Palletized load
A palletized load is freight stacked on a pallet and secured to it, usually with stretch wrap or banding, so the whole unit moves with one forklift or pallet jack lift. The standard US pallet is 48 by 40 inches. The opposite is floor loaded freight, where cartons are stacked loose in the trailer and handled one at a time at each end.
Why it matters
Pallets are the unit freight is priced, handled and stored in. LTL carriers and fulfillment centers quote per pallet, receive per pallet and bill storage per pallet, so a palletized load moves faster through every dock it touches and is counted, scanned and photographed as one unit at receipt. Floor loaded freight costs labor at both ends and is harder to inspect for shorts and damage.
When to use it
Palletize anything that will ride LTL, cross a dock, or enter a fulfillment center, unless the receiver specifically requires floor loading. Keep the load inside the pallet footprint, under the height limit the carrier or receiver states, and wrap it so nothing shifts.
How Warp thinks about it
Warp prices freight per pallet, so a palletized load is what the quote, the receipt and the invoice all count. At the four Warp fulfillment centers pallets are scanned, timestamped and photographed at receipt, stored by the pallet by the day, and sent back out on a rail of LTL carriers or Warp truckload at the per pallet rate you were quoted. How a pallet in becomes pallets out for retail replenishment is on the pallet in, pallet out page.
What makes a load palletized
The cartons sit on a pallet that a forklift or pallet jack can lift from any open side, the stack stays inside the pallet footprint, and the whole unit is wrapped or banded so it moves as one piece. A stack of cartons on a pallet with nothing holding it together is not a palletized load; it is floor loaded freight with extra wood.
Frequently asked questions about palletized load
What is palletized load?
A palletized load is freight stacked on a pallet and secured to it, usually with stretch wrap or banding, so the whole unit moves with one forklift or pallet jack lift. The standard US pallet is 48 by 40 inches. The opposite is floor loaded freight, where cartons are stacked loose in the trailer and handled one at a time at each end.
Why does palletized load matter in freight?
Pallets are the unit freight is priced, handled and stored in. LTL carriers and fulfillment centers quote per pallet, receive per pallet and bill storage per pallet, so a palletized load moves faster through every dock it touches and is counted, scanned and photographed as one unit at receipt. Floor loaded freight costs labor at both ends and is harder to inspect for shorts and damage.
When should you use palletized load?
Palletize anything that will ride LTL, cross a dock, or enter a fulfillment center, unless the receiver specifically requires floor loading. Keep the load inside the pallet footprint, under the height limit the carrier or receiver states, and wrap it so nothing shifts.
How does Warp handle palletized load?
Warp prices freight per pallet, so a palletized load is what the quote, the receipt and the invoice all count. At the four Warp fulfillment centers pallets are scanned, timestamped and photographed at receipt, stored by the pallet by the day, and sent back out on a rail of LTL carriers or Warp truckload at the per pallet rate you were quoted. How a pallet in becomes pallets out for retail replenishment is on the pallet in, pallet out page.
What counts as a palletized load?
Freight stacked on a pallet, kept inside the pallet footprint and secured to it with stretch wrap or banding, so it lifts and moves as one unit. The standard US pallet is 48 by 40 inches. A palletized load is what LTL carriers, cross docks and fulfillment centers quote, receive and bill per pallet.
Is a palletized load cheaper to ship than floor loaded freight?
Usually, because it is handled as one unit at every dock instead of carton by carton, which costs labor at both ends and slows receiving. It is also easier to count and inspect at receipt. The exceptions are receivers that require floor loading, and loads whose cube is so much larger than their weight that pallet count drives the price up.