Vouchers make pallet management easier and more professional

The direct exchange of Euro pallets between supplier and recipient directly at goods receipt is very time-consuming. The supermarket chain „tegut...“ has handed over the management of Euro pallets to the service provider „Pooling Partners“. Since then, an increasing number of pallets are no longer exchanged directly with the forwarders, but are handled via so-called „PAKi pallet notes“.

tegut...„ and the logistics company “Pooling Partners„ have been working together since March 2017. The aim was to Load carrier management professionalisation. Claus Goldbach, head of the „tegut...“ division responsible for the Logistics, reports increasing discussions at the loading bays because haulage drivers have to exchange the goods to be delivered after delivery. Euro pallets wanted to sort it themselves. However, this was not legally possible. So the search was on for a simpler solution.

Through contact with „Pooling Partners“, „tegut...“ eventually became part of the so-called PAKi logistics network. This consists of 10,000 so-called Pooling stations throughout Europe and the affiliated companies. Freight forwarders who deliver goods to „tegut...“ now have the choice of either exchanging the pallets one-for-one or receiving a PAKi voucher. With this uniquely numbered document, the forwarders receive a pallet credit. The transferable voucher can be redeemed at one of the pooling stations. Alternatively, the pallets are delivered to a desired recipient.

„Our aim is to optimise the flexibility of the Euro pallet exchange pool. A key issue here is the sorting of qualities in distribution centres and the associated processing with the pallet note. If the pallet note used can be transferred to third parties, the flexibility of the open pool is guaranteed at this point,“ says Christian Kühnhold, CEO for „PAKi Services“.

tegut...„ is satisfied with the response to the new range, says Moritz Ziegler, team leader of the dry goods warehouse in Fulda: “We were somewhat surprised by the high level of acceptance that has been shown in the area of Dry range very quickly. The initially expected volume has now more than doubled.“ According to information from „tegut...“, hauliers who deliver small-volume goods still prefer the train-to-train exchange. The other areas are already being handled entirely via the PAKi voucher.

The supermarket operator from Fulda says it benefits from various advantages thanks to the new load carrier management system. Overall, the processes for exchanging pallets have become simpler and faster. Previously, employees had to collect the exchange pallets themselves from the recyclables area and provide them to the forwarders. Now the haulage drivers simply collect their vouchers from the warehouse office. No more travelling. [infotext icon]

These are the „tegut...“ grocery stores

tegut... gute Lebensmittel GmbH & Co. KG„ operates 280 grocery stores in Hesse, Thuringia and Bavaria as well as in Göttingen, Mainz, Stuttgart and Ludwigsburg. The company was founded in 1947 by Theo Gutberlet. It has been trading under its current name since 1955 and employs more than 5700 people. In its self-portrayal, the company emphasises that it attaches great importance to freshness, regionality and sustainability in its range of around 25,000 products[/infotext]. The space required for the temporary storage of empty pallets has also been reduced. Depending on the season, this was considerable, for example when large quantities of goods were sold off in a short space of time at Christmas or Easter. “Pooling Partners now collects the empty pallets after notification by telephone and takes care of the return and provision of the pallets when they are called up by the suppliers or freight forwarders,„ says Moritz Ziegler, describing the new arrangement.

The environmental friendliness of this pallet management approach should also not be neglected: Euro pallets are used more frequently, the large number of pooling stations means that fewer empty pallets are transported, and the simplified exchange process saves time and logistics costs.
[infotext icon]„Pooling Partners“: more than 20 million pallets per year

The Dutch family business „Pooling Partners“ describes itself as a leader in the pool management of standardised load carriers. It operates three pooling networks for different sectors: „IPP Logipal“, „PAKi Logistics“ and „PRS Return System“. PAKi in particular is the market leader in the pool management of exchangeable and standardised load carriers such as Euro pallets and pallet cages. Every year, „Pooling Partners“ produces and repairs more than 20 million pallets and boxes with PEFC or FSC-certified wood from sustainable forestry. The company has an annual turnover of 317 million euros and employs around 800 people[/infotext].