What Are Crating Services? Crating services involve the construction of custom crates or wood packaging to ensure your heavy parts, kitted assembly, or unique equipment are transported and/or stored safely and that throughout the entire process they are protected and remain completely intact.
Depending on your project requirements a crating company can alter the size, framing, shape, load capacity and other elements of a crate or wood boxes specifically to accommodate the items being transported or stored. In addition to custom crating, many crating companies also offer export crating, industrial crating, custom pallets, wood boxes, skids, kit packs and more.
Crating Companies such as Export Corporation are particularly adept at creating crates and packaging for military applications. We’ll make sure your package is fully compliant with relevant codes and specs. This includes MIL-STD-2073-1D, Mil-Spec, MIL-STD-129P, MIL-STD-1186, ASTM, and more.
When packing a crate for shipment there is some key information that will help determine the level of packing your parts or equipment requires:
What is the weight of the contents and where is the center of gravity? This will help determine how the parts or equipment need to be secured inside the crate with lumber for blocking and bracing as well as fastening everything down to the base of the crate.
Where is the crate being shipped and what are the methods of transport? If it is crossing the equator in a sea container, bare metal surfaces or equipment will need to be vacuum packed in a film foil bag or VCI poly in order to prevent rust. Damage often occurs during shipping so properly engineering and packing a crate is essential.
Crates can be reusable if they are engineered and built to handle multiple trips. Reusable crates require heavy duty materials than a crate intended for one way shipment. A reusable or returnable crates are constructed out of denser plywood and framing to withstand all types of handling. They are also put together with heavy duty fasteners and bolts to keep everything tightly bound together.
In order to make sure your parts or equipment arrive at the end destination safely, quality engineering and materials will determine the overall price. You get what you pay for rings true in the packaging world. Cheap crates can come apart during shipping which may lead to a damaged product. We offer peace of mind with our 70+ years creating custom packaging solutions.
There are many types of wood that are used for making crates. Plywood and OSB sheets are common for the sides and top of a shipping crate. Many of which are then framed with 1×4 or 2×4 boards on the inside or outside for structural support.
The deck of a crate is typically constructed with 2x lumber boards or a sheet of plywood depending on how the contents is fastened down.
We only use Heat Treated lumber and we are certified to make ISPM-15 Heat Treat certified crates, pallets, skids and wood boxes. Any of our wood packaging can be used for international shipment.
At our crating company, we design and manufacture dunnage to protect fragile equipment and parts from extreme shipping conditions. Custom foam products, kit packs, plastic pieces and carpet can all avoid moisture and shock issues while your products are being transported. These services allow you to send a single piece locally or an order for millions of small components across the globe.
Understanding the unique industry requirements which pertain to crating and shipping is essential. When it comes to industrial crating, ensuring your parts and equipment are safely packaged and meet all the required standards, specifications and guidelines is our number one priority. Here are some common industries that our team supplies wood packaging and crating services for:
ISPM 15 crates must meet certain standards set forth by the International Plant Protection Convention. These standards are intended to stop insects and disease within wood crating from being shipped to other countries when packages are traveling internationally.
Wood materials must be debarked and heat treated or fumigated to kill any lingering contamination. Once treated, wood will be stamped with a seal that says it meets the ISPM 15 standard.
Reliable crating services require precision engineering and attention to detail. Work with one of the leading crating companies in Michigan with over 70 years of designing wood boxes, crates and pallets for a wide variety of industries.
With decades of experience and the military-spec certifications you need, our custom crating company is a clear choice for packaging and crating services in your industry. Whether you know all the necessary specifications for military, automotive, aerospace and commercial crating or are sending your first Department of Defense shipment, be sure you work with a Michigan based crating company that understands the necessary components for a safe shipment.