Automotive NA 48 x 45 Wood Stringer Pallet Specification Recommendations Published

WASHINGTON, Jan. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --The Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP) – an association of global automakers and their suppliers working together to advance environmental sustainability through the automotive supply chain – today announced the publication of a new guidance document, "Automotive NA 48 x 45 Wood Stringer Pallet Specification Recommendations".

The guidance document provides voluntary industry-developed recommendations intended to help automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and their suppliers within the North American region to source uniform 48 x 45 wood stringer pallets, where appropriate, to enable increased reuse and improve efficiency across the supply chain. 

In North America, the 48 x 45 footprint wood pallet is primarily used as back-up packaging or in service (aftermarket) for transporting goods between tiered suppliers and customers within the automotive industry.

As it stands, wood pallets within the automotive industry have internal reuse potential and are most often recycled and/or resold as a remanufactured pallet after their initial use. However, while many tiered suppliers have flexible 48 x 45 footprint wood pallet specifications, different OEMs within North America have unique specifications which has restricted synergy for pallet reuse and remanufacturing across OEMs and through the supply base.

A team within Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP) was created to evaluate opportunities to address the challenge of inconsistencies in automotive industry wood pallet specifications while supporting automotive industry sustainability initiatives. The resulting guidance document was produced through a collaborative process by the Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP) Sustainable Packaging Work Group's Wood Pallet Sub-Team and was chaired by Magna International. 

"Opportunities to enhance the reuse potential of wood stringer pallets and improve efficiencies through the supply chain were identified through collaborative discussions between OEMs, tiered suppliers, packaging manufacturers, industry recyclers, and other subject matter experts working through SP's sustainable packaging work group.  On behalf of SP, we thank each of our member volunteers for their contributions to this project and for their ongoing efforts to further improve the sustainability of key packaging materials used within the industry," said Kellen Mahoney, Director, Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP).

The guidance document is available to download at no cost at https://www.supplierspartnership.org/48x45-stringer/

About SP
The Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP) provides a forum for global automotive manufacturers and their large and small suppliers to work together toward a shared vision of an automotive industry with positive environmental impact. Learn more at: www.supplierspartnership.org/

Contact: Kellen Mahoney, [email protected]

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SOURCE Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP)