Pallet Testing
Poor pallet packaging can have costly consequences. With pallet testing, we can measure the strength, durability, and overall functionality of your pallets to ensure they provide stable support throughout your shipping & handling process. This hands-on approach gives us valuable insights into how your pallet performs, especially when changes are made to materials, design, or production placement. Whether focusing on individual elements or the entire packaging system, pallet testing helps us validate that your pallet can handle the demands of transportation, ensuring your products stay safe and secure.
What is Pallet Testing?
Ensuring Pallet Strength & Durability with ASTM D1185
Will your pallet support and protect your packaged products from point A to point B? Pallet testing assures that your pallets can hold full unit loads of product throughout transportation and storage. Using our ISO-accredited laboratory, our experts evaluate your pallets’ strength, durability, and functionality. Guided by ASTM D1185, our methodology involves rigorous testing in a controlled environment, where we simulate the forces pallets will experience during distribution, handling, and storage, including drops, impacts, and vibrations.
We can test both single or multiple-use pallets, analyzing both their structural materials and their design to determine their safe working load. We can also help you uncover opportunities for design optimization, cost efficiency, and greater sustainability.
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Testing for Pallet Durability
Purple Diamond’s dedicated Pallet Testing Lab analyzes pallet durability by testing in compliance with ASTM D1185 (Standard Test Methods for Pallets and Related Structures Employed in Materials Handling and Shipping) and ISO 8611-1 (Pallets for Materials Handling – Flat Pallets). During our comprehensive testing, we will evaluate the durability of the whole pallet, individual pallet components, and unit loads.
Pallet Testing
- Vibration Test – Vibration can affect the stability, quality, and performance of unit loads and pallets. We use state-of-the-art vibration tables to test pallet durability during physical distribution.
- Drop Test – We perform free-fall drop tests from varying heights in accordance with section ASTM 9.1. Drop tests simulate the shocks that may be encountered during physical or mechanical handling.
- Incline Impact Test – Our lab features an Incline Impact Tester that can test the weight and impact of a full unit load on a pallet. Incline testing, similar to drop testing, simulates the movements of transit and the shocks that are possible.
Evaluating Pallet Components
- Compression Test – At Purple Diamond, we conduct static compression tests, which distributes weight which is fully supported by the surface underneath. These compressions will show the maximum unit load weight that your pallet can withstand.
- Bending Test – Bending tests help assess the long term durability of your pallet. By performing dynamic compression tests where the pallet is only partially supported while subjected to active stressors, we mirror the elevated movement in transit using a forklift.
- Fastener Withdrawal Test – Keeping pallets together is vital for the safe arrival of products and unit loads. Testing nails and staple fasteners through withdrawal and lateral resistance, comparisons can be made between which work best for each pallet design. Fasteners in wood are tested to ASTM D1761 guidelines.
Unit Loads
- Packaged Goods Testing – By placing packaged goods on a pallet and conducting testing, pallets are monitored for their strength and durability. Purple Diamond can test full unit loads according to ASTM D1185 and ISO 8611 standards.
- Strapping/Banding Tests – Some unit loads require strapping or banding to keep products intact throughout transit. We test the strength of these straps and bands through compression and vibration.
- Stretch Film Testing – Wrapping unit loads in stretch film is the most versatile and common material for full load utilization. Stretch film can adapt to the imperfect loads that may not be perfectly square.
Improve the Safety and Stability of Your Pallets
Ensure your pallets deliver reliable performance every step of the way. Let our expert team help you validate their strength and durability with comprehensive pallet testing.
Why Purple Diamond?
For nearly two decades, our expert engineers at Purple Diamond have helped countless organizations validate the strength and durability of their pallets, ensuring they support their products during shipping & handling. Using vibration testing, drop testing, and more, our team can analyze your pallet’s materials and design, consulting on ways in which you can optimize efficiency, strength, and cost. In accordance with both ASTM and ISO standards, we’re here to help ensure that your pallets can hold and support full unit loads of products throughout transit. Whether you’re using single or multiple-use pallets, our pallet testing services will deliver the accurate, data-driven results you need to transport your products with confidence.

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Looking for a Packaging Partner?
Whether you’re looking for a team of experts to engineer your new packaging product for optimal sustainability, or seeking a team who can ensure your products stay safe and secure during transport, Purple Diamond can help.