Trac-Rite Door, a Sun Prairie, Wis., subsidiary of Trachte Building Systems, needed reliable, cost-efficient protection for its quality roll-up doors. The company was using micro-foam and wood slats to palletize its product. The doors, which are primarily used for self-storage units, are shipped via ground transportation. Callbacks due to dented doors were a recurring problem. Trac-Rite turned to Rollguard.
“We had to meet two main design requirements for the Trac-Rite cradles,” said Gary Lawell, inside sales representative for Rollguard. “First, they had to have the correct radius in order to perfectly match the door profile, thereby ensuring each door would rest securely in place without shifting. Second, we needed to keep the doors from bumping together. Maintaining the integrity of a palletized load is easy when it’s not moving. But that’s certainly not the case when it’s shipped cross-country.”
Lawell presented Trac-Rite with a cost-effective solution to meet their needs: two unique configurations of Rollguard Recycled Fiber roll cradles. Each features a 14-inch radius and an approximate length of 44 inches. The cradle for the base is a single-sided piece that sits flat and widthwise on the pallet to hold the first layer of three doors. The second is double-sided and fits between subsequent layers. A single-sided layer of cradles tops the finished pallet. Trac-Rite ships up to 17 doors per pallet.
To maximize stability and minimize shifting, each palletized load is stretch wrapped. The tension of the plastic wrap unitizes the load, reducing the rattling that can cause dents while protecting the doors from weather damage.
“We’ve seen a significant drop in the number of callbacks due to product damage in shipping,” said Mike McCabe, director of production control at Trac-Rite Door. “Even our installers are saying they’re very impressed with the good condition of the doors.”
The shift to Recycled Fiber roll cradles has also streamlined the palletizing process. Operators save time building pallets by placing roll cradles, rather than micro-foam and wood slats. And because they are 100 percent recyclable packaging, the cradles help reduce the amount of construction-related material going to landfills.
“Being able to bring our doors to market without having to incur damage-related callbacks truly gives us a competitive advantage,” explained McCabe. “But it’s just as important to protect the faith our customers have in each of our doors. Rollguard’s roll cradles give us that edge.
“Our switch to the Rollguard cradles is a win-win situation from every perspective,” McCabe continued. “We’ve found a cost-effective protective packaging solution that helps us get our product to market in great shape.”
