When businesses should use light wooden pallets?
Wooden pallets are strong, durable, eco-friendly and easy to customize. There are many types of wooden pallets, which can be separated into two categories: lightweight and heavy-duty wood pallets. How do they differ from one another, and when businesses should use light pallets?
Light vs. heavy-duty wood pallets
Heavy-duty wooden pallets are often made of high-density hardwood (or deciduous) trees, such as oak, maple or birch. Lightweight pallets are usually made of softwood (resinous) trees, like cedar or pine.
Features of heavy-duty wooden pallets:
- Can support extremely heavy loads, such as steel equipment;
- Longer lasting;
- Pallets made of hardwood trees are less sensitive to moisture;
- Less sustainable (often requiring more wood for manufacturing, and deciduous trees grow slowly);
- More expensive;
- Commonly used for product storage and multiple shipments of heavy loads.
Features of lightweight wooden pallets:
- Easier to use in warehouses and to transport;
- More sustainable (typically more eco-friendly wood is used and less of it is needed for pallet production);
- Lower maximum weight load;
- Less durable than heavy-duty;
- Usually disposable and mostly used for one-way shipments.
Disposable light pallets are most suited for transporting products
It is worth noting that light wood pallets can be made from both hardwood and softwood. This means that light pallets can sometimes hold almost similar weights as heavy-duty pallets.
Even if lightweight pallets are made of softwood, they are strong and durable enough to carry a wide range of loads. This is because a lot depends on the pallet design.
Light pallets can easily be custom-made. Although custom made pallets can be more expensive than standard pallets, they save money in the long run as companies do not need to modify products or their packaging to fit standard pallets.
In many cases, disposable lightweight pallets are more suitable for product transportation compared to heavy-duty pallets. Light pallets do not add extra weight to the load, saving on transportation costs, and ensuring fast delivery.
Lightweight pallets also are easier to lift, and there is less risk of injury whilst carrying them. The lower weight of the pallets makes warehousing simpler.
Disposable lightweight pallets are particularly useful for transporting goods over long distances, as businesses do not have to pay extra for returning them. Once disposable light pallets reach the drop-off point, they can be recycled or reused for other purposes.
