Plastic crates have become one of the most widely used material handling and storage solutions across various industries due to their multiple advantages over conventional wood or metal crates. With advancements in plastic molding technology, plastic crates are stronger, lighter, durable, affordable and require lower maintenance compared to their traditional counterparts. Let’s dive deeper into understanding plastic crates and how they are transforming material handling.
Types of Plastic Crates
CoherentMI discusses in Plastic Crates Market about different types of plastic crates available in the market based on their structure, material used and applications:
- Stacking plastic crates: These lightweight yet durable crates are designed for stacking filled bottles, boxes, and other packaging in warehouses, production facilities and distribution centers. Their interlocking design enables safe stacking of multiple loaded crates.
- Nestable plastic crates: As the name suggests, these crates neatly nest inside each other when empty to maximize space during transportation and storage. Their modular design is suitable for industries like food processing and automotive.
- Collapsible plastic crates: Made of flexible plastic materials, these can be collapsed when empty to save significant space. They are commonly used for temporary storage and transportation of goods at construction sites.
Material used for plastic crates
The most common plastics used for manufacturing crates include:
- Polypropylene (PP): Durable and impact resistant PP is lightweight yet sturdy making it an ideal choice. It possesses good chemical resistance properties too.
- High-density polyethylene (HDPE): HDPE crates are affordable, easy to mold and have excellent durability needed for heavy-duty applications.
Others like polyethelene (PE), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) are also used based on specific requirements.
Benefits of Plastic Crates
Strength to Weight Ratio: Plastic crates are up to 70% lighter than steel or wooden crates providing high payload capacity and easy handling. Their lightweight nature also lowers shipping costs.
- Durability: Modular plastic designs make them durable to withstand frequent use, impacts, bumps and weather elements. They can last for years of use with minimum maintenance requirements.
- Corrosion Resistance: Unlike metal, plastic does not rust, chip or corrode making it suitable for applications involving harsh chemicals, moisture or weather exposure.
- Hygienic: Smooth surfaces of plastic allow for easy cleaning which is crucial for food, pharmaceutical and other industries with strict hygiene standards.
- Affordable: Plastic molding enables mass production and coupled with their long lifecycle, plastic crates offer good value for money over the lifecycle.
- Customizable Designs: Plastic molding gives flexibility to manufacturers to create customized crate designs as per specific application and industrial requirements.
Major Applications of Plastic Crates
- Food & Beverages: Plastic crates are used by food producers, processors, packers and distributors for transportation and storage of products right from farms to retail shelves.
- Pharmaceuticals: Their sturdy yet lightweight modular designs make plastic crates ideal for efficient handling of medicines, medical equipment and other supplies within pharma companies and distribution networks.
- Automotive: Original equipment manufacturers and auto part suppliers use plastic crates for efficient parts transportation and handling within their supply chains.
- Chemicals: The corrosion resistant properties of plastic crates allow their safe use for chemical transportation and storage.
- Consumer Goods: Everything from home appliances to consumer electronics are transported and shipped in plastic crates by retailers, manufacturers and logistics companies.
- Agriculture: Plastic crates play a crucial role in post-harvest handling and transportation of fruits and vegetables from farms to consumers.
Market Outlook
The global plastic crates market has been growing steadily and is expected to witness further expansion in the coming years due to rising demand from major end use industries like food and beverage processing, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, consumer goods and automotive. Developing economies with rapidly growing middle class like Asia Pacific and Latin America are expected to dominate market demand going forward. Innovation towards lightweight designs for higher load capacity and development of reusable plastic crates with tracking solutions for enhancing supply chain efficiencies will be major market drivers.