Forresters, based in Kingsley in Cheshire, is a major UK manufacturer of cooked and raw chicken portions. The company’s overriding commitment to quality encapsulates its aim to set the standard in hygiene, customer service and product excellence, making the company a perfect fit with Goplasticpallets.com.

Heidi Nickson, Forresters’ Director, was already thinking about using plastic containers as they are durable and easy to clean, essential qualities in the food industry. An online search for plastic trays led her to Goplasticpallets.com.

Heidi said: “I approached three different companies for quotes, but right from the start Goplasticpallets.com was the leader; they were the best value and the most efficient in terms of coming back to me quickly with answers to my questions”.

Forresters ordered just over 2,000 of the company’s GoBox 5000 food containers – a versatile range of stack and nesting containers with smooth and straight walls for large internal capacity and ease of cleaning.

According to Heidi, the new plastic containers are replacing cardboard boxes and are being used to transport chicken products to customers as well as holding chicken in the internal factory. Each tray holds 10kg of product.

Heidi said: “We are an A grade BRC approved food processing company. Top quality hygiene is key to our business success. Everything used in the factory must be food grade and either plastic or stainless steel ideally.

“We needed plastic containers that were perforated to allow for drainage and good airflow. It was also important that they stacked well on top of each other to save space in storage and transportation. The GoBox 5000 plastic container is easy to clean, durable and can be used over and over again.

“From the moment we decided we needed plastic trays and contacted Goplasticpallets.com we have received good service from helpful staff with a product that serves our needs perfectly.”

David Russell, President of IFCO Pallet Management Services, presented $15,000 checks to Feeding America and the North Texas Food Bank, and $20,000 to the Ryan Palmer Foundation. “We are humbled that, for a second year in a row, we are able to support these three charities and the critical services they provide to our communities,” said Russell. “IFCO’s industry partners have enabled us to raise $15,000 more than last year, and we are deeply appreciative of their continued commitment to these worthy causes.”

The Ryan Palmer Foundation offers youth golf clinics, special community golf programs, scholarship programs, educational programs, and support for the Children’s Hospital at Northwest Texas Healthcare system.

Feeding America is the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity. It feeds America’s hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and engages the country in the fight to end hunger. Each year, the Feeding America network provides food to more than 37 million low-income people facing hunger in the United States, including 14 million children and nearly 3 million seniors.

The North Texas Food Bank, a member of Feeding America, addresses the critical issue of hunger in the North Texas area by securing donations of surplus unmarketable, but wholesome, foods and grocery products for distribution through a network of charitable organizations dedicated to feeding the hungry in 13 North Texas Counties.

Crown Sponsors of the 2012 IFCO Charity Golf Invitational include Ferrellgas and Yale Materials Handling/Briggs Equipment. Diamond Sponsors include Saw Service and Supply and Stanley Black and Decker. Platinum Sponsors include Dickinson Fleet Services, Michelin/TCI Tire Centers, and Penske Truck Leasing. Gold Sponsors include Baker & McKenzie, Cyrus One, MedSafe, Pariveda, Ryder, and Solideal Tire. Silver Sponsors include QuickSearch, Sprint, and Rotochopper.

Palmer,North Texas Food Bank

Formall is a custom thermoforming and metal fabricating operation that specializes in plastic returnable and expendable packaging, metal racks, containers, bulk bins and many other packaging solutions that can be formed or fabricated from plastic or metal. Virtually all of its packaging solutions are returnable and 100 percent recyclable.

Girton manufactures numerous custom washers for pallets, totes, trays, returnable bins, aseptic transport vessels, and more for food, pharmaceutical and general distribution facilities. The company has manufactured industrial washing systems for 85 years.

“In order to provide the best service and products, we need to be on the leading edge of what is going on in our industry. Being a part of the RPA will help us stay abreast of challenges and opportunities,” said Eric Krohn, Sales Manager, Formall, Inc. “We believe that what our industry offers is absolutely crucial in helping companies become more environmentally friendly. Clearly this is a big part of the future for all industries, and RPA is doing great things to help promote this and companies like us who can offer green solutions.”

“By becoming a member of RPA, we will be in a better position to provide information to those who have a need for thorough washing and sanitizing of their reusable products,” said Bruce Michael, Sales Manager, Food Division, Girton Manufacturing Co., Inc. “And we can hear firsthand from other members about the washing and sanitizing needs of their customers. These interactions will make us better able to address the cleaning issues associated with reusable packaging products.”

The green business competition included many local companies, based on the following questions:

• Is this a problem that needs to be solved?
• What is the unique selling proposition?
• Does the company have a management team that can take it to market?
• Is there a strong ‘go to market strategy’?
• Does the company make financial sense as an investment?

Click here to see a list of the green business participants.

According to Peter Johnson of Eco Aluminum Pallets, “Eco Aluminum Pallet is an Arizona Corporation and is excited to present its unique aluminum pallet, a concept in the aluminum pallet industry because of its superior design, which incorporates all aluminum components that are assembled without welds creating a pallet that can be repaired when damaged. Our pallet, in comparison to all other aluminum pallets being marketed today goes far beyond the welded pallet in its ability to be simply and cost-effectively repaired creating a longer life span.”

CHEP Aerospace Solutions provides Air Pacific with containers and pallets from its global pool of more than 45,000 ULDs, reducing costs to Air Pacific of positioning, maintaining and managing its own ULD fleet. (Read more.)

In the past couple of decades, we have worked with many returnable asset managers from various industries. It appears that many of us who are involved in the management face a common set of challenges. (Read more.)

STAKA saves money and carbon emissions by safely stacking pallets inside freight vehicles, according to an announcement from Shipmore Limited.  This enables transport operators to ship more goods in existing vehicles and avoid sending vehicles out twice or shipping sub-optimal loads.

With diesel costs hitting £1.57 a litre last week, the need to manage transport costs has become ever more acute. “There is tremendous pressure on transport operators to make the most of their vehicles’ freight capacity” says Shipmore’s founder, Philippa Bell, ”STAKA can really help by improving space efficiency enabling more optimal use of existing vehicles and giving greater payloads.”

The current trend towards ‘Just-in-Time’ deliveries in the manufacturing and retail sectors doesn’t help. What this means in practical terms for the transport industry is that pallets of goods have been getting smaller and delivered more frequently. Pallets are normally shipped on the vehicle deck and not all goods can be stacked. About 50% of all goods shipped are non-stackable and that means loads of empty space above pallets in vehicles. STAKA enables transport operators to use that extra space rather than having to send out vehicles twice – or send out a partially loaded vehicle on an inefficient run.

“The flexible, re-usable nature of our product means that transport operators can equip an entire vehicle with STAKAs to create a complete double-deck, or just one or two pallet spaces depending on the load they’re carrying – enabling a mix of tall and small pallets to be shipped in the same vehicle” says Shipmore’s co-founder, Richard Malczyk.

Safer pallet stacking also means less damage or wastage of goods carried which translates into cost savings via reduced damage and insurance claims. This also means less wasted journeys giving fuel cost savings and reduced overall carbon emissions.

After 18 month’s of product development and six versions using different materials, sizes and configurations, STAKA has finally arrived. It’s safe too – STAKA was tested at Health & Safety Laboratories, part of the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE). They put STAKA through a series of static and dynamic tests under different load conditions to ensure the product was safe to use in typical every-day conditions.

Source: Shipmore

Tulsa-based Greystone Logistics recorded sales for the corporate third quarter ending February 29, 2012 of $4,875,856 compared to $4,206,092 in fiscal year 2011 for an increase of $669,764 or 16% from the previous year. Sales for the nine month period ending February 29, 2012 were $16,872,981 compared to $14,253,173 in fiscal year 2011 for an increase of $2,619,808 or 18.4%. Greystone Logistics recorded net income of $914,939 during the nine month period ended February 29, 2012 compared to a net loss of $(947,894) in fiscal year 2011, a turnaround of $1,862,833. Net income available to the common shareholders of Greystone Logistics for the nine month period ended February 29, 2012 was $657,996 or $.03 per share compared to a net loss of $(1,269,364) or ($.05) for the same period last year.

Bill Rahhal, CFO, commented, “Purchase orders for our Intermediate Bulk Container Pallet (IBC) and our 56×44 Bottle and Can pallet drove sales higher during our third quarter of fiscal year 2012 as revenue from new customers was approximately $1,055,000. The third quarter is historically our slowest time of the year yet we managed to continue our momentum of growth while at the same time implementing changes to our manufacturing practices with emphasis on cost controls. Our EBITDA for the nine month period ended February 29, 2012 was $2,462,424. Based on the closing price of $0.08 per share for the Company’s common stock as of the market’s close on May 4, 2012, this is more than the market capitalization value of $2,088,896 of the Company. Over the next year, I will be working with our CEO to make the market aware of our great product lines and the incredible job our employees are doing for our shareholders and customers. We believe our business plan of redirecting recycled plastic into American made products is exactly the right direction at the right time.”

Greystone Logistics is a “Green” manufacturing and leasing company that reprocesses and sells recycled plastic and designs, manufactures, sells and leases high quality 100% recycled plastic pallets that provide logistical solutions needed by a wide range of industries such as the food and beverage, automotive, chemical, pharmaceutical and consumer products. The Company’s technology, including that used in its injection molding equipment, proprietary blend of recycled plastic resins and patented pallet designs, allows production of high quality pallets quickly and at lower costs than many processes. The recycled plastic for its pallets helps control material costs while reducing environmental waste and provides cost advantages over users of virgin resin. Excess plastic not used in production of pallets is reprocessed for resale.

Source: Greystone