Do you know your pallet ABCs?

The logistics world has plenty of specialized lingo. Newcomers probably have to Google terms like AMR, LTL, 3PL, and WMS. But many people would be surprised to find how much terminology there is to learn when it comes to the basic shipping pallet.

That’s because those people have not yet visited the website of Girard Wood Products Inc., a Puyallup, Washington-based pallet provider. The company offers a glossary of 43 pallet terms, ranging from phrases like “annular nail” and “single-wing pallet” to acronyms such as ISPM-15 and RAS. (Go ahead, look them up.)

“Pallets are much more than simple slabs of wood, nailed together and thrown on a pile,” the Girard website says. “While it’s true that they have no moving parts, they are still manufactured to suit a specific purpose and everything from the type of wood that is used, to the nails, and even the fork entry is carefully selected and controlled for quality.”

According to Girard, its pallet primer can help familiarize customers with the business vocabulary associated with package design as well as make the pallet-ordering process faster and more accurate. And with terminology like “branding notch,” “block pallet,” and “chamfered deckboards” to master, you might want to get started now.