One of the most popular products available for shipping applications is crates. Shipping crates can be made from plastic, wood, cardboard, or any other material deemed suitable for various material-hauling applications. If you are contemplating using plastic crates, it is important that you first understand the various benefits they can offer. Though the list is long, here are a few crucial ones you ought to know about.

Robust and space-saving construction

Durability is a key attribute of plastic crates. The crates are typically built using high-density polyethylene or polypropylene, both of which are robust enough to handle heavy items and bear up to the abuses of normal use. Extrusion and injected-moulding are the main processes used to manufacture plastic crates. These techniques allow for design flexibility and ensure the uniformity of products, which makes it possible to stack up crates. This helps save valuable floor space in the warehouse as well in the vehicle where the crates are packed up for transport.

Material-handling automation

Material-handling equipment such as bale arm systems help make easy work of lifting heavy loads. Thanks to the extrusion and injection-moulding processes, plastic crates can be designed to offer superior compatibility with automated equipment, allowing you to stack and de-stack or load and unload crates much faster.

Cleanliness

Cleaning plastic crates is simple. All you need to keep your crates squeaky clean is a pressure washer. You simply place your crates in the cleaning area and let the force of water coming out of your cleaning equipment do the rest of the work. The best part is that no harmful bacteria and fungus will attack your crates because plastic is not affected by exposure to moisture or water. This makes plastic crates ideal for shipping food products.

Reusability

New plastic crates can be made from recycled or reprocessed material. This helps reduce the demand for raw materials required to make new plastic products, something that positively impacts on the environment over the long term.

Water-resistance

If your crates are going to be exposed to moisture- or water-based environments, crates made of plastic will make a perfect choice. This is because plastics do not react with water or any of its constituent elements like oxygen, meaning no water-induced deterioration will take place.

Now that you are informed about some of the benefits you stand to gain by using plastic crates, you should seriously consider them for your shipping application.