LPR opens new pallet sort and repair facility
June 1st 2006

LPR's expansion in the UK marketplace continues with the opening of its new modular sort and repair pallet processing facility at Northfleet in Kent. The unit will be run and funded by TDG, LPR's logistics partner in the UK.

The site is a totally new concept in pallet processing.

Demountable and mobile so that it can be redeployed elsewhere at short notice, as the logistics flow dictates, it is a fully integrated, ergonomically-designed facility that complements LPR's commitment to efficient, forward-thinking solutions.

With the facility measuring 20 x 8m, pallets arrive on trucks at the front of the site, where conveyors take them straight to the sortation facility, which utilises vaculift technology to ease the handling process. Every pallet is inspected individually and those requiring repair are fed automatically by conveyor, to a dedicated area.

Total processing capacity of the unit is 1.6 million pallets per annum, while the facility is able to repair approximately 190,000 pallets a year. It is designed to take into account all health and safety issues related to the handling of wooden pallets.

Jane Gorick, general manager of LPR UK, is delighted with the new initiative and noted: "The Northfleet facility is another step forward for LPR in the UK marketplace. The concept of a modular, semi-mobile and automated sortation facility is a typical example of how the partnership between LPR and TDG is bringing imaginative solutions to the FMCG supply chain. Indeed, this is a concept we will be rolling out across our hub network as we expand further."