Glossary of Pallet Terms

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 - The output from PDS program which is equivalent to the number of trips the pallet will last before needing repair.
Line Load - The weight of a unit load concentrated along a narrow area across the full length or width of the pallet.
Load Bearing Surface - The actual area of material in contact with and supporting a unit load.

MIBANT Angle - Bend angle of a fastener shank when subjected to a MIBANT test.
MIBANT Test (Morgan Impact Bend Angle Nail Tester) - Standard impact nail tester used in the pallet and lumber industry as an indication of impact bend resistance of nails or staples

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 de- sign, manufacturer, distribution, recycling and sale of pallets, containers and reels.
Non-Reversible Pallet - Pallet with a bottom deck board configuration different from the top.
Notch - The 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 or lip.

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) - A 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 stringerboard (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 Jack - A hand-propelled, wheeled platform, equipped with a lifting device for moving palletized unit loads.
Pallet Life - The period during which the pallet remains useful, expressed in units of time or in the number of one-way trips.
Panel Deck Pallet - A pallet constructed with composite or structural panel top deck.
Partial 4-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.

Quality - The consistent performance of a uniform product meeting the customer's needs for economy and function.

Racked Across Deck Boards - The output from a 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 Cross Stringers - The output from a 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 - Remake pallets in order to use them again.
Recycling - A pallet, container or reel that has been used, discarded, salvaged, repaired and which passes through a cycle again.
Rental Pallet - A pallet owned by a third party, different from the actual pallet user.
Returnable/Reusable Pallet - A pallet designed to be used for more than one trip.
Reversible Pallet - Pallet with identical top and bottom decks.

Shipping Pallet - A pallet designed to be used for a single one-way trip from shipper to receiver; it is then disposed; see expendable pallet.
Shook - Cut to size pallet parts to be assembled into pallets.
Shook Grade - The classification of quality of a pallet part relative to the performance characteristics based on size and distribution of defects; independent of wood species.
Single Wing Pallet - A pallet with the 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 - A pallet, platform or single, thick panel used as a support base for a palletized load in rack-storage facilities or production systems.
Soft Nail - A pallet nail with an MIBANT angle equal to or greater than 47 degrees.
Softwood - wood from coniferous or needle-bearing species of trees (not necessarily soft or low density).
Solid Deck Pallet - A pallet constructed with no spacing between deck boards.
Span - the distance between stringer or block supports.
Stevedore Pallet - A pallet designed for use on seaport shipping docks, normally of heavy-duty, double-wing construction.
Stiff Stock Steel Nail - A pallet nail made of medium-high carbon steel without heat treatment and tempering with MIBANT angle between 29 and 46 degrees.
Strap Slot - The 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 - Block pallets with a continuous solid board member extending for the full length of the pallet perpendicular to deck board members and placed between deck boards and blocks.

Take it or Leave it Pallet - A pallet fitted with fixed cleats on the top deck boards to permit fork truck tines to pass beneath the unit load and remove it from the pallet.
Top Cap - A protective panel placed on top of a unit load to allow for tight strapping without damaging the unit load.
Top Deck of the Pallet - The assembly of a deck board comprising the upper load-carrying surface of the pallet.
Trip - Consists of four to six handlings of a pallet.
Two-Way Entry Pallet - Pallets with notched solid stringers, allowing entry only from the ends.

Unit Load - Assembly of materials on a pallet for handling, moving, storing or stacking as a single entity.

Warehouse Pallet - A double-face multiple trip returnable pallets intended for general warehouse use.
Wing - Overhang of deck board end from outside edge of stringer or stringer.