01
Going custom to fix overhang
Often the case tile, not the pallet, is what pushes product past the edge.
FixTry a revised tie-and-high pattern and a top cap first. Both are free or nearly so.
01The three good reasons
1. Container and trailer cube
A 40-foot ocean container is about 92.5 inches wide internally. Two 48-inch pallets need 96 inches and do not fit; two 40-inch pallets use 80 and waste 12.5. Two 45-inch pallets use 90 and waste 2.5. Over a year of container shipping, that difference is measured in containers, not inches.
2. Product overhang
If your case pattern leaves two inches hanging over the deck edge, you are losing roughly a third of the corrugated compression strength and inviting transit damage. A footprint that matches the case tile eliminates that at source — usually cheaper than upgrading the box.
3. Equipment that already exists
Racking, conveyors, AS/RS shuttles and clamp trucks are commissioned against a profile. Changing the pallet is nearly always cheaper than re-commissioning the equipment, so if the machine wants 44x54, the machine gets 44x54.
02The costs people forget
- No recovery market. Nobody else uses your footprint, so an odd pallet's end-of-life value is fibre value, not pallet value — roughly a tenth.
- No emergency supply. If you run short, there is no yard in the country with 300 of your size sitting on the ground. Lead time is build time, always.
- Repair complexity. Odd boards mean odd stock. Repairs cost more and take longer.
- Receiver friction. Your customer's rack, jack and dock plate were designed around a standard. An odd pallet can create a problem at their end that becomes your problem.
- Lumber yield. An odd width may waste a rip that a standard width does not, and that waste is priced into every unit forever.
03Common non-standard footprints and why they exist
| Size | Driven by | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 45 x 45 in | Ocean container width | Two fit a 40' box with clearance |
| 44 x 44 in | Ocean container + drum pattern | Common in chemical export |
| 48 x 20 in (half) | Retail floor space | Display and small-format stores |
| 24 x 20 in (quarter) | Retail end-cap | Promotional display base |
| 48 x 96 in | Long product | Pipe, lumber, panels — needs 5+ stringers |
| 36 x 36 in | Dense liquid | Beverage; weight limits footprint before height |
| 40 x 24 in | Automated storage | Narrow-aisle shuttle systems |
| 48 x 45 in | Automotive racks | Door and panel carriers |
04Half and quarter pallets: a different problem
Display pallets are not logistics decisions, they are retail merchandising decisions. A half-pallet occupies half the retail floor footprint of a full one while still presenting a full-height product face, which is why grocery and hardware chains specify them for promotions.
- Two half-pallets ship in the footprint of one full pallet — no freight penalty.
- They must be jackable from the short side, which usually means block construction.
- Appearance matters, because the customer sees them. Specify new or A-clean.
- They are frequently one-way. Cost per trip, not durability, is the metric.
By the numbers
The figures worth remembering
Four numbers that decide most of what follows on this page.
- Internal width of a 40 ft container
- 92.5 inInternal width of a 40 ft container
- Maximum pallet width, two across that container
- 45 inMaximum pallet width, two across that container
- Typical cube gain from a matched footprint
- 8–15%Typical cube gain from a matched footprint
- Premium on repeat runs of a tooled spec
- ~10%Premium on repeat runs of a tooled spec
Rules of thumb
Carry these in your head
- 01Three good reasons only: container cube, overhang, existing equipment.
- 02If the annual saving is not three times the annual premium, stay standard.
- 03Half and quarter pallets are merchandising decisions, not logistics ones.
- 04Odd footprints are worth fibre value at end of life.
Before you order
The decisions we will ask you to make
A quote turnaround is limited by how many follow-up questions we have to ask. Working through this list removes nearly all of them.
- 01
Start from the vehicle
Internal width, minus 2–3 in clearance, divided by pallets per row. That is your maximum.
- 02
Check the receiver can handle it
Their racking, dock plates and jacks were designed around something. A saving at your end can become a problem at theirs.
- 03
Check your own rack depth
A 45-inch depth on beams spaced for 40 inches overhangs by five.
- 04
Retest load stability
A new footprint means a new case pattern, and a new pattern needs testing.
- 05
Price in the residual
Odd footprints have almost no resale market — that is a real cost.
- 06
Confirm 500 units
Below that the setup costs more than the pallets are worth.
What goes wrong
Expensive mistakes, and the fix for each
Every one of these turns up in ordinary purchase orders. All of them cost multiples of whatever they appeared to save.
02
Ignoring emergency supply
There is no yard in the country holding 300 of your size. Lead time is build time, always.
FixCarry a buffer, or keep a standard footprint qualified as a fallback.
03
Underestimating repair complexity
Odd boards mean odd stock. Repairs cost more and take longer for the life of the fleet.
FixInclude repair cost in the three-year model, not just purchase price.
Side by side
Common non-standard footprints and why they exist
| Size | Driven by | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 45 x 45 in | Ocean container width | Two fit a 40' box with clearance |
| 44 x 44 in | Container plus drum pattern | Common in chemical export |
| 48 x 20 in (half) | Retail floor space | Display and small-format stores |
| 24 x 20 in (quarter) | Retail end-cap | Promotional display base |
| 48 x 96 in | Long product | Pipe, lumber, panels — needs 5+ stringers |
| 36 x 36 in | Dense liquid | Beverage; weight limits footprint before height |
| 40 x 24 in | Automated storage | Narrow-aisle shuttle systems |
| 48 x 45 in | Automotive racks | Door and panel carriers |
Against our interest
When this is the wrong answer
We would rather lose the order than sell you the wrong thing. These are the situations where this page is not what you need.
- 01
Solving a problem an accessory already solves
A top cap, corner boards or a revised case tile cost cents. A custom footprint costs tens of dollars per unit plus its residual value.
- 02
Operations without buffer stock discipline
There is no emergency supply for a footprint nobody else uses. If you cannot hold a buffer, a non-standard size is a standing risk.
- 03
Receivers with fixed handling equipment
Their racking, dock plates and jacks were designed around something. A saving at your end can become a rejection at theirs.
What moves the price
Cost drivers, and roughly how much each one is worth
A quote is not a list price with a discount applied. It is these variables added up, which is why two quotes for nominally the same thing can differ so widely.
| Driver | What it is | Rough effect |
|---|---|---|
| Lumber yield | An odd width may waste a rip that a standard width does not, permanently. | +10–25% |
| First run versus repeat | Setup and jig cost amortises across the first run only. | First +15–40%, repeats +10% |
| Residual value | No resale market for the footprint means fibre value at end of life. | Roughly a tenth of standard resale |
| Repair stock | Odd boards mean odd stock held specially, for the life of the fleet. | Higher ongoing repair cost |
Due diligence
Questions to ask any supplier
Us included. The answers tell you a great deal, and so does how quickly they arrive — a yard that has these documents ready is a yard that has thought about them.
- 01
“What is the internal width of the vehicle this has to fit?”
- 02
“How many extra units per container does this footprint actually buy?”
- 03
“Can the receiver handle it — racking, jacks, dock plates?”
- 04
“What is the repeat-run price once tooled?”
- 05
“What is the end-of-life value, honestly?”
The rulebook
Standards and authorities that actually apply
Plenty of pallet marketing invokes standards loosely. These are the real documents behind this subject, and what each one does and does not cover.
- ISO 6780
Principal dimensions and tolerances for international flat pallets — the reference point a custom size departs from.
- ANSI MH1
North American dimensional conventions, including the order in which dimensions are quoted.
- ISO 668
Freight container dimensions. The internal widths that make 45x45 work and 48x40 not are defined here.
- NWPCA PDS
Design analysis to confirm a non-standard footprint still carries the load it needs to.
Vocabulary
The terms used on this page
Defined the way the trade uses them, not the way a dictionary would.
- Overhang
- Product extending past the pallet edge. Two inches of overhang cuts corrugated compression strength by roughly a third.
- Skid
- A pallet with no bottom deck — two or three runners with a deck on top. Lighter and cheaper; cannot be jacked from underneath.
- Deck coverage
- The percentage of the pallet face covered by boards. A seven-board 48x40 top deck is roughly 87% coverage.
- Racked load
- The weight a pallet carries spanning two rack beams with nothing beneath the centre. Always the lowest of the three load ratings.
- Slip sheet
- A thin kraft or plastic sheet with a gripping lip, used with a push-pull attachment to move loads without a pallet at all.
From the journal
Longer reading on this subject
Written by the people who grade, repair and haul the wood — including the articles that argue against buying from us.
Buying7 min readDana Whitfield
Designing a pallet around a container instead of a catalogue
Start with the box you are paying for, not the pallet somebody else standardised for a different vehicle in 1968.
Read
- export
- container
- design
Logistics7 min readTom Okafor
The 48x40 doesn’t fit your container. Here’s what does.
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.
Read
- export
- container
- custom sizes
Industry6 min readPriya Raghunathan
What a pallet audit finding looks like in a food plant
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.
Read
- food safety
- audit
- specification
Questions
Answers to what buyers actually ask
Straight answers, including the ones that cost us the sale.
What is the minimum order for a custom pallet size?
500 units for a new footprint. Below that, the saw setup and jig change cost more than the pallets. If you need fewer, we will usually propose a standard footprint plus an accessory or a revised stacking pattern instead.
Will a custom size cost more per pallet?
Typically 15–40% more on the first run, dropping to around 10% on repeat orders of a tooled spec. The premium is mostly lumber yield — odd widths waste rips that standard widths do not.
Can I recycle odd-size pallets at end of life?
They can be recovered, but they are worth fibre value rather than pallet value because there is no resale market for the footprint. That end-of-life gap should be part of the business case before you commit to a custom size.
How do I know if a custom size is worth it?
Compare the annual saving — extra units per container, avoided damage, avoided equipment change — against the annual premium plus lost resale value. If the saving is not at least three times the premium, stay standard.
Can a custom size be supplied from recycled stock?
Sometimes, by remanufacturing rather than building new — cut down from a larger footprint or rebuilt from recovered boards. It costs less than a new build and is available in fewer sizes, so it is worth asking before committing to new lumber, particularly on one-way loads.