Load overhang
Load overhang is when the product or cartons on a pallet extend beyond the pallet's edges. It leaves the overhanging carton walls without support, which reduces their stacking strength and exposes them to damage from forks, racks and neighboring loads. The opposite, underhang, leaves bare deck around the load.
Also called pallet overhang, product overhang, underhang
Reviewed
Why overhang hurts
- Box strength: corrugated boxes carry most of their stacking load through their walls and corners. When a wall hangs past the deck edge it has nothing under it, so the box is weaker than its rating.
- Damage: overhanging cases catch on rack uprights, trailer walls and other loads
- Instability: wrap and straps pull overhanging edges inward and can crush them
Overhang vs deck overhang
| Term | What sticks out |
|---|---|
| Load overhang | the product, past the pallet edge |
| Deck overhang (wing) | the pallet deck, past its own stringers |
How to avoid it
- Choose a pallet footprint that fits the carton pattern, or change the pattern to fit the pallet
- Specify overhang limits in the unit load spec (PDS and LoadSync unit load details include overhang)
- When the product footprint is fixed, design a custom pallet size to match it
palletdesign.ai lets you set a custom footprint to match the load. See choosing a pallet size and unit load design.
Questions
- Is it OK for boxes to hang over a pallet?
- It is best avoided. Overhanging box walls lose support, which lowers stacking strength and makes damage more likely.
Related
- Unit loadA unit load is a pallet plus the goods and packaging on it, secured to move as one piece. Unit load design treats pallet, boxes and stretch wrap as one system.
- Pallet footprintA pallet footprint is its length x width, with length (the stringer or stringerboard direction) stated first. 48x40 is the most common North American footprint.
- How to choose a pallet sizeHow to choose a pallet size: start from the product footprint, avoid overhang, then check trailer, rack, equipment and customer rules. 48x40 is the US default.
- Unit load design: designing the pallet and packaging togetherUnit load design treats the pallet, packaging and stabilizers as one system. How box footprint, stacking pattern, deck gaps and wrap affect cost and damage.
- LoadSyncLoadSync is a free tool NWPCA released in 2013 that let pallet buyers define their load and handling requirements and send them to a PDS-licensed manufacturer.
- Maximum working loadMaximum working load is the largest payload a pallet may carry for a specific load type and support condition, as defined in ISO 8611-3. It varies by condition.