Businesses that ship goods play vital roles in their communities, acting as the backbone that allows life to flourish and other businesses to operate. For those on the outside, it may seem like those goods just magically appear. However, there’s an underrecognized amount of work for it all to arrive in proper order. Businesses must be precise in their measurements of weight, height, width, and depth. If you’re a business involved in shipping pallets, check out these tips to stack boxes on pallets safely.
If your business has consistent shipping needs, the packaging straps and strapping materials available at Vulcan will be a big help. Shop Packaging Supplies.
Heavy Boxes on the Bottom
Heavy items should always be placed on the bottom of the pallet for two key reasons. First, this ensures the heavy boxes can’t break anything they lie on top of. Secondly, by placing most of the weight at the bottom, the pallet will have a low center of gravity. This ensures that the pallet will not be easily flipped over. If it were the other way around, a top-heavy pallet could be easily knocked over, resulting in damages and headaches.
Use an Overlapping Pattern
When you pack your pallet, do so as if you were laying bricks. If you’ve never laid bricks, then think of a Jenga puzzle where the pieces on one level lie in one direction. The next layer above will then be oriented in the opposite direction. This pattern will provide more stability to your pallet.
If you cannot use an overlapping pattern based on the sizes of the boxes, use a rotating pattern. This keeps the layers evenly distributed and will also help to provide stability.
Keep Your Pallets Flat
As you pack your pallet, do your best to keep it flat at the top. You don’t want to end up with a pallet that looks more like a pyramid than a square. Nice and even pallets are optimal for logistical reasons. They’re easy to transport, stack, and handle. Plus, once it comes time to load and ship the pallets, flat pallets are much easier to manage.
Never Let a Box Go Over the Edge
As a business that ships goods on pallets, you’re likely constantly looking for ways to improve production and operations. Ensuring all boxes packed on a pallet lie within the constraints of the edges of the wood is one thing you should always do.
Boxes that hang off the edge can get snagged or damaged, causing increased costs. Be sure your team is strict about this, so you can reduce any easily avoidable damage and associated costs.
Use Straps and Quality Stretch Film
Be sure to use high quality straps and film when packaging. Before you wrap your pallets in plastic, use straps over the boxes. This ensures the greatest stability. Once the straps are in place, you can use plastic wrap to tightly secure the pallets.
The Bottom Line
If you’re looking for high-quality products to make your pallet packaging and shipping services easier, check out the packaging products at Vulcan Wire. We provide steel strapping, polyester banding and strapping, stretch wrap, polypropylene strapping and banding, and more. Contact us today if you want to learn more about our products.
