When cleanliness is the task, then cleanliness becomes a duty," says Walter Ahn, Managing Director of Wasto-Pac GmbH in Erftstadt. Folding vegetable crates run almost endlessly next to him through the fully automatic tunnel washer to be cleaned according to HACCP standards. Every hour, around 1,000 containers and pallets are hygienically prepared at the company headquarters and neatly packaged for transportation back to the customer. "Our focus and core expertise is on cleaning and repairing pallets and plastic containers," says Elena Ahn, who heads up customer service at the family business.

Looking for a durable and hygienic solution
Until recently, wooden pallets were still used for internal processes, for example for sorting or storage. However, the moisture and abrasion on the roller conveyors made the wooden pallets a source of dirt, which noticeably increased the workload. Wasto-Pac was looking for a more durable solution that was also cost-effective and more hygienic. They wanted a lightweight plastic half-pallet that would simplify delivery, sorting, cleaning and storage in the future. Particular attention was paid to stability and suitability for roller conveyors. Space-saving storage thanks to nestability and a low tare weight for easy handling were further requirements for the new pallet.

Lightweight pallet with RFID
Purus has found what it was looking for in its range of pallets: With a newly developed "Light" pallet in 60 x 80 cm format, the Fidus 806 9F. "Nine feet not only offer sufficient space for RFID tags, but also a secure stand and the required suitability for roller conveyors," assures Rainer Töws, Key Account Manager at Purus. The feather-light 2.9 kilogram tare weight will make work easier for Walter Ahn employees in the future. The new half pallet can carry two tons statically and 500 kilograms dynamically.

"Now we can place the various sorted crates on the half pallet and transport them by roller conveyor to the washing system, with much less dirt!" says Ahn enthusiastically, who also uses some of his new half pallets for storing cleaning chemicals. The first customers, who previously loaded their rigid crates loose on vans to Wasto-Pac, are also interested and it is possible to imagine using this pallet as a returnable pallet for transporting empties to and from the washing depot in the future. "Of course, wood has the image of being sustainable, but so does recycled plastic and Purus produces the raw materials itself through its in-house plastics processing. This is a cycle that no one else can offer us so easily," emphasizes Elena Ahn, referring to the growing number of inquiries regarding sustainable plastic pallets, as Wasto-Pac is increasingly taking on a retailer role.