Skip to content Home Glossary Block pallet A pallet that stands on blocks, usually nine, instead of stringers, with boards running both ways. Forks enter from all four sides. Companion stringer A short length of board nailed alongside a cracked stringer to repair it. Also called a plate or a sister. Core A used pallet that needs repair before it can carry a load again. Recyclers repair, strip or grind cores. Cross-dock A facility where freight is unloaded from one truck and loaded onto another with little or no storage in between. Custom pallet A pallet built to fit one product or one customer's equipment rather than a common size. Deck board A board nailed across the stringers or blocks to make the top or bottom surface of a pallet. Missing or broken deck boards are the most common damage. Dock-high A loading dock level with a trailer floor, so a forklift can drive straight in. Dock-high loading makes a pickup quicker. Drayage A short truck move of a container or trailer, typically between a rail ramp or port and a warehouse. Dunnage Loose wood or other material used to brace, block or space cargo in a container or trailer. Floor spot The floor space one pallet footprint takes in a trailer. A 53-foot trailer has about 26 for 48x40s loaded straight. Four-way entry A pallet that can be picked up from any of its four sides. Block pallets are fully four-way; notched stringer pallets are four-way for forklifts but not pallet jacks from the notched sides. Grade A On this site, a used pallet ready to reuse with no broken boards and no visible repairs. Grades are trade usage, not a published standard. Grade B On this site, a sound used pallet that carries repairs, such as a companion stringer or replaced deck boards. Grade C On this site, a worn pallet that is still usable for one-way or internal moves. Heat-treated (HT) Wood packaging treated with heat under ISPM 15 and marked to show it. Intermodal ramp A rail terminal where containers and trailers move between trains and trucks. The federal atlas calls these TOFC/COFC facilities. ISPM 15 The international standard for treating and marking wood packaging material, including pallets, that crosses borders. Notched stringer A stringer with two cut-outs along its bottom edge so forklift forks can enter from the side. Notches make a stringer pallet partly four-way. One-way pallet A pallet sent out with a load that isn't expected to come back to the shipper. Plastic pallet A moulded pallet made of plastic rather than wood. Not regulated as wood packaging material. Pooled pallet A pallet rented to shippers by a pooling company and marked with its colour or name so it can be returned. Not for sale through this site. Skid A platform with runners and a top deck but no bottom deck. Often used loosely to mean any pallet. Square pallet A pallet with equal sides, such as 36x36, 42x42 or 48x48. It can be turned either way on a truck or rack. Stringer One of the long boards, usually three, that run the length of a stringer pallet and hold the deck boards. On a 48x40 the stringers are 48 inches long. TOFC/COFC Trailer on flatcar and container on flatcar: the two ways truck freight rides on rail. Turned loading Loading 48x40 pallets with the 40 inch side along the trailer, which fits more floor spots in a wide trailer. Two-way entry A pallet that forks or a pallet jack can enter from two opposite sides only. Wood packaging material Wood used to carry or protect goods in trade: pallets, crates, boxes, skids and dunnage. Abbreviated WPM. Have pallets Need pallets