The buyer's job
A dock manager has two flows to balance. Inbound freight arrives on someone else's pallets, which pile up. Outbound freight leaves on pallets that must be sound. The cheapest solution is to sell the surplus that is not good enough and buy the grade that is.
Where this happens locally
The Northwest Quadrant holds about 70 percent of Salt Lake City's industrial inventory, according to KSL in 2026, and West Valley City has parcel and fulfillment yards. The Utah Inland Port Authority and its Tooele Valley and Twenty Wells project areas hint at more warehouse space along I-80. See the I-80 corridor.
| Task | Pallet | Page |
|---|---|---|
| Outbound to retailers | Grade A 48 x 40 | Grade A |
| Rack storage | Grade B | Grade B |
| Weekly empties | Sell back | Recurring dock surplus |
| Mixed pile | Describe and clear | Mixed loads |
Balancing two flows
A 3PL handles freight for many customers, and each customer sends its own pallet types. The result on the dock is a pile that is neither uniform nor predictable. The practical response is to describe the pile as a flow: how many arrive per week, what share is standard, and what share has to go.
- Keep a weekly count of empties.
- Keep a separate count of outbound pallets needed.
- Note any customer who dictates the pallet.
- Say whether clearing and buying will be done in the same visit.
The commonest mistake
A manager who asks only for "pallets" and gets a mixed stack back has not described the need. Name size, grade and count, and say that sorted stock matters.
Dock numbers worth keeping
Three numbers shape a pallet plan: empties in per week, good pallets needed out per week and the share of each that is a standard footprint. A fourth, the days of stock on hand, tells a supplier how quickly you need a reply. Write all four in a request and the picture is complete.
- Empties in per week.
- Good pallets out per week.
- Share that is standard 48 x 40.
- Days of stock on hand.
How many pallets are in the system
About half a billion pallets are made each year worldwide, and about two billion are in use in the United States. U.S. production was 513 million in 2025. Pallet production uses 43 percent of U.S. hardwood and 15 percent of its softwood, which is why sorting and reusing them matters at a warehouse that handles freight for many customers.