Start with the right pallet
Use a sound standard 48x40 skid. Cracked stringers and protruding nails cause more in-transit failures than almost anything else, and a damaged pallet base guarantees a damaged load.
Stack for stability, not just volume
Column stacking carries weight best; interlocking resists shifting. Keep heavy items on the bottom, keep the load square to the skid, and never let cartons overhang the edges.
Wrap properly
Use at least five full rotations of stretch wrap, anchoring the bottom rotation around the pallet deck itself. Wrapping only the product creates a load that slides off its base on the first hard brake.
Label every side
Place labels on at least two sides at eye level. In a busy cross-dock, an unlabelled or bottom-labelled skid is a skid that gets missorted.
Measure and weigh accurately
Measure to the outermost point including wrap and overhang, and weigh the skid rather than estimating. Inaccurate dimensions are the number one source of post-delivery billing adjustments in Canadian LTL.
Plan for the season
Winter adds transit variance on prairie and mountain lanes. If a delivery date is firm, build a buffer day into your schedule or move the freight as a direct full truckload.