New Machinery Makes Custom Pallets An Even Smarter Choice For Manufacturers

Last week, we published a press release announcing the purchase and installation of two brand new pallet machines, and we’re excited to share a little more detail about our new technology purchase. Before we tell you more about our new pallet machines, let’s talk about why we made the purchase.

One of the things we’ve noticed over the past year or so is that customers are becoming much more aware of their product packaging options. In the old days, many manufacturers chose to simply use standard pallets and force their product packaging to work within that 48” x 40” space. Those standard pallets are really a one-size-fits-all solution that don’t do a great job of meeting the needs of many of the products in the marketplace.

But now a lot of manufacturers are getting really smart about their pallet choice and recognizing the benefits of going with a custom pallet size designed to specifically fit their products:

Less Protective Packaging Required: When your product doesn’t fit properly on the pallet, meaning it’s either too small or too large for a standard pallet, then you have to use additional protective packaging materials to keep it from moving around during transit. That additional packaging either works as a buffer around the product or as a buffer between products to keep them from getting damaged. Custom pallets are built to your product specs, reducing the need for additional packaging materials.
Strength and Security: Because custom pallets fit your products perfectly, they can be built to better withstand your product requirements. For example, if your product is heavy, you can get a custom pallet that’s built to stand up to the weight, rather than hoping for the best with a standard pallet. Because your product fits properly, it’s also safer to transport.
Best/Perfect Fit: Custom pallets are made to the exact specifications you need for your products, so obviously that makes a custom solution the best fit. It also means that there is a reduced chance for product damage and makes packaging and storing your products much easier and efficient.
Optimize Transportation Loads: When you use custom pallets for your products, rather than sticking to the standard sizes, you can optimize each load for shipment and reduce waste. You’ll have the opportunity to get the perfect number of your products shipped out in each load without any leftover or wasted space.
Reduced Shipping Costs: When your loads are optimized to get the maximum amount of product shipped with the minimal amount of wasted space, you’ll be saving money on shipping. In other words, you won’t be paying for space on a truck (or rail or ship) that is only occupied by the empty portion of a pallet that doesn’t have any of your product on it.
More Efficient Handling & Storage: Not only are shipping costs reduced when your loads are more efficient, but with less wasted floor space, custom pallets make storage and handling more efficient too.

Which brings us to the biggest reason that a lot of manufacturers, especially those in specific industries like automotive and lawn/garden, are moving toward a custom pallet – less overall expense.

When you take a look at all the benefits we just discussed, most of them circle back to a cost savings of some kind. Whether it’s the fact that you need less additional packaging, there’s better security leading to less product loss, or there’s reduced shipping costs, custom pallets are the more economical solution for many manufacturing industries in the long run.

Our customers are figuring that out, and so are all the manufacturers out there who are not yet our customers. Unfortunately, there’s still been a couple of things holding back some from buying those custom made pallets – price and the need for high volume.

In the past, when a customer needed a large volume of pallets on a regular basis, they almost had to go with a standard pallet size because standard pallets could be produced on a pallet machine. The cost was lower because they were machine built, and machines could produce hundreds of 48” x 40” pallets per day to satisfy their volume needs. Conner already has four standard size pallet machines, and we keep them very busy.

So it made sense, given the market conditions and the needs of our customers, to make the investment in two more pallet machines that can tackle custom pallet sizes with gusto:

High Output – Can build 800 custom pallets in a single shift, with a single operator.
Custom Sizes – Can make custom pallets in any size from 24” x 24” to 72” x 72”.
CNC Controlled – Allow for quick changes in specs to change pallet size.

That means fewer man hours to make more custom pallet in less time, and makes it a cost-effective option for virtually any business.

As outlined in the press release, one of the new high output custom pallet machines we’ve purchased will be installed in our Fayetteville, Tennessee plant in December of this year, and the other one will be up and running at the plant in Haslet, Texas by the end of January. We’re excited to see them in operation, but even more pleased to gain additional manufacturing capabilities to better serve the needs of our customers.

Want to learn more about how a custom pallet may serve your needs better?