Types of pallets
How each kind of pallet is built, where it's used, and what to put on the quote. Start with stringer vs block: nearly every wood pallet is one or the other. 27 pages.
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Construction
- Stringer palletA stringer pallet is a wood pallet whose deckboards are nailed to continuous lengthwise beams called stringers, usually three on a 48 x 40 in pallet. The common GMA-style build uses three…
- Block palletA block pallet is a wood pallet whose deck is carried on blocks, typically nine in a 3 x 3 grid, connected by stringerboards instead of continuous stringers. The open space between blocks…
- SkidA skid is a pallet with no bottom deck: deckboards nailed across two or more runners (stringers) so it can be forked, dragged or bolted to machinery. palletdesign.ai's 48 x 40 skid…
- Custom palletA custom pallet is a wood pallet designed for a specific load, footprint and handling system instead of a stock size such as the 48 x 40 GMA. To quote one, a manufacturer needs the size,…
Decks and bases
- Single-face palletA single-face pallet has one deck, the top, and nothing across the bottom of its stringers or blocks. The skid is the common single-face design; it is cheaper and lighter than a…
- Double-face palletA double-face pallet has both a top deck and a bottom deck. Most are non-reversible: the GMA-style 48 x 40 has 7 top boards but only 5 bottom boards, grouped to clear the stringer notches.…
- Reversible palletA reversible pallet is a double-face pallet whose top and bottom decks are identical, so it can be loaded on either face. The matching bottom deck adds lumber and nails, and on a stringer…
- Solid deck palletA solid deck pallet has its top deckboards butted edge to edge so there are no gaps. On a 48 x 40 in stringer pallet, twelve 4 in boards cover the 48 in length exactly, using about 8.3…
- Panel deck palletA panel deck pallet replaces some or all deckboards with plywood or OSB panels. The Uniform Standard requires grade-stamped panels (Rated Sheathing or Sturd-I-Floor, Exposure 1 or…
- Perimeter base palletA perimeter base pallet is a block pallet whose bottom deck runs around all four edges like a picture frame, so the pallet bears on a continuous rectangle. The metric 1200 x 1000 mm block…
Entry and edges
- Two-way palletA two-way pallet can be entered by forklift and pallet jack from two opposite ends only. It is usually a stringer pallet with unnotched stringers: the continuous stringers block entry from…
- Four-way palletA four-way pallet can be entered by forklift from all four sides. Notched stringer pallets are partial 4-way (forklifts from all sides, pallet jacks from the two ends only); block pallets…
- Winged palletA winged pallet has deckboards that extend past its outer stringers, forming a wing or overhang. On a single-wing pallet only the top deck overhangs; on a double-wing pallet both decks do.…
- Flush palletA flush pallet is one whose deckboards end in line with the outer stringers or stringerboards, so nothing overhangs. It is the default construction for GMA 48 x 40 pallets and most block…
Standard designs
- GMA palletA GMA pallet is the 48 x 40 in (1219 x 1016 mm) partial four-way stringer pallet from the 1992 grocery industry specification: three notched stringers, 7 top and 5 bottom deckboards about…
- Euro pallet (EPAL 1)The EPAL 1 Euro pallet is a 1200 x 800 x 144 mm (47.2 x 31.5 x 5.7 in) wood block pallet built from 11 boards, 9 blocks and 78 nails, weighing about 25 kg. Its safe working load is 1,500…
- CP pallets (CP1 to CP9)CP pallets are nine standard wood block pallets, CP1 to CP9, defined by the European chemical and plastics industry (APME/VCI) for bagged, drummed and bulk goods. CP1 is 1000 x 1200 mm,…
- Drum palletA drum pallet is a heavy-duty pallet sized for drums, most often 48 x 48 in (1219 x 1219 mm) for four 55-gallon drums. palletdesign.ai's drum template uses nine 3/4 in top boards, four…
Treatment and reuse
- Heat-treated palletA heat-treated (HT) pallet is a wood pallet whose wood has been heated until its core reached 56 °C (133 °F) for at least 30 continuous minutes, as required by ISPM 15, and then stamped…
- Export palletAn export pallet is any pallet used for international shipment. If it contains solid wood it must be ISPM 15 treated (usually heat treated, code HT) and marked; beyond that it should suit…
- Recycled palletA recycled pallet is a used wood pallet that has been sorted and resold as-is, repaired, or taken apart and rebuilt from salvaged boards (remanufactured). The market sells them by grade,…
- Pooled palletA pooled pallet is a pallet you rent from a pool operator instead of buying: the operator owns the pallets, issues them to shippers and collects them from receivers. In North America the…
Other materials
- Plastic palletA plastic pallet is a molded HDPE or polypropylene pallet, usually chosen from a catalog rather than designed, because new injection molds only pay off at very high volumes. Plastic…
- Presswood palletA presswood pallet is a one-piece pallet molded from wood fiber and resin under heat and pressure. It is nestable, has no nails, is exempt from ISPM 15 as processed wood, and comes in…
- Metal palletA metal pallet is a steel, stainless steel or aluminum pallet, usually welded and fabricated to order, used for heavy, hot, outdoor, hygienic or long-life closed loops. Metal pallets are…
- Paper palletA paper pallet is a pallet made from corrugated board or honeycomb paperboard, often with fiberboard tube or block feet. It is light (from about 4 kg), recyclable and exempt from ISPM 15,…
- Slip sheetA slip sheet is a thin sheet of corrugated, solid fiber or plastic placed under a unit load in place of a pallet, with one or more tabs that a push-pull forklift attachment grips. Slip…