Kennametal (Market Capitalization of USD 2.2billion) - Metal-cutting tools
Kennametal employees transport five Aeropal™ Pallets each with ease
Kennametal (market capitalization of USD 2.2 billion), one of the world’s leading suppliers of metal-cutting and wear-resistant tools used in highway construction, mining, and manufacturing activities, is sparing no efforts to replace its packaging materials with more cost-effective alternatives.
Costs and Safety
Every month, Kennametal’s Singapore regional distribution centre operated and managed by TNT Express uses hundreds of pallets. TNT Operations Manager, Bhaskaran Nair describes the health, safety and cost issues he was facing:
“We were unitizing our products with half-euro (60 × 80mm) plywood pallets; these were sized to fit neatly into cargo holds, and be easily handled by airport handlers.”
“However, the plywood pallets were heavy (8kg each) and this resulted in higher freight costs as shipments are charged by weight."
“Moreover, at the warehouse, empty pallets could accidentally injure feet if mishandled or dropped. Productivity was also reduced, as packers had to lug them to work-stations”.
The Aeropal Pallet
Managing Director of SIMAX, Simon Tiong, introduced the world’s lightest and most durable Aeropal™ pallets to Bhaskaran as a solution. At less than 20% the weight of standard plywood, these pallets offered substantial freight cost savings and remarkable ease of handling. Bhaskaran decided to put the pallets to the extreme tests:
“We tested them at one of our destinations that tended to report the most handling issues.”
“The destination returned favourable feedback. Freight costs were saved, workers were happier handling the lighter pallets, and their maneuverability enabled us to move and store them in any empty space.”
“The Aeropal™ pallets are also sturdy enough to withstand the journey without being deformed or damaged, offering protection to our products.”
“Where storage space is limited, Aeropal™ pallets are so light that they can be moved around at will, without the need for material handling equipment - this speaks volumes about its versatility.”
Kennametal has since replaced all its old plywood pallets with the super-lightweight Aeropal™ Pallets.
Happy Experience
Today, having completely replaced plywood pallets, Bhaskaran describes his happy experience with Aeropal™ pallets:
“The Aeropal™ pallets would be most suitable in high mass low volume (cubic) situations, as the true weight would then determine the chargeable freight rate - an immediate saving of at least 10% (conservative estimate) can easily be expected, depending on respective freight rates.”
Aside from health, safety and overall cost benefits, Aeropal™ Pallets are also far more environmentally friendly than their wood counterparts, making them a very attractive option to green-conscious MNCs in the world today.
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