Unit
Load - "A single item, a number of items, or bulk material
which is arranged and restrained so that the load can be stored,
picked up, and moved between two locations as a single mass."
(Tanchoco)
Continuing Partnership
with NWPCA
The partnership
between Virginia Tech and the National
Wooden Pallet & Container Association (NWPCA) resulted
in the initial funding by NWPCA for the William H. Sardo, Jr.
Pallet & Container Research Laboratory, established at Virginia
Tech in 1976. Since then, Virginia Tech has provided technical
support and educational
programs on behalf of NWPCA members.
The partnership also resulted in the Pallet
Design System, developed by Virginia Tech and owned by NWPCA.
PDS, a reliability-based, computer-assisted pallet design program,
has gained wide acceptance in this country and throughout the
world as a tool for improving unit load material handling efficiency.
