WCS: Jettainer’s lightweight pallet

Jettainer is developing a lightweight pallet that weighs 70 kg, around 32 kg lighter than a traditional PMC aluminium unit.
The Germany-based ULD management company says that the pallet is made of a composite material that is being applied for the first time in the aviation sector. It offers an alternative to using thinner aluminium bases in order to reduce weight.
The drawback with thinner bases is that they have to be specially reinforced when transporting heavy items.
Said Jettainer: “The particularly tough and stable material used for the new kind of pallet, manufactured with a sandwich design, is suitable for most cases without the need to use heavy-duty bases to stabilise the load. This ensures that the total weight is once again significantly lower.”
Jettainer is working exclusively with several partners in the development of the new lightweight pallet. The initial trial phase has already been completed.
A long-term test is taking place this month, within the context of selected road feeder services – initially in trucks with a roller bed – in order to obtain as realistic load results as possible.
“Our innovative products are being comprehensively tested in real conditions so that we can even use our customers’ feedback during the development phase,” says Carsten Hernig, managing director of Jettainer, a Lufthansa Cargo subsidiary.
He adds: “In the end we want to offer our customers a globally unique and perfect product that will only be available from Jettainer.”
Certification by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is due to take place in mid-2015. After this, the new lightweight pallets will create “significant fuel savings in the aviation sector”.
Jettainer has also introduced an upgrade for the company’s own IT solution, Jettware, for managing customers’ ULDs.
The new version, Jettware 2.0, “promises to provide a higher degree of user-friendliness, improved data quality and therefore greater efficiency” said Jettainer. 
Did you find this article of interest, if so why not register for a FREE digital subscription to Air Cargo News? – Find out more