Engineered build
A custom pallet is specified from the load down: product footprint, weight distribution, handling method, rack geometry and container cube. We produce a drawing, you approve it, then we build. Minimum run is 500 units for a new footprint, with a 8–14 working day lead time.
Request a quote
Send the quantity and we'll quote your actual lane — not a national average.
Answer those eight and a competent designer can specify the pallet. Answer three of them and you will get a pallet that works until the day it does not.
When product hangs over the pallet edge, the deck stops supporting it and the case corner carries load it was never designed to carry. This is the single most common cause of load collapse in transit, and it is entirely a specification problem.
| Overhang | Approximate compression strength loss | Practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| 0 in (flush) | 0% | Design intent |
| 0.5 in | ~10% | Usually tolerable |
| 1 in | ~20% | Visible corner crush on lower tiers |
| 2 in | ~32% | Load failure risk in transit |
| 3 in | ~43% | Do not ship |
A standard 40-foot container has an internal width of about 7 ft 8 in (2,352 mm). Two 48-inch pallets side by side occupy 96 inches — 8 feet — and do not fit. Two 40-inch pallets occupy 80 inches and waste 12 inches of width on every row.
Designing to the container rather than to the catalogue is routinely worth 8–15% more product per box. On a lane running 200 containers a year, that is between 16 and 30 containers you no longer pay for, which dwarfs any pallet cost difference.
| Container | Internal width | Efficient pallet pairings |
|---|---|---|
| 20 ft standard | 92.5 in | 2 x 45 in, or 1 x 48 + 1 x 42 |
| 40 ft standard | 92.5 in | 2 x 45 in, 2 x 44 in |
| 40 ft high cube | 92.5 in | Same width, more height for taller loads |
| 53 ft domestic trailer | 98–100 in | 2 x 48 in — the reason 48x40 dominates |
By the numbers
Rules of thumb
Before you order
Exact dimensions, and whether it arrives as cases or as one unit.
Total weight is not enough. Point loads concentrate force where the deck is thinnest.
Forklift, pallet jack, clamp truck, conveyor or robot. Each has different geometry requirements.
On beams, on a deck, or in a drive-in system. This sets the capacity you must design to.
How high loads go, and whether anything sits on top of this one.
Internal width decides the maximum footprint. A 40-foot container is about 92.5 in.
ISPM-15 if it leaves the country.
One-way changes every trade-off in favour of the cheapest adequate build.
What goes wrong
Roughly a third of custom enquiries resolve into a top cap, a slip sheet or a revised case tile.
FixTry the accessory and the stacking pattern first. A $0.60 corner board frequently beats a $28 custom deck.
Nobody else uses your footprint, so an odd pallet is worth fibre value at end of life — roughly a tenth of pallet value.
FixPut the residual value into the business case before committing.
Board thickness, stringer count, entry type and fastener are what determine whether the pallet works, and they are exactly what gets skipped.
FixInsist on a dimensioned drawing and sign it. We do not cut before you do.
Side by side
| Overhang | Compression strength lost | Practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| 0 in (flush) | 0% | Design intent |
| 0.5 in | ~10% | Usually tolerable |
| 1 in | ~20% | Visible corner crush on lower tiers |
| 2 in | ~32% | Load failure risk in transit |
| 3 in | ~43% | Do not ship |
Against our interest
Saw setup, jig change and lumber ordering cost more than the pallets are worth. A standard footprint plus an accessory is almost always cheaper below that.
There is no yard in the country holding 300 of your size. Lead time is build time, permanently.
Roughly a third of custom enquiries resolve into a revised case tile, a top cap or a slip sheet. Those cost cents against tens of dollars.
What moves the price
| Driver | What it is | Rough effect |
|---|---|---|
| Lumber yield | An odd width may waste a rip that a standard width does not, and that waste is priced into every unit forever. | +10–25% |
| Setup amortisation | First run carries the tooling and jig cost; repeat runs of the same spec do not. | First run +15–40%, repeats +10% |
| Reinforcement | Extra stringers, thicker decking and blocking for point loads all add material. | +15–35% |
| Lost residual value | Nobody else uses your footprint, so end-of-life is fibre value rather than pallet value. | Roughly a tenth of standard resale |
Due diligence
“Will you produce a dimensioned drawing before cutting, and how long does it take?”
“Have you checked whether a standard footprint plus an accessory solves this?”
“What is the repeat-run price once the spec is tooled?”
“What is this footprint worth at end of life?”
“Can you reverse-engineer the pallet we already use from a sample?”
“What tolerance will you hold, and how is it verified?”
The rulebook
The engineering analysis used to predict deflection, capacity and safety factor for a proposed build before it is made.
Dimensional and terminology conventions — including that the first dimension runs along the stringers.
Test methods for pallets and related structures, used to validate a design against its intended load.
Transit and compression testing for the packaged load. Relevant because overhang is a packaging failure as much as a pallet one.
Vocabulary
From the journal
Start with the box you are paying for, not the pallet somebody else standardised for a different vehicle in 1968.
The pallet that won North America because it fits a trailer is the wrong pallet for a box that is five and a half inches narrower.
There is no such thing as an FDA-certified pallet. What exists is your documented control, and an auditor is testing whether you have one.
Reference
| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| Footprint range | 24x24 in to 96x120 in |
| Construction | Stringer, block, or skid |
| Species | SYP, mixed hardwood, poplar, SPF, kiln-dried on request |
| Board thickness | 0.5 in to 1.25 in |
| Max static load | 8,000 lb on reinforced builds |
| Treatment | ISPM-15 HT, kiln drying, or none |
| Drawing turnaround | 24 hours from complete spec |
| Minimum run | 500 units new footprint; 250 units on a previously tooled spec |
| Lead time | 8–14 working days |
Questions
Request a quote
Tell us what you’ve got