How the companies from IFA are ensuring that the pallets with goods are safely arranged and secured
December 17, 2018
All member companies of IFA are aware of the vital importance of palletizing the goods and cargo properly for storage and distribution as well as for safe and reliable International freight forwarding.
Having such knowledge and skills can save a lot of time and money for all members of the European logistics network because they can avoid or minimize the risk of freight damage during the pallet shipping and other international freight services.Here are the main steps which each and every one of the companies from the International Forwarding Association always follows when they are palletizing goods for their European groupage services, for the specialized transportation for the storage and distribution as well as for all other international freight services they provide:
Using slip sheet for protection
The members of the international freight forwarders network always make sure to use a plastic slip sheet on the bottom of every pallet. Its main purpose is to protect the cargo by balancing the weight of the cargo and lowering the cases of compression due to the 4-inch space in between the pallet decks.
Making sure all boxes are stabilized
When preparing the pallets for forwarding, the list of logistics companies from the freight forwarders association always place the heaviest of the boxes on the bottom row. These are covered with at least one other row of boxes for added stability. If there are not enough boxes to complete a fully stacked pallet, the last few of them are place along the outside edges for balance and stability.
Keeping an eye for wider gaps
When using pallets which have gaps of 4 inches or wider, the members of the European network for transportation ensure that these gaps are properly bridged in order to prevent the compression resistance of the boxes of goods and their potential damaging during storage and distribution and when being shipped.
Stacking in columns
The freight forwarders from the European logistics services always make sure that the boxes are properly stacked one on top of the other in columns. They also stack all goods close to each other to ensure that the pallets remain stable and are safe during their international freight forwarding.
Preventing the interlocking of the goods
In order to reduce the risk of damage of the cargo, the members of the freight forwarders directory always stack the boxes with the goods aligned edge to edge and also corner to corner, so that the balance of the weight is kept. This can actually reduce the compression strength of the weight of the cargo by about 50 percent.
Using straps and stretch wrap
All forwarders throughout Europe use additional metal strapping or stretch wrap to secure all of the individual boxes on the pallets. Keeping the boxes banded and strapped together decreases the risk of damage or shifting during transportation and handling.
No overhanging
It is an important rule which is followed by the companies from the freight transport association to never allow the boxes of items on a pallet to hang over the edges and outside the borders of the pallets. This also decreases the chances of damage occurring due to lack of support and to an unbalanced weight on the pallets.
