Products · accessories
Pallet accessories
A deck holds a load. A deck with a collar and a lid contains one. Accessories are the cheapest way to upgrade a pallet into a returnable container, and almost nobody uses them properly.
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In short
Pallet accessories are the parts that convert a flat pallet into a stackable, containable, protectable unit load: hinged collars, lids and top caps, runners and bearers, corner boards, edge protectors and slip sheets. Most are reusable hundreds of times and most cost a fraction of the crate they replace.
We stock collars in standard 48×40 and 1200×800 formats and can build accessories to custom footprints alongside a custom pallet order.
Pallet collars — the most underused item in warehousing
A collar is a four-sided hinged wooden frame that sits on a pallet deck. Stack two and you have a shallow box; stack four and you have a deep one. Fold them flat and a hundred take the space of a small pallet stack.
What makes them worth attention is the variable height. A single SKU of collar handles a quarter-height load, a half-height load and a full-height load, which means one accessory replaces three box sizes. For operations shipping variable quantities — spare parts, seasonal goods, returns processing — that flexibility is where the savings live.
- Standard collars: 1200 × 800 mm and 48″ × 40″
- Typical height 200 mm, stackable to four or more
- Hinged on four corners, folds flat for return
- New and reclaimed collars both available
Detail and sizing on the pallet collars page.
Lids, top caps and top frames
A lid closes a collar stack and gives you a flat, load-bearing surface to stack another unit on top. Without one, you cannot safely stack collared loads at all, and a lot of warehouse cube gets wasted for want of a $12 piece of wood.
Plywood lids are lightest and cheapest. Solid board lids last longer and take more abuse. Top caps — essentially an inverted shallow pallet — spread load better and are the right choice when the load above is heavy or point-loaded.
More at pallet lids and top caps.
Runners, bearers and skid boards
Runners raise a load off the floor without a full pallet. Two or three runners under a bundle of pipe, sheet stock or lumber gives forklift access at a fraction of a pallet's material cost, and they can be cut to any length.
We produce runners from both new and reclaimed lumber, in nominal 2×4, 4×4 and custom sections. Reclaimed stringers recovered from dismantled pallets make excellent runners and are the cheapest way to buy them.
Corner boards, edge protectors and slip sheets
Corner boards (angle boards) run vertically at the corners of a stretch-wrapped load. They transfer strap tension away from the cartons and let you wrap tighter without crushing the product. On tall, light loads they can be the difference between a stable pallet and a leaning one.
Edge protectors do the same job horizontally, protecting the top layer where the wrap turns.
Slip sheets are thin fibreboard or plastic sheets used with a push-pull attachment instead of a pallet. They weigh almost nothing, take almost no cube, and eliminate the pallet entirely on lanes where you cannot recover it. They also require the right forklift attachment, which is the reason most operations never adopt them.
Ask on the quote form and we will tell you honestly whether slip sheets suit your handling equipment.
Building a collar system that actually works
A collar system is not just collars. It is four components that have to match, and mismatching any of them is why people try collars once and abandon them.
- The pallet. The footprint sets everything. A 48×40 collar fits a 48×40 pallet and nothing else.
- The collars. Match footprint and hinge count. Four hinges fold flat in a Z; two-hinge collars fold in one axis only and take far more return space.
- The lid. Without one you cannot stack loaded units, which throws away most of the cube benefit. See lids and top caps.
- The strap or band. Collared stacks need restraint. A ratchet strap around the whole unit is usual; some operations band through the collar handles.
Get those four right and one SKU handles a quarter, half and full-height load. Get one wrong and the system is worse than boxes.
Corner boards: the accessory with the best return
If you wrap loads and do not use corner boards, this is probably the cheapest improvement available to you.
A stretch wrapper applies tension. That tension has to go somewhere, and without corner boards it goes into the carton corners — the exact part of the box carrying the compression load. So you face a choice between wrapping tight enough to stabilise the load and wrapping loose enough not to crush it.
Corner boards break that trade-off. Vertical angle boards at the four corners take the strap tension and distribute it down the stack, so you can wrap tighter without crushing anything. The result is usually a more stable load and less film consumed, because tension does more work than wraps do.
The benefit is largest on tall, light loads and smallest on short, heavy ones.
Slip sheets, and the honest reason most operations skip them
Slip sheets eliminate the pallet entirely. A thin fibreboard or plastic sheet under the load, with a tab that a push-pull attachment grips. They weigh almost nothing, take almost no cube, and cost a fraction of a pallet.
For export lanes where the pallet is never coming back, the economics are compelling, and there is no ISPM-15 question because there is no solid wood.
The reason most operations do not use them is equipment: you need a push-pull attachment on the forklift, and that attachment occupies the carriage, so a truck fitted with one cannot easily handle ordinary pallets. In a mixed operation that is a real constraint, and it is why slip sheets cluster in facilities that ship one way at high volume.
We will tell you honestly whether your handling equipment suits them rather than selling you sheets you cannot lift.
Spec sheet
Accessory reference
| Collar — 48″ × 40″ | 200 mm high, four-hinge, stackable, new or reclaimed |
| Collar — 1200 × 800 mm | Euro footprint, four-hinge, stackable |
| Plywood lid | ½" or ⅝" ply, cut to footprint |
| Solid board lid | 5/8" boards on two cleats |
| Top cap | Inverted shallow deck, load-spreading |
| Runners | 2×4, 4×4 and custom sections, any length |
| Corner boards | Laminated paperboard angle, 2″ and 3″ legs |
| Slip sheets | Fibreboard or HDPE, single or multi-tab |
| Custom accessories | Built to match any custom pallet |
Reference
Accessory selection by problem
| Problem | Accessory | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| Loose parts, variable quantities | Collars + lid | One SKU covers quarter, half and full height |
| Cannot stack a collared load | Lid or top cap | Provides a load-bearing surface to stack onto |
| Heavy load stacked above | Top cap | Spreads concentrated load into the collar walls |
| Cartons crushing under wrap tension | Corner boards | Transfers strap tension away from the carton corners |
| Top layer damaged by wrap turn | Edge protectors | Protects the horizontal edge where film turns |
| Long bundles need fork clearance | Runners | Fork access without a full pallet's material cost |
| Pallet never returns from export | Slip sheets | Removes the pallet entirely; no ISPM-15 question |
| Load shifts in transit | Corner boards + banding | Turns loose cartons into a restrained unit |
Avoid these
Mistakes we see
Buying collars without lids
A collared load with an open top cannot be safely stacked, which discards most of the cube benefit that justified the collars. Buy them together.
Mismatching collar and pallet footprints
A collar must match the pallet exactly. Mismatched collars overhang, snag on racking and fail at the corners, and the failure is blamed on the collar rather than on the pairing.
Using corner boards on short heavy loads
The benefit scales with height and inversely with load density. On short, dense loads corner boards add cost for very little gain — put the money into deck coverage instead.
Buying slip sheets before checking the forklift
Slip sheets need a push-pull attachment, and a truck fitted with one cannot easily handle ordinary pallets. Confirm the equipment picture before the first order.
Discarding damaged collars
Collars fail at the corners and hinges, never in the panels, and both are replaceable. They are one of the few packaging items where a repair programme genuinely pays.
Checklist
Work through this before you order
Specifying a collar system
- Pallet footprint confirmed and fixed
- Collar footprint matched exactly to it
- Four-hinge for flat folding in both axes
- Height chosen — 200 mm standard, others available
- Lid or top cap specified alongside
- Restraint method decided: strap, band or wrap
- Return logistics planned — folded collars stack flat
Questions
Before you ask us
Do pallet collars fit any pallet?
A collar must match the pallet footprint. A 48x40 collar sits correctly on a 48x40 pallet and nothing else. Mismatched collars overhang, snag and eventually fail, so buy the pair together or send us your pallet dimensions.
How many times can a collar be reused?
A well-handled wooden collar routinely lasts more than a hundred cycles, and the hinges are replaceable. They fail at the corners, not in the panels, which makes them very repairable.
Are corner boards worth the cost?
On tall or light loads, almost always. They allow higher wrap tension without crushing product, which reduces both transit damage and film consumption. On short heavy loads the benefit is much smaller.
Can you supply accessories in reclaimed wood?
Yes, and it is usually the better buy. Runners and lids made from recovered stringers and deck boards cost noticeably less than new equivalents and perform the same.
How much space do folded collars take?
Very little. Four-hinge collars fold flat in a Z, so roughly a hundred of them occupy about the space of a small pallet stack. That compactness is most of the reason collar systems work for return logistics.
Can collars be repaired?
Yes, and they should be. They fail at the corners and hinges rather than in the panels, and hinges are replaceable. A collar repair programme pays for itself faster than most packaging maintenance.
Do corner boards reduce film usage?
Often, yes. They let you apply higher tension without crushing product, and tension does more to stabilise a load than additional wraps do. The saving is largest on tall, light loads.
Are pallet collars available used?
Yes, and reclaimed collars are usually the better buy. In sound condition they perform identically to new and cost noticeably less, which is consistent with how the rest of this yard works.
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