What kind of pallet truck?


Moving large and heavy objects around your warehouse, stockroom or plant is a doddle when you use a pallet truck.

But before choosing a pallet truck you must decide if you need a power or a manual truck. A power pallet wagon will be way easier to drive than brands operated by hand and are simpler to maneuver. But there is a drawback - higher cost. So before choosing a pallet lorry work out the weight and dimensions of your largest loads.

Measure and weight your heaviest loads to find the pallet truck that can safely manage them. Determine too the size of the pallets you may be moving around and choose a truck that will accommodate that size.

Another pointer: gauge how high you’ll need to lift the pallets. Most pallet trucks are built to lift pallets up to ten inches off the ground. So before investing in a pallet truck determine the space from the ground to where the pallet needs to be located.

And remember that using a pallet truck to pick up loads higher than it is intended to handle is a major safety hazard.

Waste Batteries Directive

Sparks rise in enquiries

For plastic pallet box




The new law, which comes into force in January 2010, requires battery manufacturers or a company appointed on their behalf, to collect used batteries from end users. These include commercial vehicle garages, car garages, scrap yards and civic amenity tips if requested.

Manufacturers are then obliged to take the batteries to an approved battery treatment centre or exporter for treatment and recycling.

Plastic pallet box specialist Dolav is seeing a flurry of enquiries for its products following the launch of new regulations on automotive battery disposal. Automotive battery manufacturers, waste management companies and recyclers have been talking to Dolav as they prepare to comply with the new Waste Batteries and Accumulators Directive.

Dolav, which has a 15-year track record in the automotive battery recycling industry, is confident it can assist waste battery handlers and recyclers as it has elsewhere in Europe.

"The new regulations will necessitate major investment to ensure producers - and the Battery Compliance Scheme operators - function legally. Finding the right containers to transport and store batteries will play a vital role in that process," says Dolav marketing manager Maria Plastow.

"Dolav has been involved in lead acid battery recycling for more than 15 years. Lead is valuable but dangerous in the wrong place and heavy. Sulphuric acid can be recovered safely provided it is handled with care."

Dolav's long life products, which have seen sales in the UK and Ireland hit the 400,000 mark over the past 30 years, are extensively engineered to withstand the tough world of materials handling container abuse in the recycling and industry.

"The heavy sectioned Dolav containers have very low built in stress because of the production process. Lower stress means higher impact resistance and less stress to be relieved by the searching nature of highly corrosive acids," says Maria Plastow.

"The runners on the Dolav containers are an integral part of the injection moulding process, not snap-in as on most lighter weight pallet boxes. This adds to strength and security when pallet boxes are mechanically handled and inverted to discharge contents. The Dolav containers are well within safely limits when moving the exceptionally heavy lead acid batteries.

"Future generations do not want to uncover contaminated ground or suffer from leaching of dangerous chemicals into our streams and rivers. Dolav can play its part in preventing this and making profits for the recyclers." More at: www.dolav-uk.co.uk

Craemer Launch New

Lightweight D

Plastic pallet


Craemer have launched its new versatile ‘D’ range of plastic pallets.

Weighing in at only 15kg this provides a completely new generation of lightweight pallets that can be easily manually handled or integrated into storage systems that require high loading capacities.

Craemer say they are confident the unique construction of the D pallet will overcome many reservations experienced with existing conventional lightweight pallets.

The combination of options to customise this pallet to the exact specification required for an individual application, makes this pallet unique and can also contribute to significant cost savings in transport.

Specialists in the design and manufacture of plastic pallets since 1967, Craemer have evolved and developed pallets to meet customer and market demands, and the new pallet is no exception.

Manufactured from a high quality HDPE virgin grade red/brown material or quality regenerated black plastic, the standard 1200 x 1000mm D plastic pallet from Craemer is available with 3 or 5 runners that are chamfered on all approach edges for easy access and removal of hand and electric pallet truck forks. They also feature a 7mm upper deck rim, with the option to customise to include a 22mm rim.


The load capacity in two beam pallet racking can be achieved in excess of 1000 kg by using the unique reinforcement profile options in either sprung steel or glass fibre materials, providing the optimum rigidity and strength with a long service life.

The pallets have been designed to minimise dirt traps with no recesses in which dirt or liquid can collect and therefore, support hygienic working conditions in preventing possible contamination. The smooth outer surfaces of Craemer’s D pallet can easily be cleaned manually or by pallet wash machine.

Apart from the many benefits and optional features of the new D plastic pallet, along with its attractive price / performance ratio, Craemer claim to offer much more than a product. As part of its customer service, Craemer are prepared to undertake a site visit, analyse customers individual pallet applications and make a written recommendation as to which is the safest and most cost effective pallet from the Craemer range that would best suit the application.