Costs related to products damaged in transit, return shipping, and customer dissatisfaction can swiftly derail a perceived good price on used or rebuilt GMA style pallets. Pallets are the base for unit load design; therefore, they should be properly matched with the demands of the load and the packaging design.
A mismatch in functionality can easily magnify when companies select cheap, rebuilt pallets. Many times, the assumed cost savings on the purchasing side of the equation turns into a financial liability once costs related to product damage, returns, and customer dissatisfaction are factored in.
Modern Materials Handling annually conducts a pallet usage survey to uncover why readers select and use specific pallet types. Since the inception of the survey over 20 years ago, price has consistently been the number one reason. The results of the 2016 survey showed that price continues to hold that place, with 60.9% of the readers in agreement.
The problem with purchasing pallets based on price alone is that pallets often aren’t properly matched with the demands of the packaging design as well as shipping the product as a unitized load. The answer to this problem lies in protecting the product with unit load components that are properly designed to work together. The answer to this problem lies in protecting the product with unit load components that are properly designed to work together and that carry the product safely through even the most demanding supply chains.
In a new white paper written by pallet and unit load design specialist Dr. Mark White, Dr. White analyzes alternative pallets choices for strength, stiffness and other factors that affect functionality. Dr. White compares Litco’s Inca molded wood pallets to both new and reconditioned (used) traditional, nailed wood GMA pallets in the study.
Dr. White’s study concludes that a pallet should be selected that meets the following requirements:
- Designed with the proper strength, stiffness and functionality
- Improves supply chain operational efficiency
- Reduces product damage and product contamination
- Reduces injuries related to manual handling
- Increases shipping and materials handling efficiency
- Accomplishes these performance requirements at the lowest possible purchase price
This white paper compares Litco’s Inca brand of molded wood pallets that are made in the USA, to new and rebuilt GMA-style pallets. It demonstrates why Litco’s Inca molded wood pallets are the best solution to balance pallet function, performance and overall cost. These pallets have been proven in the field and have been tested at The Center for Packaging and Unit Load Design, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, Virginia to be strong and stiffer than heavy-duty, 48” x 40”, GMA-style pallets.
A copy of the white paper can be downloaded below:
