The emerging and aggressive Australian Pallet market size is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.12% between 2025 and 2034, reaching approximately USD 987.97 million by 2034.
Despite the increasing reliance on pallets, many businesses struggle to make the right choices while supplying them to their customers. That’s why choosing the ideal pallet from a reputable manufacturer is essential. The right selection enhances efficiency, ensures safety, and helps companies cut unnecessary costs. However, overlooking key factors can lead to inefficiencies, safety risks, and higher expenses. Understanding common mistakes in pallet selection can help businesses make informed decisions and optimise their operations.
We have seen that brands often make mistakes when choosing the right pallets. While some companies choose cheaper options, others forget to account for their load requirements. All of these small mistakes pile up to cause many headaches in the future. You need to avoid some things while choosing the best product and manufacturer for your shipping and storage needs.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing Pallets
Here, we will cover the common mistakes to avoid and what you should do instead for better product handling.
1. Ignoring the Load Requirements
Most businesses fail to account for or just ignore the load requirements of their products. For instance, a warehousing business might have static products kept in a storage system for a long time. On the other hand, logistics businesses might have dynamic products that are moved quite frequently.
The static load creates pressure on the pallet when stored for a longer period. Likewise, dynamic products can create variable stress when moved frequently. So, when the best pallets are not chosen, both pallets and products can be damaged.
Consider this for a moment: Begin by examining your load requirements. For example, ascertain whether the load is heavy or light and whether it is static or dynamic; weigh your requirements against these descriptors. After adequately evaluating all the attributes, make sure to contact the pallet manufacturers and customise them for you.
2. Choosing Cheaper Products
Companies usually focus on upfront costs while making decisions. So, there is a chance that they might purchase comparatively less expensive pallets to save the initial cost. However, while doing so, businesses might overlook the potential harm and loss in the future. These pallets usually have lower durability, which can cause unforeseen costs. There is no harm in saving money, but you need to be considerate while doing so.
For instance, if a cheaper pallet is used for the shipment of expensive goods, there is a chance that the pallet might break down mid-journey. In this case, the business has to incur the cost of products and pallets, leading to customer dissatisfaction and huge losses.
So, you might be better off selecting a more durable pallet with higher quality. This can be a little more expensive at the start. However, the long-term cost will be much lower.
3. Purchasing Pallets from Unknown Manufacturers
Some businesses might not do the proper homework before choosing the best manufacturers or suppliers. They often go with the conveniently available ones. However, while doing so, there is a chance that the manufacturers might not use the best material. Or, maybe they might not customise your pallets according to your needs, which can be a huge headache during storage or shipping.
It is very essential to conduct thorough research and evaluate multiple factors. These factors go beyond just price, quality, and delivery time. For full information on their products, manufacturing processes, and company history, visit the manufacturer’s website.
Customer reviews on Google or Yelp can serve as helpful tools in giving them a reputation.
If possible, it is ideal to visit the manufacturing site to assess its facilities and production capabilities. Here you can also look if the company is offering the products with quality assurance and safety standards. Additionally, inquire about its ability to meet deadlines and evaluate its supply chain partnerships to ensure reliability.
4. Overlooking Material Type
In many cases, businesses might make a mistake of overlooking the materials of their pallets. This can lead to unwanted costs in longer operations. Furthermore, there is always a risk of pallet and product damage. Pallets are usually made from three main materials which are wooden, plastic, and metal. Every one of these materials has their own benefits.
For instance, if you are in the shipping business of regular goods, wooden pallets might be best for you. Wooden pallets are the most used pallets because of their durability, quality, and ease of repair. Similarly, if you are into products like food and medicines, plastic pallets can be used. However, plastic pallets have chemical concerns and environmental effects. So, you need to assess well before choosing the plastic pallets.
Finally, if your business ships and transports heavy items like machinery or automobile parts, you might choose metal pallets. However, metal pallets are very heavy and can cause problems during handling and transport. Likewise, they are not ideal for different weathers and conditions.
5. Neglect Product Specific Needs
We know that all products are created differently, and so should their pallets. For example, ceramics and glass items or certain electronics will need more support and cushioning, on the other end of the spectrum from goods like fresh fruits and vegetables, which need pallets designed for temperature-controlled environments; then products with unusual shapes or sizes may also require special pallets to ensure they are stored safely.
Using standard, one-size-fits-all pallets for specialised goods is a common mistake. This often results in improper support or exposure to damaging conditions.
