Plastic instead of wood
After a trial period of around two years, the express delivery company trans-o-flex is saying goodbye to wooden pallets for long-distance transport services within Germany and has decided to opt for plastic pallets instead. The company has purchased about 30,000 of these carriers called H1 pallets for around EUR 1 million.
“Because these plastic pallets last much longer, they are more environmentally friendly than the traditional wooden pallets and the investment will reduce our costs in the medium term,” said the company’s managing director Wolfgang P. Albeck.
“The switch also brings additional operational benefits.” The plastic pallet is lighter than the wooden variety, which now weighs 24 kg, absorbs more and more moisture during its short life-span and becomes even heavier. The plastic competitor weighs 18 kg, a quarter less. “This reduces the transport weight of a full articulated truck by more than 200 kg per journey,” says Albeck. (mw)