Forum 3
Discuss the use of pallets in a shipping system. What considerations must be taken when deciding whether or not a pallet is required for a specific shipment of boxes? What considerations must be made in determining the placement of boxes on the pallet and securing the boxes to the pallet?
Pallets are used to make shipping more unitized and as an extra layer of protection for products and material. If you ever happen to go to a Sam’s Club or Costco you will see that many of their products are on pallets. Companies use this tertiary type of packaging for their bulk shipments. Many times you will see boxes loaded onto pallets and then shrink wrapped into place to ensure that the material does not fall off the pallet during shipping. Pallets also come in several sizes with the most common size being 40in. by 48 in. (Blanchard, 2004) There are several different methods in which boxes can be stacked onto pallets. One of the most common methods of stacking pallets is the brick method. This method is believed to be the strongest method because the weaker part of the box supports the greatest weight. (David, Stewart, 2010) There are several considerations that must be considered before deciding on using a pallet. A company must decide on if it will use secondary packaging to ship the product or if tertiary packaging will be used. If tertiary packaging will be used knowing what size boxes will be used because will determine the pallet size. Also, how is the product going to be shipped? Pallets used for air transportation will be different than pallets that are used for ground transportation. Other considerations will be how the boxes will be secured onto the pallet and if the material will need to protected against the weather elements. The use of pallets allow for easier movement of material and products from warehouse to warehouse or onto a particular mode of transportation. It also ensures that products will arrive at its destination with the least amount of
Pallets are used to make shipping more unitized and as an extra layer of protection for products and material. If you ever happen to go to a Sam’s Club or Costco you will see that many of their products are on pallets. Companies use this tertiary type of packaging for their bulk shipments. Many times you will see boxes loaded onto pallets and then shrink wrapped into place to ensure that the material does not fall off the pallet during shipping. Pallets also come in several sizes with the most common size being 40in. by 48 in. (Blanchard, 2004) There are several different methods in which boxes can be stacked onto pallets. One of the most common methods of stacking pallets is the brick method. This method is believed to be the strongest method because the weaker part of the box supports the greatest weight. (David, Stewart, 2010) There are several considerations that must be considered before deciding on using a pallet. A company must decide on if it will use secondary packaging to ship the product or if tertiary packaging will be used. If tertiary packaging will be used knowing what size boxes will be used because will determine the pallet size. Also, how is the product going to be shipped? Pallets used for air transportation will be different than pallets that are used for ground transportation. Other considerations will be how the boxes will be secured onto the pallet and if the material will need to protected against the weather elements. The use of pallets allow for easier movement of material and products from warehouse to warehouse or onto a particular mode of transportation. It also ensures that products will arrive at its destination with the least amount of
References: Blanchard, B.S., (2004). Logistics Engineering and Management, 6th Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ, Pearson Education, Prentice Hall David, Pierre, & Stewart, Richard (2010). International Logistics. 3rd Edition. Mason, OH: Thomson ISBN 13: 978-1-111-21955-0