a compact footprint and requires only a few minutes for changeovers. One of the most appealing benefits
that Pneumatico machines provide is that they allow companies to build their pallets on short notice. Wojciechowski says lumber, labor and freight challenges have led to high prices and longer delivery times for pallet companies facing high demand from their customers. SUPPORTING MANY ADVANTAGES Pneumatico’s clients, on the other hand, can build their own pallets on demand, a boon for a variety of businesses, such as those who frequently encounter an immediate need for custom, large, or block pallets. “A lack of pallets when you need them can result in shipping delays and a poor customer experience,” Wojciechowski says. “No pallets and shipping delays can also mean that those products consume valuable
84 Inbound Logistics • May 2022
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