ByPaul Zamko

Foldable pallet boxes or rigid pallet boxes for returnable packaging? This is a clear example of how the more expensive at first glance actually comes out much cheaper.

Foldable pallet boxes are sometimes a little more expensive than rigid ones. But not when it comes to reusable packaging. The total cost of ownership (TCO) will in most cases be much lower.

The advantage of foldable pallet boxes from this point of view is significant. Each time your boxes are sent back to base, you will save a huge amount of money. Next to that, they are easier to handle for warehouse employees. And occupy considerably less space in your warehouse.

The three factors that influence the amount of money you will save with foldable pallet boxes:

1) Distance.
The destination of the returnable boxes can be one of your customers’ locations or one of your factory locations. When the distance is for instance only 30 km away, transport costs for returning the boxes will be less high than when it’s 300 km away. For full truckloads, the economy of returning boxes stays interesting for distances up to around 2.000km.

2) Who is fulfilling the transport?
Sometimes factories have their own trucks and drivers. In this case, return transport is often difficult to calculate and seems not so expensive.
In the case of hiring an external transport company, transport can become so expensive that even on shorter distances you earn back the costs of returnable packaging within much less than 1 year.
We can help you to make those calculations.

3) Frequency
How long does it take to fill a truck for return transport? When you have a few large customers this will be faster than when you have many smaller customers.
With a few larger customers in general you send around 7 trucks to the customer before the first full truck with pallet boxes can be returned.

The lengths of this loop define how many reusable pallet boxes you need to purchase in order to close the loop. In this above case, you need 7  trucks of boxes in stock plus the amount before the first truck will return to your location (safety stock).

We can help you to make this calculation.

In a situation of global economical crisis, many businesses in the field of import-export, transport, supply, logistics, etc. are looking for the best available options to reduce their costs and waste. This is one of the reasons why there is currently a huge interest in reusable packaging, green supply chain management, and zero waste strategies.

With their desire to optimize their supply chains, manufacturers and companies, in general, are more oriented towards returnable packaging. The use of returnable (foldable) pallet boxes significantly reduces the costs of a logistic operation. At the same time, the safety of the product during transport and in the warehouse is also improving.

The best business solution in terms of logistics, transport, and warehousing is a matter of pure mathematics. The formula is based on the combination between price and achieving optimal packaging space. This space is extremely important for easier, faster, and safer packaging of goods, as well as for the preparation and implementation of return transport. Collapsible pallet boxes provide this vital space.

From small & medium companies to large corporate businesses, from automakers to industrial automation – entrepreneurs are massively oriented towards the use of reusable containers.

If you don’t want to lag behind the competition, maybe it’s time to rethink your packaging strategy. Let us help you.