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Tag: pallets

Communications key staffing and supply chain issues

Posted on by David Priestman

Clear communications will be essential for supply chain firms to tackle future challenges in recruiting and retaining good staff, according to speakers at a recent packaging business conference. The AGM of the Timber Packaging & Pallet Confederation (TIMCON), held in Dublin, heard a diverse panel of speakers address members on the difficulties – and opportunities – ahead of supply chain businesses in the wake of Covid-19 and current procurement issues.

Imelda Hurley, CEO of Irish state forestry business Coillte, said forest-based business has very strong sustainability credentials but that these were not well understood by those outside the sector. It is therefore vital, she said, “to communicate more in terms of everything our sector delivers”. In his presentation, Mike Glennon, joint managing director of Ireland and UK timber processing firm Glennon Brothers, said the country needed to ensure that afforestation was made “easy, understandable and administratively manageable” to enable it to meet its EU carbon reduction targets.

Caroline Reidy of human resources consultant HR Suite also highlighted the importance of communication in her keynote speech on the positive actions pallet and packaging businesses can do to tackle current employment issues. Focusing on recruitment and retention, she said companies who communicate strong core values internally and externally and introduce more flexible ways of working stand a better chance of finding and retaining good staff.

The meeting included presentations by two government ministers. Peter Burke, Irish Minister of State for Housing and Local Planning opened the meeting, saying that the Irish government would “position our forests and wood products at the centre of a growing bioeconomy,” and that this would provide benefits not just to forest owners “but also to wider society.”

Matt Carthy, Sinn Fein spokesperson on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, who spoke on current and future policy challenges for the timber sector and said the forestry industry would be essential to meeting future environmental targets. “If we don’t deliver on forestry, we won’t deliver on climate,” he said.

TIMCON President John Dye said forest-based businesses of all kinds should work together to promote both the industry’s environmental credentials and attractiveness as a place to work.

“People in the street still don’t understand how important a pallet is that every part of our trees is used, and reused many times before then being recycled,” he said, “Our whole industry should be pooling its resources and working together to promote this message.

“Wooden pallets and packaging is one of the most sustainable industries, dealing with products that are essential to keeping supply chains moving smoothly. It’s a business of great people, too, with opportunities to travel and work with colleagues from around the world.”

Dye announced that TIMCON would be launching an initiative to communicate the sector’s environmental credentials to the supply chain and wider public, in particular highlighting its role in encouraging the reuse of wooden products.

The meeting also heard updates from Angus Macpherson, managing director of The Environment Exchange; and Tom Gaynor, operations manager for recovery and recycling at REPAK.

Image caption: TIMCON board members with Minister Peter Burke. Left to right: Mary Walsh; Darren Turner; TIMCON President John Dye; Peter Burke; and Fergal Moran.

 

Briton joins pallet pioneers in Hall of Fame

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Briton Neil Humphrey (pictured) has been awarded the accolade of TRATON Logistics Leader of the Year 2022, while the pioneers of the pallet’s triumph in logistics have been inducted to the Logistics Hall of Fame.

Posthumously, George Raymond Sr. (1890-1967), founder of the American intralogistics solutions provider The Raymond Corporation and inventor of the double-faced wooden pallet, patented in 1939, will be inducted to the Logistics Hall of Fame. His pallet is considered the world’s first professional wooden pallet. Also inducted is Oliver Richter (1920-2014), an Australian who, as trade manager of Brambles in the 1960s, discovered the potential of a closed rental pool for load carriers and successfully established today’s Commonwealth Handling Equipment Pool (CHEP) system as a closed rental pool internationally.

The UIC (Union Internationale des Chemins de Fer) was responsible for introducing the Euro pallet in 1961. Within the framework of a working group, the International Union of Railways promoted the standardization of pallets and obliged all signatories of an agreement to comply with the standards to manufacture as well as to repair the Euro pallet.

In the mid-1970s, the Gütegemeinschaft Paletten, today’s National Committee of EPAL, partially took over the distribution and quality assurance of the Euro pallet. The European Pallet Association e.V. (EPAL), which was formed from this in 1991, has successfully developed the pool idea and ensured the quality of the Euro pallet. Both associations receive a place in the Hall of Fame on behalf of their networks behind.

“The invention of the pallet, and even more so the establishment of functioning pallet pools, is one of the greatest milestones in logistics, as significant as the container invented by Malcolm McLean. Without standardized pallet systems, high-performance logistics in the 21st century would be inconceivable,” says Anita Würmser, executive Jury Chairwoman of the Logistics Hall of Fame, explaining the decision of the jury.

After the introduction of pallets, the loading times of trucks and freight cars were reduced by up to 90%. The conveyor technology and shuttle systems in highly automated warehouses are all adapted to the 800 x 1200 x 144mm dimensions of the Euro pallet. Another advantage of the load carriers made of 11 planks, nine wooden blocks and 78 nails is that they can be repaired with low material costs and are fully recyclable at the end of their life cycle.

The pioneers of the pallet will be officially inducted to the Logistics Hall of Fame at a gala reception with German Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, Volker Wissing, on 29th November in the Wintergarten of the KaDeWe department store in Berlin.

Humphrey is Logistics Leader of the Year

The TRATON Logistics Leader of the Year Award will also be presented during the reception. This year, the trophy goes to Neil Humphrey, President, HAVI Supply Chain. The British manager is a committed leader of sustainable supply chain practices and digitalisation, an active networker and a tireless driver of digitalisation initiatives and pilot projects with new technologies.

The 58-year-old manager gained decades of experience in business management and supply chain with a strong focus on sustainability at Unilever and joined HAVI in 2017, where he has led the Supply

Chain Business Unit since 2018. Under his leadership, the company joined the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) in 2019 – at the time as one of the first 10 supply chain service providers worldwide. HAVI committed to reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 40% by 2030 per tonne delivered. With the programme successfully underway and new global metrics established by the climate science community, HAVI is currently evaluating an increase in that goal.

Under Humphrey’s leadership, HAVI is also partnering with customers and suppliers to drive climate change action. For example, HAVI is helping leading foodservice brands to work toward ambitious emissions targets. It has also established a partnership with a commercial vehicle manufacturer to convert 70% of its European delivery fleet from diesel to alternative fuels; a target which was delivered upon in 2021.

In addition to supporting projects involving alternative fuels, green distribution centres or e-trucks, Humphrey and his team also have begun a hybrid truck pilot in Stockholm to roll out a carbon neutral hybrid truck solution across Europe. The trucks use their batteries to drive in the city, but use reprocessed frying oil as fuel outside the city. The used cooking oil is collected during deliveries to customer restaurants, reprocessed at a specialist facility, and eventually goes into the tanks of HAVI trucks – a perfect cycle.

The TRATON Logistics Leader of the Year Award recognises pacesetters and future leaders in logistics. It honours entrepreneurs and managers from the transport and logistics sector who have been particularly successful in promoting their companies or who have set a trend-setting impulse. The focus is on topicality and the benefits for the company as well as innovative strength, sustainability and entrepreneurial change. The award is presented by the Logistics Hall of Fame and donated by TRATON SE.

The decisive factor for acceptance as a member of the Logistics Hall of Fame, on the other hand, is that an achievement is not only beneficial to an individual company but has significantly and permanently advanced logistics beyond the boundaries of one’s own organisation or has become an industry standard. So far, 41 logisticians have made it into the international Hall of Fame.

The Logistics Hall of Fame was founded in 2003 and honours leading figures who have made outstanding efforts to promote the further development of logistics and supply chain management. This eternal pantheon is also designed to remind future generations of the achievements of these individuals in the service of logistics. The aim of the Logistics Hall of Fame is to act as a worldwide platform to publicise the performance capability of logistics and its importance for society.

The expert jury includes 70 well-known personalities from business, science, politics and the media in 13 nations. The UK media sector is represented by Logistics Business’ news editor Peter MacLeod.

The Logistics Hall of Fame is a non-profit initiative supported by the world of politics, associations, the logistics industry and logistics science. The patron is Dr. Volker Wissing, German Federal Minister for Digital and Transport.

 

Used pallet demand soars as supply chains cut costs

Posted on by David Priestman

The used wooden pallet industry is reporting a large uplift in enquiries from supply chain users, as the prices of inputs including raw materials and transport have increased.

According to members of the National Association of Pallet Distributors (NAPD), demand has risen to “unparalleled levels” – up to 70% higher and from further afield than usual – as businesses seek to reduce costs of manufacturing, packaging, and delivery of goods.

Saleh Hijazi, press officer for NAPD, said: “The used wooden pallet business is experiencing heavy growth in demand from existing and new customers. This is being driven by a shortage of pallets and pallet timber in Western Europe, particularly in the Benelux region, diverting reused pallets and pushing prices up here in the UK. This has been further compounded by severe inflation in energy, transport, and other input costs.

“Reuse is helping to ease these issues – and is a central part of the circular economy, too. Wooden pallets are one of the most sustainable parts of a supply chain already, and repair and reuse of these has an increasingly important part to play in helping businesses fulfil their environmental obligations.

“While this challenging period continues, we are advising our customers that forward planning is more important than ever and we are working closely with them to fulfil the increases in orders.”

 

Exporta launches new technologies

Posted on by David Priestman

Exporta has installed two new pieces of technology at its Kinross manufacturing facility in the UK, which it says will be of huge benefit to its customer base.

Digital Printing Machine

Exporta says product branding is key to its customers – this could be five Euro Containers with a logo on the side or thousands of pallets with a logo and sequential numbering. Exporta has long been offering this service, but has installed a new digital printing machine in-house, meaning it can provide product printing quicker and to a higher standard.

Head of technology and product development, John Wilkin, has been involved with this project from the start and is delighted to see his plans come to fruition: “We know how important branding can be, so to make it easier for customers to get this from Exporta has been an important goal. This investment is something that will immediately add value to our offering.”

The new machine, installed at the end of June 2022, is up and running and ready to go. It’s designed to work on any plastic product with a large enough surface area to print on, meaning it will work with the majority of products in the Exporta range.

The benefit of branding goods include brand exposure, identification, and the prevention of lost or stolen goods. Sending out goods within branded containers or pallets provides a strong opportunity for additional advertising and brand exposure. Details such as a phone number and a web address can also be added. This also helps to ensure goods aren’t lost or stolen as they are clearly marked. In terms of identification, printing can be used to add things like sequential numbering or colour coding to products to aid in picking and general warehouse operations.

Pallet Load Testing

How often have you been on the cusp of purchasing a new pallet for your system, but you’ve been unsure how the pallet will perform with your standard goods load? This no longer needs to be a concern, as Exporta has installed a load testing machine to test your load on a potential pallet.

Exporta claims that this is a unique offering to the UK market and something that has taken months of planning. The system allows Exporta to measure the performance of a pallet on racking and on a forklift. The width of the racking can be tailored to match the racking the pallet will be used on. Exporta can test both racking pallets as well as testing nestable pallets for their dynamic load and it can then provide an approved report on the results to give you confidence when you’re purchasing a pallet for your warehouse or shipping system.

Exporta measures the deflection of the pallet with your load over a 24-hour period, and then measures the time it takes to return to its original form once the load has been removed. It can then ensure that the pallet meets the regulation deflection tolerance as required by ISO8611.

 

 

European Pallet Association appoints co-presidents

Posted on by David Priestman

The General Assembly of the European Pallet Association e.V. (EPAL), held on 24 June 2022 in Zurich, has elected Dirk Hoferer and Jarek Maciążek as the new Presidents of EPAL. They will lead EPAL for the next three years as Co-Presidents. They have both been Vice Presidents of EPAL and have been active on behalf of EPAL Deutschland and EPAL Polska on the Board in recent years and contributed to the steady growth of the EPAL European pallet pool through their considerable personal commitment.

“I am looking forward to take on the responsibility for the continued positive development of EPAL with my Co-President Jarek Maciążek,” says Dirk Hoferer. “We have been involved with all of EPAL’s key projects for over ten years on the EPAL Board and Presidium and will continue our close collaboration as Presidents of EPAL. One of the key areas of our work will be to extend and further improve the significance of the open EPAL exchange pool for the circular economy, climate protection and the sustainability goals of retail and industry.”

With Maciążek and Hoferer, EPAL now has two highly experienced representatives of the pallet industry at the helm. For many years, Maciążek was on the board of the Polish company PalettenWerk, one of the largest pallet producers in Europe. Hoferer is the owner and Managing Director of the German company Treyer Paletten GmbH, one of the first EPAL licensees.

“EPAL’s strength lies in the direct involvement of companies who, as licensees, are active producers and repairers of EPAL pallets and EPAL box pallets,” explains Maciążek. “This allows us to ensure that every decision EPAL takes on the organisation of the EPAL European pallet pool is in line with the interests of our customers from the retail and industrial sectors who rely on the EPAL European pallet pool for goods and transport logistics. This will be the yardstick for the work of Dirk Hoferer and myself during our time as Presidents of EPAL.“

Hoferer and Maciążek are following Robert Holliger who led EPAL as its President from 2010 to 2022 over four terms in office. During this time, the number of EPAL Euro pallets produced rose from approximately 65 million per annum to more than 100 million in 2021.

“The EPAL Euro pallet pool developed into the largest open pallet exchange pool in the world while Robert Hollinger was in office,” say Hoferer and Maciążek. “Our aim is to follow this successful path and to establish EPAL as a modern association and an essential element of sustainable goods and transport logistics. On behalf of the EPAL Board and members of EPAL, we would like to thank Robert Holliger for his generous commitment to EPAL over many years.”

As EPAL Vice-Presidents, Maciążek and Hoferer had a close and confidential working relationship with Holliger over the years. The election of Hoferer and Maciążek thus ensures continuity in both EPAL’s work and the organisation of the EPAL Euro pallet pool. Holliger has been appointed as an honorary member and honorary president of EPAL by the EPAL General Assembly.

Qimarox automates unloading of containers

Posted on by David Priestman

Qimarox, a leading manufacturer of components for material handling systems, has launched a new palletiser machine dedicated for the logistics market. As a manufacturer of, among other things, palletisers, product lifts, pallet lifts, packaging machines and shielding systems, Qimarox says it distinguishes itself by its contemporary vision and approach, in which innovation, quality and added value are of paramount importance.

Thanks to the pandemic, the ever-rising e-commerce business has seen a massive growth. It is one of the most rapidly growing markets in the world economy. The transportation trends in 2021 shows this as well, the biggest trend is the necessity to deliver more products in less time. The most of these products are shipped in containers, which brings challenges for companies.

Unloading a container is a process that requires maximum expertise to make the entire process a success. Usually, ships are packed to full capacity to ensure that there is maximum utilisation of the available space. Unpacking such containers not only poses a risk to the workforce involved but also damages to the contents. Once the container arrives and is received, container handlers carefully unload it using cranes, forklifts, or through manual handling.

These tasks requires manual labour and can become quite expensive. Also finding the right people to do the manual unloading is getting harder. Qimarox claims to have found a better solution.

Automation can be a solution

Qimarox noticed this trend and wants to provide a solution. One of the solutions can be to automate the unloading process. The Qimarox Highrunner HR9 palletiser is designed exactly for this purpose. It is designed for logistic operations where many different products needs to be handled in short batches. Of course it is able to do longer batches of the same product as well. The automation of this process has a lot of benefits for companies.

The unique and patented layer-formation system of the Highrunner HR9 palletiser can generate a large variety of layer patterns that can be selected automatically or generated with the state-of-the-art pattern generator. The specially designed pattern generator can generate a large variety of layer patterns that can be selected automatically from the interface. The generator even recommends the best to use pattern, this way anyone can operate the machine. If the installation is equipped with a full 3D product scanner it is even possible to have the system working fully autonomously.

The highrunner HR9 palletizer enables companies to automate their unloading processes. Which brings a number of benefits:

  • No more costly and time-consuming manual handling
  • No more risks of repetitive strain injuries of the workforce
  • No more risks of being hit by falling objects
  • No more risks of falls from heights
  • No more risks of slips, trips and/or falls

The Qimarox Highrunner HR9 is already successfully integrated and in use at OMS International, a Dutch logistics company that unloads approximately one hundred containers with non-food items every day for one of Europe’s largest supermarket chains. With the palletiser including pattern generator, OMS is able to process 10,000 boxes per day, saving multiple FTEs results.

CLICK HERE to view an animation of the palletiser.

 

 

TIMCON head welcomes collaborative approach

Posted on by David Priestman

John Dye (pictured), President of the Timber Packaging & Pallet Association (TIMCON) has commended the increasing trend for wood-based organisations representing different parts of the industry to work closer together, with the shared goals of tackling challenges and improving the position of the sector overall.

TIMCON has developed increasingly close relationships with wood sector associations in the UK and Ireland, as well as government bodies including DEFRA, DAERA and Coillte, during the past decade.

“For several years, TIMCON has sought to work in partnership with a cross-section of the wood industry’s leading associations and spokespeople,” said Dye. “This has formed an extremely strong foundation for progressing our work during the pandemic. It can also now play a central role in tackling the wood industry’s latest challenges, with joined up, collaborative solutions.

“With crises affecting availability and price of raw materials, severe delays and price hikes impacting on international shipping, and staff shortages threatening the viability of many industries, it is more important than ever that we put our heads together across the wood-based sector to find mutually beneficial solutions to these and other issues.”

At its latest general meeting, held in Manchester in March, the organisation welcomed speakers from Coillte; Wood Recyclers Association (WRA); Wood Panel Industries Federation (WPIF); and Timber Development UK (TDUK) – the organisation formed by the recent merger of the Timber Trade Federation (TTF) and Timber Research and Development Association (TRADA).

At the meeting, Clodagh O’Reilly, Sales and Supply Director of Irish state-owned forestry business Coillte spoke about the organisation’s consultation to achieve goals including encouraging the development of Ireland’s forest estate and supplies of sustainable timber and supporting the promotion of timber and forest-based businesses. This, she said, is against the current industry challenges including regulation, price inflation, labour shortages, and political and economic uncertainty.

Charlie Law, Sustainability Director at TDUK gave a presentation on the importance of reuse in the circular economy for wood-based industries. Driven by the Extended Producer Responsibility Regulations (2024), the UK 2050 net zero target and interim target of a 78% reduction (on 1990 levels) by 2035, pressure on sustainable sources of timber is increasing, compounded by the fact that major sources Russia and Belarus are currently not viable, he said.

Reuse is an important part of mitigating this challenge, said Law. “If we could get to a point where all pallets are part of a reusable system, this could save more than 1.1 million m3 of timber a year,” he said. “This is enough timber to build around 60,000 timber-framed houses, which will store 780,000 tonnes of CO2.”

The general meeting was attended by more than 50 delegates.

“It was great to see so many TIMCON members and colleagues from other wood-based organisations at our first face-to-face meeting this year,” said Dye. “It has always been useful to come together and share information and ideas and it’s now essential that we put our heads together to works on the unprecedented challenges and great opportunities our industry faces in the months ahead.”

TIMCON retained close to 100% of its membership during the past year and it expects further members to join, particularly from the packaging segment of the industry.

 

EPAL pallet production reaches record levels in 2021

Posted on by David Priestman

The European Pallet Association e.V. (EPAL) maintained the continuous growth of the EPAL Euro pallet pool in 2021. More than 100 million new EPAL Euro pallets were produced for the first time in a calendar year in 2021.

The record result of 101.3 million new EPAL Euro pallets represents a year-on-year growth of 5.5 % (96.1 million EPAL Euro pallets were produced in 2020). There was also significant growth of 7.6 % in repairs. The production of EPAL Box pallets, which grew by 66.7 % to 288,149 box pallets, is worth highlighting here. The total production and repair volume in 2021 for all EPAL load carriers grew by +6 % to a total of 130.8 million pallets.

Robert Holliger, President of EPAL: “2021 was a year of profound challenges. On the one hand, the economic upturn following the anticipated easing of the COVID-19 pandemic generated a substantial demand for EPAL load carriers. On the other, the shortage of and considerable increase in the price of wood made the situation very difficult for producers and repairers of EPAL Euro pallets. We are therefore particularly proud that it was possible to increase production of EPAL Euro pallets, despite the shortage of wood. We would like to thank EPAL licensees and users of EPAL Euro pallets for this exceptional result.”

Maintaining industrial and retail supply chains

Concerns that it would not be possible to supply industrial and retail users with sufficient numbers of EPAL Euro pallets as a result of the shortage of and increase in the price of wood in spring 2021 proved, in hindsight, to be unwarranted. The EPAL Euro pallet pool continued to be a reliable partner in 2021 for industry and retail, and their supply chains, and ensured the on-going availability of EPAL Euro pallets.

Bernd Dörre, EPAL CEO: “The high levels of trust users have for the open EPAL Euro pallet pool also proves how important EPAL Euro pallets are for the international logistics sector. In addition to guaranteeing the efficiency and safety of logistics processes, using EPAL Euro pallets also helps users achieve their sustainability goals. The reuse of EPAL Euro pallets protects wood resources and reduces CO2 emissions from production and transportation. The EPAL Euro pallet pool is an exemplar for a sustainable circular economy. It is therefore no surprise that the number of participants in open pallet exchange is continuing to grow and that this has led to the record number of EPAL Euro pallets produced.”

It is currently difficult to know whether this record result can be repeated in 2022 due to the significant impacts of the war in Ukraine. However, the growth in the production of EPAL Euro pallets continued in the first quarter of 2022. Secure supply of EPAL Euro pallets is therefore guaranteed.

 

Bekuplast presents special solutions for intralogistics

Posted on by David Priestman

At LogiMAT in Stuttgart, bekuplast will be presenting containers, pallets, trays and special solutions for intralogistics at its stand. The focus will be on new models in the “contecline” intralogistics series.

The contecline series will be supplemented by an oversize container and a tray. The new oversize containers are available in heights of 270, 320 and 400mm. With a basic dimension of 650 x 450mm, they are suitable for storing cardboard boxes in the standard format of 600 x 400mm. For the storage and transport of smaller goods, the contecline oversize containers are equipped with an integrated partition system. The sturdy injection-moulded dividers allow 1/2 to 1/12 subdivision as required.

The tray has a basic dimension of 638 x 424mm. It is optionally available with water drainage holes in the base and can be fitted with four in-mould labels if required.

All products in the contecline series have been specially developed for use in miniload and shuttle systems. The contecline is characterised by low weight and high performance. The containers and the tray have the characteristic, circumferentially closed miniload base, which convinces with ideal running properties.

The manufacturer of reusable plastic solutions will not only be presenting a wide range of solutions on its stand (Hall 6, Stand C05) at LogiMAT, but will also be advising on the use of the recycled material BQC (bekuplast Quality Compound). The BQC compound is a high-quality secondary raw material with documented and tested properties and an environmentally friendly alternative to virgin material.

Open pallet pooling drives efficiency amid margin pressure

Posted on by David Priestman

Businesses across the world are struggling with a series of major crises in their supply chains, which are restricting availability and pushing costs up. Companies that supply goods, from food and drink to pharmaceuticals, can make savings and increase efficiency by making the right choice of pallet system.

In the wake of COVID, supply chains around the world are facing an unparalleled challenge caused by a combination of several issues. These include a shipping crisis, which has severely restricted availability of containers in many regions and pushed prices up to unprecedented levels around the world; intense post-lockdown competition for resources to service pent-up demand; raw material price hikes and volatility; marked energy price rises; and, in Europe, increased admin, time and cost following the completion of Brexit at the beginning of 2021. The war in Ukraine has intensified these issues further.

The situation has caused extreme pressure for businesses, requiring them to develop more adaptable and responsive strategies to cope with the changeable marketplace and, amid severe competition, squeezing their margins.

Against this background, most companies are examining their operations to make them as efficient and straightforward as possible. This means looking for transparency and reliability from their supplier partners, seeking new approaches that allow them to maintain quality, while reducing costs and increasing their all-round efficiency.

With logistics costs a major squeeze point, many businesses are investigating more financially effective ways of organising this part of their operations. This includes considering alternative supply chain models to buying pallets for transporting goods.

Maximising efficiency in pallet use is an important cornerstone in a well-run supply chain – and closed and open pooling systems both create advantages for companies using them over outright purchase of the pallets.

Closed pallet pooling is run by independent companies that own and manage a ‘pool’ of pallets, renting them to supply chain users and collecting, and maintaining and repairing them for continual reuse.

In open pallet pooling, meanwhile, companies buy pallets, and they then remain an asset until they are resold to their customer as part of the transactions for the goods they are purchasing – or exchanged for an empty pallet of equivalent value on arrival at their destination.

EPAL runs the largest open pallet pool in the world, which was founded in 1991 and now has more than 600 million EPAL Euro pallets and 20 million EPAL box pallets in circulation. Pallets are shared and reused within a network that consists of producers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers and other receiving locations, transporters, logistics service providers (LSPs) and service centres.

The size of the pool underpins its success – as this drives efficiency and means that at most delivery locations in Europe, there will be empty EPAL pallets to exchange for those bringing in the goods. The system works by exchanging pallets between the goods recipient and EPAL load carrier, reducing the costs associated with reloading. EPAL supports this process with practical handling advice.

The pool also gives companies using it access to an international network of more than 1,500 licenced pallet repairers in more than 30 countries; so damaged pallets can be collected and reconditioned/repaired before they are returned for reuse in the supply chain.

EPAL specifies repaired pallets ‘as new’, so a repaired, reused pallet guarantees the same strength – safe for loads of up to 1.25 tonnes -as a new one on its first trip. This is essential, particularly to users in high value supply chains, such as pharmaceuticals or alcoholic drinks.

All new and reconditioned EPAL pallets are manufactured from sustainable timber sources and treated to ISPM15 certified plant heath levels as standard, making them legally compliant for post-Brexit movement between the EU and UK markets, and across all international borders.

The simplicity of this open pooling allows logistics companies to focus on their core business and keep logistics low cost and straightforward. Meanwhile, the fact the open system has repair and reuse at its core make using it an important addition to companies’ sustainability efforts as they seek meet new regulatory requirements that encourage circular economic activity. These include the Extended Producer Responsibility Regulations (2024), and the UK 2050 net zero target and interim target of a 78% reduction on 1990 levels by 2035.

Added to these, pallets that are manufactured from wood are still the most economic option. While the current climate has pushed the price of timber up, other raw materials have seen price rises, too. This, together with the above advantages of the open pooling model will be a decisive factor for many goods businesses as they seek to drive efficiency and cost savings in the post-pandemic world.

 

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