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The Importance of Load Diagrams

How pallet loads are arranged in a trailer affects profitability, productivity, and efficiency.

Load Diagrams for Palletizing

A load diagram is a depiction of how a given shipment of pallet loads is to be positioned inside a trailer. The diagram is a pre-loading instruction, not a post-loading documentation. Load diagrams might not be necessary for repetitive shipments of the same composition, given a prior determination of the load pattern. When shipments vary by composition, however, load diagrams can provide multiple benefits, starting with the loading process and continuing throughout the supply chain. There are factors to be considered prior to the production of a load diagram.

Pallet loads arrive at the outgoing shipping dock via different routes, for example, from warehouse storage, directly from end-of-the-line operations, or by cross-docking. The best practice is to have the entire order collected and staged before loading commences. A load diagram is the preferred alternative to having to rely on the discretion of the loader (a forklift driver, for example).

Since a trailer is a three-dimensional enclosure, the challenge is to optimize the use of its cube. A twin challenge is compliance with state and federal regulations that set maximum combined weights (tractor, trailer, load). Loads, therefore, at most, can either “cube-out” or “weigh-out.” For any truckload (TL), the questions are how many pallet loads can there be, and how should they be positioned?

Assume a 53-ft trailer and 48-in x 40-in pallets. If the pallets are straight-loaded (length of pallet running parallel to length of trailer), 13 pallets can be aligned in a row, along the trailer’s length. Trailer width allows two such rows, for a total of 26. If the pallets are turn-loaded (length of pallet running parallel to width of trailer), 15 pallets can be aligned in a row, along the trailer’s length. Trailer width allows two such rows, for a total of 30. When the additional four pallets can be had without exceeding weight limits, fewer trailers will be needed, yielding savings in transportation costs, along with sustainability/environmental benefits. On the other hand, straight loading is faster, providing higher shipping dock productivity and efficiency.

Pinwheeling is a third way to load a trailer. There, too, pallets are arranged two-across. However, one is straight-loaded, the other turn-loaded. The pairings alternate positions along the trailer’s length, yielding a pattern that accounts for the name. It is a more complicated loading, at times used when the trailer’s width is too narrow for turn-loading (not the case with a 53-ft trailer and 48-in. x 40-in. pallets).

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