www.truckandtrack.com Summer 2024 Truck and Track 41 PALLET NETWORKS Paul Sanders, Chairman of the Association of Pallet Networks 2024 marketplace stable The Association of Pallet Networks (APN) has published its sector statistics for Q1 2024, showing a stable market due to an early Easter. More details about pallet network performance can be found at the APN website Key points include: ■ Total volumes for Q1 0.5% lower than 2023 due to early Easter ■ Quarter pallets have increased against 2023 ■ The number of consignments has grown marginally over 2023 APN’s report for Q1 2024 pallet network performance shows a stable marketplace, with slight contractions in most pallet sizes and the number of pallets per consignment. Total pallet volumes dropped by 0.5% against Q1 2023, which is probably due to the very early Easter date. Easter is traditionally networks’ busiest time, usually coinciding with better weather and higher orders for construction, landscape and home improvement products. APN chairman Paul Sanders says, “The figures for Q1 2024 show only minor market shifts and adjustments, in stark contrast to the volatility of 2020 to 2022. This is good news, as the sector can better plan for stable and continuous volume than for sudden surges.” Next Day volumes in Q1 2024 were 0.3% higher than Q1 2023, but economy volumes in Q1 were 1.0% lower. However, there has been a very slight shift towards the use of economy services, which now comprise 39% of customer choices. To date in 2024, only quarter pallets have seen growth compared to 2023 volumes, increasing by 1.2%. Full pallets account for 48.5% of the volume, 29.1% are half pallets, with quarter pallets making up the remaining 22.4%. YTD consignments have grown by +0.3% compared to Q1 2023. The average number of pallets per consignment has fallen slightly to 1.42. Over 15% of all pallets were delivered to residential addresses (B2C) in Q1 2024, a 0.6% reduction on the same period in 2023. The delivery of full and quarter pallets to residential customers increased. 57% of B2C quarter pallets – ie smaller consignments – are delivered on a Next Day service. Trunk capacity utilisation has decreased in Q1 to an average 72.4%, with trunk trailer movements increasing by 9.9% since 2023. However, the pallet network model remains one of the most efficient for vehicle utilisation, considerably above the industry average. Service levels Service levels have remained at an average 96.7% of consignments delivered within the specified service criteria. Premium services remain popular, with more than 17% of next day deliveries being booked against a timed delivery window. Safety Safety remains a key focus for all the UK’s pallet networks, led by the APN Health and Safety Forum. Hub based incidents have been driven down for six consecutive years by a continuous programme of best practice education. Q1 2024 continued this trend. Across all networks there was a 16.7% reduction in accidents to the end of Q1, with an average of 0.43 accidents per 100,000 pallets delivered. www.theapn.co.uk TRUCK & TRAILER SOLUTIONS WELCOME TOALLPORTS GROUP allportsgroup.co.uk
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