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The secondary car parts market is quite big in the UK, and National Pallets serve many small independent sellers. Engines, gearboxes, and other parts are heavy, awkward, and sometimes dangerous to ship. If you are in or are considering going into the business of selling car parts, here are some things you should know about pallet shipping the parts with our service.
Block and Brace
We've covered the proper way to pack an engine on our blog before (though you would be surprised by how many people present our drivers with engines that are leaking oil). We recommend that you do much more than secure it with a ratchet strap, and this is for your engine's protection as much as for the other items in a shipment: we are proud of our record of delivering without damage, but your precious package might go through several truck changes during its journey. Dust, particles, moisture, and OPS – Other People's Stuff – are all things your shipment should expect to encounter at any point.
In addition to the shrink wrapping and restraining, you should prepare your items with braces and blocks to prevent it from rattling around or becoming dislodged at any point. Remember that we do not supply pallets for car parts due to the complications they present, so you should take time and care to package in advance. On a wooden pallet, you can attach structural supports for extra security.
Protect the Edges
You need to use a standard-size pallet – 1 metre by 1.2 metres – and your items cannot overhang any edge by more than 25 millimetres, so extreme cushioning is called for here. Use edge protection wherever possible (use moving blankets or cut apart a pool noodle) and experiment with different positioning of the item. Again, you can also add structural supports to brace it if you need to set it on an edge to avoid overhanging.