Returnable Packaging Reduces Costs, Boosts Efficiency

With rising labour, fuel and packaging costs, many companies today are seeking solutions that deliver lower logistics costs. Returnable transport packaging (RTP) solutions from Loadhog – including durable plastic containers, reusable pallet lids and sturdy transport dollies – enable you to secure savings that really add up.

Short payback

Loadhog’s solutions avoid the ongoing costs of buying single-trip packaging. By replacing cardboard packaging with rugged plastic containers, you not only reduce your packaging costs within a short payback period but also provide better protection for your goods, slashing the cost of damaged items. In addition, the containers are designed to boost productivity. They feature handles and grip points that enable ergonomic handling, while the attached lid containers allow fast and easy access to goods without the need for time-consuming opening and resealing.

For pallet loads, Loadhog has developed the award-winning Pallet Lid – available in UK, Euro and Half Euro sizes – as an alternative to stretch wrap. The reusable plastic lid features retractable straps and an integrated tensioning mechanism to secure the load. It not only eliminates the cost of single-use stretch wrap, but also secures labour savings – taking an average of just 20 seconds to secure a load, compared to 180 seconds for shrink wrapping – to give a typical return on investment of less than 12 months.

Loadhog’s various containers – along with foldable sleeves for bulky items – can be stacked on the company’s Dolly Max wheeled platform and secured with a Pallet Lid to create a rolling container system. With its mix-and-match design, Loadhog’s Dolly Max is the most versatile rolling container system on the market, providing flexibility for your supply chain. And, with Dolly Max units simply wheeled from vehicles into delivery points, you avoid the need for a pallet truck, saving even more.

Better vehicle fill

In addition to reducing packaging costs, RTP can secure transport savings in terms of both fuel and labour. The Pallet Lid enables double stacking of loads to optimise use of space in delivery vehicles, thereby reducing the number of journeys and the fuel required. Using the Dolly Max system instead of traditional roll cages also improves use of vehicle space. With 64 Dolly Max units fitting in a 40 ft trailer – compared to just 45 roll cages – vehicle fill is increased by over 40%.

In fact, the sheer weight of metal roll cages often means that loading capacity is reached before a vehicle is full, so the savings can be even greater. There are savings when it comes to return journeys too, as Dolly Max is designed for fast deconstruction and space optimisation. With containers nesting, sleeves folding and the Dolly Max frame featuring castor cups for stable stacking, the return ratio is typically 3/1.

Security is another area in which savings can be achieved, in terms of safeguarding both goods and packaging assets. Loadhog offers sealing, labelling, tracking and branding options for its entire RTP range.

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Next Gen Rolling Container System

Packaging innovator Loadhog has been working with its customers in the post, parcel, and ecommerce industries to design a new versatile rolling container system. This system offers increased versatility, better vehicle fill, improved handling efficiencies, and carbon reductions vs existing systems on the market today.

Loadhog’s new modular system can be adapted for transporting and storing. The versatility offers possibilities for segregated goods within various container types, loose goods within a bulk sleeve, and mixed goods within the same footprint by utilising Loadhog’s Sleeve Stacking Tray. The new dolly base enables users to adapt to the fluctuating nature of goods within their supply chain.

The versatility of the unit has won an initial order of 10,000 units, which will be incorporated into a new project for a global automotive parts distributor. The distributor will utilise the unit for delivery to independent garages, automotive retailers, and home delivery.

Loadhog’s R&D team began investigating the development of a new rolling container system after establishing a trend in the market, with numerous customers enquiring about alternative substitutions to the traditional roll cage, wrapped pallets, and pallet shippers.

Loadhog’s new dolly base, Dolly Max, boasts an innovative easy access one-touch brake mechanism, which is quicker and more ergonomic than the simple castor brake found on most cages today, ensuring the brake is always applied. The rolling container system also offers maximum transport efficiencies with +20% increased vehicle fill vs standard roll cages due to the standard ½ EU footprint and max capacity design.

Both systems have been designed to be deconstructed and returned as efficiently as possible. The bulk system has a 3/1 return ratio and ergonomic sleeve locks, with large safety shoe access to speed up system deconstruction. The rolling containers can be linked and manoeuvred by AGVs to reduce marshalling time. It can also be nested and stacked on MHE to transport multiple empty units, speeding up the returns process significantly.

The rolling container system has various features making Loadhog’s Dolly Max safer than substitute systems, including the brake’s coefficient of friction ensuring the unit remains still even on a sloped tail lift. The unit also presents no sharp metal touch points unlike roll cages, it doesn’t require MHE unlike pallet shippers, and the ease of brake application ensures the brake is always applied.

Innovative designer, Loadhog, won a King’s Award for Innovation in 2023 for their Pallet Lid invention. The Pallet Lid sits on top of the rolling container system to consolidate the load ready for transportation, no stretch wrap or banding required.

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