16 WESTERN PALLET
savings would be about $11 to $12 per unit load. Additionally, the 36, 75 mil pails weigh about 13 pounds less than the 36, 90 mil pails. The stiffer pallet will weigh about 8 pounds more so the net reduction in packaging and pallet mass per unit load is about 5 pounds. The unit load design is now more sustainable not just because of the overall weight reduction but also because 8 pounds of fossil fuel based plastic packaging is exchanged to 8 pounds of wood fiber-based packaging.
How to stiffen the decks of wood pallets
Based on these two examples one can simply increase the thickness of the deck boards. However, this method is relatively expensive. If one remembers that the deck boards act as beams and remember that beams hate spans or said another way, the shorter the span between stringers the stiffer and stronger the deck, the least expensive way to stiffen a deck would be to add a wing. Another way would be to add another stringer. Both of these design options reduce the span and stiffen the deck of the pallet. Also remember that dry deck boards are stiffer than green deck boards.
How stiff is stiff enough?
Pallet Design, Cont'd from Page 15