Used plastic pallets for warehousing and 3PL

Racked storage needs a rating

A warehouse with automated storage wants a cruciform base, a consistent size for conveyors and a rack rating it can read. Only pallets designed for unsupported racking carry a racking rating, and racking is often the lowest of the three ratings. One rackable 40 x 48 pallet is rated 4,000 lb dynamic, 10,000 lb static and 2,000 lb edge rack, while a one-piece HDPE example is 5,000 lb dynamic, 30,000 lb static and 2,200 lb racking.

Fire code and plastic

Sprinkler design treats pallets by class. An ICC article says unlisted plastic pallets may require raising the commodity hazard class by two classes, and gives an example needing about 55 percent more sprinkler water. Pallets listed and labelled under FM 4996 or UL 2335 can be treated as wood for sprinkler design. NFPA requires wood and plastic pallets to be stored outdoors or in a detached structure unless sprinklers protect them. Ask the building's engineer before a large lot arrives.

Jobs and leading states

National totals from the market data, with the three states that have the most jobs in each line.

Selling a surplus

Distribution centres end up with more pallets than they need, with mixed makers, colours and some broken ones. Separate them, photograph the marks, and send the footprint, count and condition. Anything with another company's mark may be that company's to collect. Broken pallets are bought by weight as feedstock.

• Sort by footprint first
• Set aside marked pallets
• Count the broken ones separately
• Photograph a sample of each stack

Consistency over appearance

A warehouse with automated storage needs a consistent size for conveyors and a rack rating it can read. Ask for one maker and a stated rating, and ask your building's engineer to check the sprinkler design before a large lot arrives. A third-party logistics site that handles several clients should also keep pallets from different owners in separate stacks.

Several clients, one floor

Third-party sites hold goods for many clients and often use shared pallets. Ask that pallets for each client be sorted and labelled, and that any client's own pool pallets be kept apart. This protects the site from disputes over ownership and keeps audits simple.

On the receiving dock

• Count stacks before pallets, then count the pallets in two stacks to confirm the tally.
• Lay a tape across the deck and along the runners of three pallets from different stacks.
• Look for pooled marks, bar codes and moulded owner names before anything is put away.
• Sign for the count and note any shortfall on the delivery receipt in the driver's presence.
• Photograph the stacks from both ends while the trailer doors are still open.

Paperwork to keep

• The written lot description and the date it was sent.
• Your own count, signed and dated by whoever received the load.
• Photographs of stacks, plates and any marks, stored with the order number.
• The maker's papers for resin, colour or rating, where the job needs them.
• A line naming who agreed to which exceptions, so a later dispute has a record.

Words used on this page

Racking load

Weight a pallet carries bridging an open span in unsupported racking. Often the lowest rating.

FM 4996

FM Approvals standard that rates a pallet as equal to wood in fire tests.

Static load

Weight a pallet carries at rest, or the bottom pallet carries when stacked. The highest of the three ratings.

UL 2335

UL fire-test standard for storage pallets, with an idle pallet test and a commodity storage test.

Commodity classification

Sprinkler design class of stored goods; an unlisted plastic pallet can raise it.

What the sources say

• The International Fire Code permits pallets listed and labeled under FM 4996 or UL 2335 to be treated as wood pallets for sprinkler design. iccsafe.org
• Static capacity is the highest of the three ratings; racking is often the lowest; dynamic is always lower than static. nelsoncompany.com
• A used Nelson 48 x 40 x 6.3 in HDPE one-piece pallet weighs 49 lb with 30,000 lb static, 5,000 lb dynamic and 2,200 lb racking ratings. nelsoncompany.com
• Rehrig Pacific's 40 x 48 rackable pallet weighs 44.2 lb with a dynamic rating of 4,000 lb, static 10,000 lb and edge rack 2,000 lb. rehrigpacific.com

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