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Wood Piles

PALLET 101

BLURB

Annular nail - Pallet nail with annular (circular ring) threads rolled onto the shank 

Banding Notch - See Strap Slot 

Bin - Four-sided superstructure to be mounted on a pallet base, with or without a cover; also known as a box or container bin pallet 

Block -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 blocks 

Block Pallet - A type of pallet with blocks between the pallet decks or beneath the top deck 

Butted Deck board - An inner deck board placed tightly against an adjacent lead deck board during pallet assembly 

Bottom Deck - Assembly of deck boards 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©) 

Captive Pallet - A pallet intended for use within the confines of a single facility, system, or ownership; not intended to be exchanged 

Chamfered Deck boards - Deck boards with edges of one or two faces beveled, either along the full or specified length of board or between the stringers of blocks, allowing easier entry of pallet jack wheels 

Closed distribution system - Shipping system restricted to moving goods between specified plants and facilities 

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 deck boards and stringer boards, forming the deck of a block pallet 

Deck board - Element or component of a pallet deck, oriented perpendicular to the stringer or stringer board 

Deck board Spacing - Distance between adjacent deck boards 

Deck board Span - Distance between deck board supports (stringers, stringer boards or blocks) 

Deflection - The amount of deformation or bending in a pallet or pallet component under load 

Double-Face Pallet - A pallet with top and bottom decks 

Double-Wing Pallet - A pallet with top and bottom deck boards extending beyond the edges of the stringers or stringer boards 

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 device for joining pallet components such as nails, staples, bolts, or screws 

Flush Pallet - A pallet with deck boards flush with stringers, stringer-boards, or blocks along the sides of the pallet 

Fork Entry - Opening between decks, beneath the top deck or beneath the stringer notch to admit forks 

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 

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)  

Inner Deck board - Any deck board located between the end deck boards  

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 stringer board (in block pallets) length; also refers to the first dimension given to describe a pallet i.e., 48" x 40", where 48" is the pallet stringer/stringer board length 

Life To First Repair - Output from PDS© program which is equivalent to the number of trips the pallet will last before needing repair 

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, manufacture, distribution, recycling, and sale of pallets, containers, and reels  

Non-Reversible Pallet - A pallet with bottom deck board 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 stringer board; 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 

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  

Pallet Dimensions - When specifying pallet size, the stringer or stringer board (block pallet) length is always expressed first; for example, a 48" x 40" pallet has a 48" stringer or stringer board and 40" deck boards 

Pallet Life - The period during which the pallet remains useful, expressed in units of time or in the number of one-way trips  

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  

Racked Across Deck boards - 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 deck boards  

Racked Across Stringers - Output from the 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  

Recycling - A pallet, container or reel that has been used, discarded, salvaged, repaired and which passes through a cycle again  

Returnable/Reusable Pallet - A pallet designed to be used for more than one trip Reversible Pallet - A pallet with identical top and bottom decks  

Shipping Pallet - Pallet designed to be used for a single one-way trip from shipper to receiver; it is then disposed; see Expendable Pallet  

Single-Wing Pallet - A pallet with the top deck boards extending beyond the edges of the stringers or stringer-boards with the bottom deck boards flush (if present)  

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 trees (not necessarily soft or low density)  

Solid Deck Pallet - A pallet constructed with no spacing between deck boards  

Strap Slot - Recess or cutout on the upper edge of the stringer or the bottom of the top deck board 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  

Stringer board - In block pallets, continuous, solid board member extending for the full length of the pallet perpendicular to deck board members and placed between deck boards and blocks  

Top Cap - Panel to be placed on top of a unit load to allow for tight strapping without damaging the unit load T 

op-Deck of the Pallet - The assembly of deck boards 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 un-notched 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 deck board end from outside edge of stringer or stringer-board 

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