Sustainability
iGPS offers the world’s first RFID-tagged all-plastic pallet pool. Working with shippers and receivers, we are truly revolutionizing today’s supply chain. Our business model has been created from the ground up with Sustainability as a cornerstone.
Good for Our Environment
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Proven to be environmentally superior
An independent study has documented that iGPS' all-plastic pallet is far superior for the environment than the typical multi-use wood pallet on all key dimensions, including global warning, ozone depletion and acidification.
For additional information, see the Life Cycle Analysis
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Protecting our forests
iGPS plastic pallets help to conserve our precious forests
Over the past 150 years, deforestation has contributed an estimated 30% of the atmospheric build-up of CO2, a major greenhouse gas.* Wood pallets have been a major factor in deforestation: Nearly 40% of all hard wood harvested in the U.S. is for pallets, about two-thirds of which are limited use, one-way pallets.**
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Reducing waste
iGPS plastic pallets are 100% recyclable and, unlike wood pallets, they will never clog landfills
Approximately 4.2 million tons of wood pallet materials were land-filled at municipal solid waste (MSW) facilities in the U.S. in 1995.*** This equals 1.4% of total waste and 19.6% of total wood waste deposited at MSW facilities.*** Should an iGPS pallet become damaged, it will simply be remolded into new ones, thus eliminating the wood pallet "disposal issue."
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Reducing transport pollution and saving fuel
iGPS is proud to be an EPA SmartWay SM Transport Partner.
The SmartWay Transport Partnership is an innovative collaboration between EPA and the freight sector designed to improve energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions, and improve energy security.
* Climate, Biodiversity, and Forests, World Resources Institute (1998)
** Department of Wood Science and Forest Products at Virginia Tech University
*** Wood Pallets and Landfills – Status and Opportunities for Economic Recovery and Recycling – USDA
Forest Service (1995)
Good for Our Economy
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Lower fuel and transport costs
At approximately 75 pounds each, wood pallets are 50% heavier that iGPS plastic pallets. This added weight translates into higher fuel and transportation costs. Replacing all wood pallets with iGPS plastic pallets would remove over 9 billion pounds of non-value-added weight from the nation’s supply chain.*
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Less damage to goods and equipment
Wood pallets are highly susceptible to damage, and wooden shards, splinters and protruding nails can and do damage goods and equipment, as well as interfere with automated retrieval systems. iGPS pallets are extremely durable, uniform in shape and size, and are ideal for automated environments.
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Enhanced visibility across the supply chain
iGPS pallets are embedded with quadruple-redundant Gen 2 RFID tags. When combined with our world-class information management system, shippers and receivers gain unprecedented visibility across the supply chain, facilitating efficient inventory management and shipment tracking.
* Based on the following industry statistics: 100 million pooled wood pallets x 3.7 trips per pallet = 370 million pallet trips per year in the U.S. x 25 (the difference in weight between a wood and iGPS plastic pallet) = 9.25 billion pounds
Good for Our Society
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Promoting hygiene
iGPS pallets are impervious to infestation, lowering the risk of cross-contamination
Unlike wood, which is inherently porous, our plastic pallets are immune to infestation. Moreover, they do not absorb moisture—an enemy of the wood pallet—or degrade in a wet environment.
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Fire Safety
iGPS pallets have been certified under UL 2335 (file no. R25482) and FM Approvals 4996, establishing a proven fire safety factor equal, or superior, to wood. In fact, UL testing documented that the iGPS pallet is significantly less flammable than pallets made of wood.
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Facilitating trade
Our pallets facilitate cross-border trade
Pallets made of raw untreated wood are not compliant with the IPCC. To comply, they must be subjected to heat treatment or chemical fumigation, adding cost and delay.
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Enhancing safety and security
RFID tracking adds a new level of supply chain visibility
From tracking weather conditions to aiding safety recalls to addressing Homeland Security issues, iGPS’s state-of-the-art RFID tracking capability adds a new, unprecedented level of visibility to both shippers and receivers across the supply chain.
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iGPS pallets are safer in the workplace
At less than 50 lbs., iGPS pallets are 30% lighter than wood pallets, which makes them significantly easier for one worker to lift and move. The ever-present risk of injury from protruding nails and splinters is eliminated, reducing costly injuries and workplace absences.
* Copesan Services, Inc., a major supplier of fumigation services across North America – fumigation costs can range from $175 - $500 per truck load.
