Thermoforming (plastic pallets)
Also called: thermoformed pallet, twin-sheet thermoforming, vacuum forming
Thermoforming heats a plastic sheet and pulls it over a mold with vacuum or pressure. Single-sheet thermoformed pallets are light and nestable; twin-sheet pallets fuse two formed sheets into a stiffer, hollow structure.
In depth: Plastic pallets: types, materials, load ratings and how to buy them
Thermoforming uses extruded sheet rather than molten resin, and a one-sided mold rather than a closed steel tool. That keeps tooling cheap, which is why thermoforming is a realistic route to a custom plastic pallet.
Single-sheet vs twin-sheet
| Single-sheet | Twin-sheet | |
|---|---|---|
| Build | One formed sheet | Two sheets formed and fused, sometimes with steel or wood inside |
| Weight | Light | Heavier |
| Typical use | Nestable, export, one-way | Heavy duty, rackable options |
| Load class (vendor guidance) | Up to about 1,500 lb (680 kg), more with reinforcement | About 1,500 to 3,000 lb (680 to 1,360 kg) |
| Tooling | Lowest | About 1.8 to 2.2 × single-sheet |
These figures are industry guidance from thermoformers, not standard values. Ratings depend on the design and test method.
Why it matters
Thermoforming fills the gap between catalog injection-molded pallets and fully custom ones. Generic thermoform tools are quoted in the thousands to tens of thousands of dollars, and vendors describe twin-sheet as economic from roughly 1,000 to 50,000 pallets a year. It suits special footprints, product-locating features and closed-loop programs.
On a spec sheet
State the footprint, height, deck features, base, entry, loads, temperature, and annual volume, since volume decides whether a new tool is justified.
Related
- GlossaryInjection molding (plastic pallets)Injection molding forces molten plastic into a closed steel mold under high pressure. It produces most catalog plastic pallets with tight dimensions and fast cycles, but a new pallet mold only pays off at very high volumes.
- GlossaryRotational molding (plastic pallets)Rotational molding (rotomolding) makes hollow, one-piece plastic parts by rotating a heated mold filled with powdered resin. Rotomolded pallets are thick-walled and durable, with cheap tooling but slow cycles and a high piece price.
- GlossaryHDPE (high-density polyethylene)HDPE (high-density polyethylene) is the most common resin for plastic pallets. It stays tough at low temperatures, which suits freezers and cold chains, but it is less stiff than polypropylene, which matters for rack deflection.
- TypesPlastic pallets: types, materials, load ratings and how to buy themA plastic pallet is a molded or fabricated pallet made from HDPE or polypropylene. Types range from light nestable pallets (about 14–30 lb) to reinforced rackable pallets (about 35–70 lb). They are washable, ISPM 15 exempt and long-lived, cost several times more than wood, and carry three separate load ratings.
- GuidesPlastic pallet buying guide: styles, resins, ratings and costChoose a plastic pallet by how it is handled and stored: nestable for cheap one-way use, stackable for floor stacking, rackable for open-beam racking. Compare static, dynamic and racking ratings only when the test standard and support match. New US prices run about $40–200 (2026 estimates).
More in Materials
- GlossaryBark (on pallet lumber)Bark is the outer layer of a tree trunk. ISPM 15 requires wood packaging to be made from debarked wood, allowing only small remnants: pieces under 3 cm wide of any length, or wider pieces with a surface area under 50 cm².
- GlossaryCant (pallet lumber)A cant is a log that has been sawn flat on two or four sides. In the pallet industry it usually means the low-grade center of a hardwood log, left after grade lumber is cut from the outside, which is resawn into pallet parts.
- GlossaryComposite block (pallet)A composite block is a pallet block made from wood chips, particles or fibers bonded with resin under heat and pressure. It does not split like solid wood and, as processed wood, is exempt from ISPM 15 on its own.
- GlossaryCorrugated fiberboard (pallets and slip sheets)Corrugated fiberboard is a board made of a fluted paper medium glued between flat paper liners. It is used for boxes, and in pallet work for corrugated paper pallets, slip sheets, tier sheets and pallet runners.
- GlossaryCut stock (pallet components)Cut stock is lumber already sawn to the finished thickness, width and length of pallet parts, such as 5/8 × 3-1/2 × 40 in deckboards, ready for nailing. It is also called pallet stock or shook.
- GlossaryDouglas-fir (pallet lumber)Douglas-fir is a dense, strong softwood from western North America, also grown in Europe. It is species class 11 (Douglas-fir–larch) in the Uniform Standard and PDS, and class 33 in the European species list.
Last reviewed 2026-09-24. 222 words.