Supporting the world’s sustainability goals, one pallet at a time

By their very nature, pallets tend to be one of the more sustainable aspects of the end-to-end product supply chain. With transportation accounting for the largest portion (28%) of total U.S. greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and the industrial sector as one of the biggest users of energy on a global basis, pallets are often used right up until the end of their useful lives, rented out to multiple different users during their lifespans, or recycled and brought back to life.

Pallets are often shared among companies, given a “second life” as retail store fixtures, and often pilfered, only to be yet again reused by the thieves that lifted them. Pallets are also active participants in the circular economy, a system aimed at eliminating waste and continually reusing resources. Contrasting the “take-make-waste” model, the circular economy is regenerative and focused on separating “growth” from the consumption of finite resources.

With more end users demanding that suppliers pay attention to and follow the rules of good sustainability, the companies that make, sell or rent pallets are working even harder to keep their contribution to the supply chain environmentally friendly. In some cases, they’re exploring new reuse methods that meet customers’ demands for sustainability while also helping to clean up the earth.

At ORBIS Corp., the company recently implemented an “Ocean in Mind” project focused on collecting ocean-bound plastic (for example, any plastic found on land and near major waterways that lead to the ocean) and repurposing it back into the company’s packaging products. The company recently submitted an open order for two million pounds of ocean-bound plastics which, in turn, will be manufactured back into its products.

Pallets are active participants in the circular economy, a system aimed at eliminating waste and continually reusing resources.

“That’s a substantial amount of plastic that won’t ever reach our oceans,” says Breanna Herbert, associate product manager at ORBIS. Knowing that the focus on sustainability has sharpened in recent years, she says the company also ensures that its pallets and other products are fully recyclable at the end of their lives.

Built with some degree of recycled materials on the front end, the products have a useful life that exceeds that of the typical wooden pallet, and can be recycled when no longer needed (thus fitting the definition of the circular economy).

“Once a plastic pallet is produced, it will last much longer and doesn’t have to be manufactured again until the end of its life,” Herbert explains, acknowledging that every company calculates return on investment (ROI) for pallets a little differently based on their internal usage. “We’re working closely with customers to provide those inputs to their pallet-related ROIs and sustainability needs.”

This year, the company introduced a new 40 x 48-inch rackable pallet (the Odyssey Pallet), which is manufactured from 100% recycled plastic, customizable and useful in different application settings. “From the design standpoint, we were able to get to 100% recycled material while still achieving performance levels that you historically haven’t seen from pallets made from these types of materials,” says Alison Zitzke, manager at ORBIS. “We’re pretty excited about it, both from the innovation standpoint and for the sustainability that the product offers.”

Lately, more customers are also asking ORBIS whether their own scrap materials can be incorporated into their pallets—yet another circular economy concept that the manufacturer is exploring and utilizing.

“Companies that are making plastic products and that have scrap left over are especially interested in this concept,” says Zitzke. “This was always on the radar screen, but demand for it has definitely ramped up in the last year or so.”

Building a better tomorrow

At Litco International, most requests for quotations (RFQs) generated by larger companies right now include detailed queries about the sustainability of the manufacturer’s products and processes. This is par for the course in an industrial world that wants to make more links in its supply chain environmentally friendly. One roadblock on this journey is skyrocketing lumber prices, which make it difficult for companies to be choosy about the pallets they select and use.

“The lumber market has spiked, and demand is outstripping the supply of new and recycled solid-wood pallets,” says Gary Sharon, vice president of Litco. “Prices are higher, and supply is so low that some pallet users are buying anything that might work for them.”

For now, at least, that means sustainability has likely fallen further down the “checklist of qualifiers” for a new pallet vendor, Sharon points out.

If the pallets are damaged upon return, PECO repairs them to their quality specifications and puts them back out for service.

During this period of lumber and pallet supply shortages, Sharon tells companies to consider products like the Engineered Molded Wood pallet, an ASTM D1185-tested product that’s been found to have high-strength, stiffness and lead-edge impact resistance. “These pallets are also IPPC-ISPM15 export compliant,” he adds, “and easily hold uniform loads up to 2,500 pounds dynamic and 7,500 pounds static.”

A long-time producer and promoter of sustainable pallets, Litco has been on the forefront of this movement long before it was “cool” to be there. The company earned several awards and certifications for its efforts in this area, including a Cradle to Cradle sustainable designation, which acknowledges continuous improvement and innovation of products and processes toward the goal of being not just “less bad” but also “more good” for people and the planet. The company’s pallet was also approved to use the label for the USDA’s BioPreferred program for containing 97% of renewable, plant-based materials.

“Customers are asking for evidence that we are committed to building a better tomorrow,” Sharon says. To satisfy these requests, this year Litco published a five-year plan, “5 by ’25,” that will take it through 2025. The initiative includes maximizing the use of pre-and post-consumer wood waste in Litco’s molded and extruded wood products; finding a post-consumer use for its wood dust; and reducing the company’s carbon dioxide (CO2) footprint.

“We’re also getting every employee involved by recycling paper, plastic and glass at every one of our locations,” says Sharon, “and increasing the number of apprentices in our production facilities.”

Sharon says Litco has also partnered with the National Forest Foundation to help increase the company’s conservation efforts through tree planting. “We’ve pledged to donate 10,000 trees each year over the next five years to reach our projected goal of 50,000 trees planted by 2025,” he explains. “These 50,000 trees will sequester approximately 25,000 tons of CO2 over the planted forest’s lifetime.”

10 years old, still going strong

Typifying the circular economy model, pallet rental companies like PECO Pallet reuse and recycle their pallets on a daily basis. If the pallets are damaged upon return, PECO repairs them to their quality specifications and puts them back out for service, ensuring a maximum useful life for its products. “Our pallets have very long useful lives,” says Joe Dagnese, CEO of PECO. “In fact, the pallet rental model is about the most sustainable process that a company can put in place.”

Dagnese likens the useability of its pallets to a home staircase, which a homeowner wouldn’t just rip-and-replace due to a broken rail pin or damaged stair part. The owner would make the repair and continue to use the staircase for years to come.

The same goes for a pallet, which over its useful life may have some or all of its key components replaced. “At its core, it’s a very sustainable model,” says Dagnese, whose firm continues to work with pallet manufacturers to ensure responsible forestry and also looks for new ways to manage component replacements and repairs.

“When a pallet comes back from being in service, and if it needs a replacement component like a leading-edge board, a block, or any other part,” says Dagnese, “we’re continually looking for ways to more effectively handle those repairs while also experimenting with other materials that may be stronger and more durable than wood.”

Adding technology to the mix

Because they come with a higher price tag, all of the plastic pallets that PECO rents out are equipped with tracking devices that not only provide consistent visibility into pallet status, but that also help keep all of those higher-ticket products from inadvertently leaving PECO’s controlled network.

Recently, for example, the company was able to track a few pallets that “escaped the network” to a small New Jersey firm that had picked them up and started using them in its own operations.

“The owner was pretty surprised when we showed up to ask for our pallets back,” says Dagnese. “He really didn’t even realize that they were our property, or that he’d done anything wrong.”

Dagnese sees more innovation being folded into the pallet industry both from a fleet integrity standpoint and to help support a more sustainable supply chain. “We’re starting to use advanced analytics, and we’re planning to use machine learning to identify trends, tracking, flows, and other aspects of the pallet rental business,” says Dagnese, “and all with an eye on becoming even more effective and efficient in how we work with our renters and retailers.”