Pallets have many specific features and characteristics
that you should be aware of when deciding on the right shipping
solution. Here is a list of common pallet terminology:
| Annular
Nail |
pallet nail with annular
(circular ring) threads rolled onto the shank |
| Banding
Notch (see strap slot) |
four-sided superstructure
to be mounted on a pallet base, with or without a cover; also
known as a box or container bin |
| Bin
Pallet |
rectangular, square or
cylindrical deck spacer, often identified by its location
within the pallet as corner block, end block, edge block,
inner block, center or middle block |
| Block
Pallet |
a type of pallet with
blocks between the pallet decks or beneath the top deck |
|
Butted Deckboard |
an inner deckboard placed
tightly against an adjacent lead deckboard during pallet assembly |
| Bottom
Deck |
assembly of deckboards
comprising the lower, load bearing surface of the pallet |
| CAD |
computer-aided-design
software that allows the design of the "right" pallet at the
best value; see Pallet Design System (PDS) |
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| Captive
Pallet |
a pallet intended for
use within the confines of a single facility, system or ownership;
not intended to be exchanged |
| Chamfered
Deckboards |
deckboards with edges
of one or two faces beveled, either along the full or specified
length of board or between the stringers or blocks, allowing
easier entry of pallet jack wheels |
| Closed
Distribution System |
shipping system restricted
to moving goods between specified plants and facilities |
| Collar |
collapsible
wooden container or bin which transforms a pallet into a box. |
| Cost-Pass
Through |
a cost-share system where
the partial cost of a pallet is passed-through from the purchaser
to the receiver of the pallet |
| Cost-Per-Trip |
average cost of pallet
use for a single one-way trip |
| Deck |
one or more boards or
panels comprising the top or bottom surface of the pallet |
| Deck
Mat |
assembly of deckboards
and stringerboards, forming the deck of a block pallet deckboard
- element or component of a pallet deck, oriented perpendicular
to the stringer or stringerboard |
| Deckboard
Spacing |
distance between adjacent
deckboards |
| Deckboard
Span |
distance between deckboard
supports (stringers, stringerboards or blocks) |
| Deflection |
the amount of deformation
or bending in a pallet or pallet component under load |
| Dimensions |
see pallet dimensions |
| Double-Face
Pallet |
a pallet with top and
bottom decks |
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| Double-Wing
Pallet |
a pallet with top and
bottom deckboards extending beyond the edges of the stringers
or stringerboards |
| Drive
Screw Nail |
helically (continuous
spiral) threaded pallet nail |
|
Economic Life |
output from PDS program
which identifies the number of trips the pallet will make,
provided it is properly repaired, which maximizes a return
on investment |
| Exchange
Pallet |
a pallet intended for
use among a designated group of shippers and receivers where
ownership of the pallet is transferred with the ownership
of the unit load; common pool pallet |
| Expendable
Pallet |
a pallet intended for
a series of handlings during a single trip from shipper to
receiver; it is then disposed; see shipping pallet |
| Fastener |
a mechanical devise for
joining pallet components such as nails, staples, bolts or
screws |
| Fastener
Shear Index |
relative measure of shear
resistance of the pallet fastener |
|
Flush Pallet |
a pallet with deckboards
flush with the stringers, stringer-boards or blocks along
the sides of the palletfork |
| Entry |
opening between decks,
beneath the top deck or beneath the stringer notch to admit
forks |
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Four-Way Block Pallet |
a pallet with openings
at both pallet ends and along pallet sides sufficient to admit
hand-pallet jacks; full four-way entry pallet |
| Free
Span |
the distance between
supports in a warehouse rack |
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| GMA
Pallet |
The most common size stringer
pallet, both, new and used is the 48 x 40 4-Way Flush pallet
or otherwise referred to as the GMA (Grocery Manufacturer
Association) pallet.
#1
or Grade A
Typically this is a GMA repaired to close to its original
condition. Broken stringers may have been replaced or repaired
with metal plates. All damaged deck boards are replaced.
This is a fairly clean pallet that is structurally sound.
#2
or Grade B
Typically this is a GMA, which has had stringer damage that
has been repaired by attaching an additional stringer along
side the damaged one. This is commonly referred to as a
companion stringer, block stringer and double stringer.
The "B" grade pallets usually have two (2) or
less repaired stringers. The deck configuration on the "B"
grade pallet is not always consistent because these pallets
have been repaired many times.
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| Hand
(wheel) Jack Opening |
space provided in the
bottom deck to allow pallet jack wheels to bear on the floor |
| Handling |
a single pick-up, movement
and set-down of a loaded or empty pallet |
| Hardened-Steel
Nail |
heat-treated and tempered
steel pallet nail with a MIBANT angle between 8 and 28 degrees |
| Hardwood |
wood from broad-leaved
species of trees (not necessarily hard or dense) |
| Helical
Nail |
helically (continuous
spiral) threaded pallet nail, see also drive screw nail |
| Inner
Deckboard |
any deckboard located
between the end deckboards |
| Joint |
intersection and connection
of components, often identified by location within the pallet
as the end joint, center joint and corner joint |
| Length |
refers to the stringer
or stringerboard (in block pallets) length; also refers to
the first dimension given to describe a pallet, i.e., 48"
x 40", where 48" is the palletstringer/stringerboard length |
| Life
to first repair |
output from PDS program
which is equivalent to the number of trips the pallet will
last before needing repair |
|
Line Load |
the weight of a unit
load concentrated along a narrow area across the full length
or width of the pallet |
| Load
Bearing Surface |
actual area of material
in contact with and supporting a unit load |
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| MIBANT
angle |
the bend angle in a
fastener shank when subjected to a MIBANT test |
| MIBANT
Test (Morgan Impact Bend Angle Nail Tester) |
standard impact nail
tester used in the pallet and lumber industry as an indication
of impact bend resistance of nails or staples |
| Nail |
fastener made from endless
wire by cutting a point and forming a head at the shank end
opposite the point |
| National
Wooden Pallet and Container Association |
a national association
with the goal of promoting the design, manufacturer, distribution,
recycling and sale of pallets, containers and reels |
| Non-Reversible
Pallet |
a pallet with bottom
deckboard configuration different from top deck notch - cutout
in lower portion of the stringer to allow entry for the fork
tine, usually 9" in length, 1-1/2" in depth |
| Notched
Stringer |
a stringer with two notches
spaced for fork-tine entry (partial four-way entry ) |
| Opening
Height |
the vertical distance
measured between decks, from the floor to the underside of
the top deck, or from the floor to the top of the stringer
notch |
|
Overall Height |
the vertical distance
measured from the floor to the top side of the top deck |
| Overhang |
the distance the deck
extends from the outer edge of the stringer or stringerboard;
wing; lip; distance the unit load extends beyond the deck |
| Pallet |
a portable, horizontal,
rigid platform used as a base for assembling, storing, stacking,
handling and transporting goods as a unit load, often equipped
with a superstructure |
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| Pallet
Design System (PDS) |
reliability- based computer-aided
design (CAD) program, for determining the safe load carrying
capacity, performance, life and economy of wooden pallets
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| Pallet
Dimensions |
when specifying pallet
size, the stringer or stringerboard (block pallet) length
is always expressed first; for example, a 48" x 40" pallet
has a 48" stringer or stringerboard and 40" deckboards |
| Pallet
Jack |
hand-propelled, wheeled
platform, equipped with a lifting device for moving palletized
unit loads |
| Pallet
Life |
the period during which
the pallet remains useful, expressed in units of time or in
the number of one-way trips |
|
Panel Deck Pallet |
pallet constructed with
composite or structural panel top deck |
| Partial
Four-Way Stringer Pallet |
a pallet with notched
stringers |
| Post
Pallet |
a pallet fitted with
posts or blocks between the decks or beneath the top deck;
see block pallet |
| Quality |
consistent performance
of a uniform product meeting the customer's needs for economy
and function |
| Racked
Across Deckboards |
output from PDS program
describing the maximum load carrying capacity and deflection
of a pallet where the rack frame supports the pallet only
at the ends of the deckboards |
| Racked
Across Stringers |
output from PDS program
describing the maximum load carrying capacity and deflection
of a pallet where the rack frame supports the pallet only
at the ends of the stringers or stringer boards |
| Repair
|
to remake in order to
use again |
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| Recycling
|
a pallet, container or
reel that has been used, discarded, salvaged, repaired and
which passes through a cycle again |
| Rental
Pallet |
a pallet owned by a third
party, different from the actual pallet user |
| Returnable/Reusable
Pallet |
a pallet designed to
be used for more than one trip |
| Reversible
Pallet |
a pallet with identical
top and bottom decks ship ping pallet - pallet designed to
be used for a single one-way trip from shipper to receiver;
it is then disposed; see expendable pallet |
| Shipping
Pallet |
a pallet designed to
be used for a single one-way trip from shipper to receiver;
it is then disposed; see expendable pallet |
| Shook
|
cut-to-size pallet parts
to be assembled into pallets |
| Shook
Grade |
the classification of
the quality of pallet parts relative to performance characteristics
based on size and distribution of defects, independent of
wood species |
| Single-Wing
Pallet |
a pallet with the top
deckboards extending beyond the edges of the stringers or
stringer- boards with the bottom deckboards flush (if present) |
Sister
Stringer
(Companion Stringer) |
On a repaired #2 pallet, where
there are broken stringers, a second stringer is added for
structural support. Sometimes called a "Double Stringer"
or "Companion Stringer"
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| Skid
|
a pallet having no bottom
deck |
| Slave
Pallet |
pallet, platform or single,
thick panel used as a support base for a palletized load in
rack-storage facilities or production systems |
| Soft
Nail |
pallet nail with a MIBANT
angle equal to or greater than 47 degrees |
| Softwood
|
wood from coniferous
or needle-bearing species of trees (not necessarily soft or
low density) |
| Solid
Deck Pallet |
a pallet constructed with no spacing
between deckboards |
| Span
|
the distance between
stringer or block supports |
| Stevedore
Pallet |
a pallet designed for
use on seaport shipping docks, normally of heavy-duty, double-wing
construction |
| Stiff-Stock
Steel Nail |
pallet nail made of medium-high
carbon steel without heat treatment and tempering with MIBANT
angle between 29 and 46 degrees |
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| Strap
Slot |
recess or cutout on the
upper edge of the stringer or the bottom of the top deckboard
to allow tie-down of a unit load to the pallet deck with strapping/banding,
also called the banding notch |
| Strapping
|
thin flat bands used
to secure load to pallet |
| Stringer
|
continuous, longitudinal,
solid or notched beam-component of the pallet used to support
deck components, often identified by location as the outside
or center stringer |
| Stringerboard
|
in block pallets, continuous,
solid board member extending for the full length of the pallet
perpendicular to deckboard members and placed between deckboards
and blocks |
| Take-It-Or-Leave-It
Pallet |
a pallet fitted with
fixed cleats on the top deckboards to permit fork truck tines
to pass beneath the unit load and remove it from the pallet |
| Top
Cap |
panel to be placed on
top of a unit load to allow for tight strapping without damaging
the unit load |
| Top-Deck
of the pallet |
the assembly of deckboards
comprising the upper load-carrying surface of the pallet |
| Trip
|
consists of four to six
handlings of a pallet |
| Two-Way
Entry Pallet |
a pallet with unnotched
solid stringers allowing entry only from the ends |
| Unit
Load |
assembly of goods on
a pallet for handling, moving, storing and stacking as a single
entity |
| Warehouse
Pallet |
a double-face multiple
trip returnable pallet intended for general warehouse use |
| Wing
|
overhang of deckboard
end from outside edge of stringer or stringer-board |
