PalletTrader Surpasses One Million Pallet Transactions, Expands Offering Launch of PalletTrader+
Online collaboration platform reaches one million transaction milestone in less than eight months of operation. PalletTrader+ launched as new “managed service” to complement, expand capabilities of original “do it yourself” ecommerce site
SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ – JUNE 21, 2023 – PalletTrader, which launched last October as a new online platform designed and built exclusively for the sourcing, buying and selling of pallets, has expanded its product offering with the launch of PalletTrader+. The launch coincides with the platform this month surpassing one million pallet transactions in its first eight months of operation.
PalletTrader+ is a “managed service” offering, combining an industry-standard online collaboration platform and digital transaction processing, with dedicated resources and expertise to manage pallet sourcing, acquisition and supply on behalf of a business.
The offering responds to demand from enterprise customers who typically are operating more complex supply chains with multiple manufacturing and distribution sites needing consistent pallet supply, and want a more comprehensive “outsourced” solution, noted John Vaccaro, president of Bettaway Supply Chain Services, which built and operates PalletTrader as an independent, neutral ecommerce site.
“This is the natural evolution of a marketplace,” explained Vaccaro. “PalletTrader+ is for those large enterprises who want to take advantage of dynamic market procurement opportunities but don’t want to staff or manage it,” he explained. “They want a hybrid model where they have control but engage with a dedicated expert specialist to operate and execute the function for them at arm’s length.”
Vaccaro noted that PalletTrader+ is following a familiar logistics outsourcing playbook. “It’s the same concept as a business hiring a third-party logistics provider to source and manage their freight trucking needs or operate a warehouse on their behalf.” Typically, a managed services client would provide a daily, weekly or monthly forecast of pallet needs. The PalletTrader+ team would then do the blocking and tackling to execute that plan, coordinating and communicating regularly with the client to manage and address changing needs.
Vaccaro noted that the platform was initially built and launched as a comprehensive self-service tool, enabling the hundreds of mom-and-pop pallet depot operators, typically sellers of pallets, to digitally engage with a wide range of buyers and gain access to new buyers. This market segment had little to no access to ecommerce technology to streamline the buying and selling of pallets. At the same time, he anticipated that as the platform gained traction, a market would emerge among larger customers for a next-level service.
“Reaching one million pallet transactions in less than eight months, and successfully onboarding hundreds of pallet buyers and sellers during that time, far exceeded our expectations,” Vaccaro said. “As we got more feedback from users, it was clear that larger businesses were interested in a more robust offering, providing a planning and execution component that they could launch quickly, and leverage value from both enabling technology, and skilled personnel with deep market expertise. That’s what we’re providing with PalletTrader+.”
The other key “ask” that Vaccaro and his team received from corporate users, was for larger enterprises to have a credit option. In the current “do it yourself” model, buyers and sellers post, bid, negotiate, settle a sale and execute payment immediately as a single transaction.
With PalletTrader+, qualified corporate users gain access to a line of credit. Under this program, the platform captures and consolidates all pallet transaction activity. The system then sends a consolidated invoice capturing all activity during the designated period.
“This offering is good for any company that operates or is responsible for pallets at multiple locations and is especially ideal for those businesses that operate in both a company owned and outsourced warehouse co-pack network,” Vaccaro concluded.
Bettaway funded, built and is operating PalletTrader as an independent, neutral online business platform, enabling and streamlining the digital trading and sale of pallets in a collaborative, secure eCommerce environment, providing its user community with workflows and tools to drive new efficiencies into pallet supply and management.
For more information about PalletTrader and PalletTrader+, please visit us at www.pallettrader.com, phone us at (877) 777-7495 or email to support@pallettrader.com.
About Bettaway Supply Chain Services and PalletTrader South Plainfield, NJ-based Bettaway is an integrated material handling, transportation, and supply chain management company. Bettaway is an industry leader in pallet management solutions, delivering a managed service program built on an active network of some 550 facilities, and an active supplier database of 1,200, providing a centralized suite of pallet services. The company also provides quality transportation with its own dedicated fleets on both the east and west coasts, and national 3PL network. Value-added services include a full-scope warehouse operation with a variety-pack line, e-commerce fulfillment and distribution management for beverage and other CPG products, as well as supply chain consulting services. Bettaway also is the founder and operator of PalletTrader, the supply chain industry’s first collaborative eCommerce marketplace for online posting, buying, selling and delivery of white wood pallets. Visit us at www.bettaway.com.
Congestion on U.S. highways is costing the trucking industry big, according to research from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), released today.
The group found that traffic congestion on U.S. highways added $108.8 billion in costs to the trucking industry in 2022, a record high. The information comes from ATRI’s Cost of Congestion study, which is part of the organization’s ongoing highway performance measurement research.
Total hours of congestion fell slightly compared to 2021 due to softening freight market conditions, but the cost of operating a truck increased at a much higher rate, according to the research. As a result, the overall cost of congestion increased by 15% year-over-year—a level equivalent to more than 430,000 commercial truck drivers sitting idle for one work year and an average cost of $7,588 for every registered combination truck.
The analysis also identified metropolitan delays and related impacts, showing that the top 10 most-congested states each experienced added costs of more than $8 billion. That list was led by Texas, at $9.17 billion in added costs; California, at $8.77 billion; and Florida, $8.44 billion. Rounding out the top 10 list were New York, Georgia, New Jersey, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, and Tennessee. Combined, the top 10 states account for more than half of the trucking industry’s congestion costs nationwide—52%, according to the research.
The metro areas with the highest congestion costs include New York City, $6.68 billion; Miami, $3.2 billion; and Chicago, $3.14 billion.
ATRI’s analysis also found that the trucking industry wasted more than 6.4 billion gallons of diesel fuel in 2022 due to congestion, resulting in additional fuel costs of $32.1 billion.
ATRI used a combination of data sources, including its truck GPS database and Operational Costs study benchmarks, to calculate the impacts of trucking delays on major U.S. roadways.
DAT Freight & Analytics has acquired Trucker Tools, calling the deal a strategic move designed to combine Trucker Tools' approach to load tracking and carrier sourcing with DAT’s experience providing freight solutions.
Beaverton, Oregon-based DAT operates what it calls the largest truckload freight marketplace and truckload freight data analytics service in North America. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but DAT is a business unit of the publicly traded, Fortune 1000-company Roper Technologies.
Following the deal, DAT said that brokers will continue to get load visibility and capacity tools for every load they manage, but now with greater resources for an enhanced suite of broker tools. And in turn, carriers will get the same lifestyle features as before—like weigh scales and fuel optimizers—but will also gain access to one of the largest networks of loads, making it easier for carriers to find the loads they want.
Trucker Tools CEO Kary Jablonski praised the deal, saying the firms are aligned in their goals to simplify and enhance the lives of brokers and carriers. “Through our strategic partnership with DAT, we are amplifying this mission on a greater scale, delivering enhanced solutions and transformative insights to our customers. This collaboration unlocks opportunities for speed, efficiency, and innovation for the freight industry. We are thrilled to align with DAT to advance their vision of eliminating uncertainty in the freight industry,” Jablonski said.
Global trade will see a moderate rebound in 2025, likely growing by 3.6% in volume terms, helped by companies restocking and households renewing purchases of durable goods while reducing spending on services, according to a forecast from trade credit insurer Allianz Trade.
The end of the year for 2024 will also likely be supported by companies rushing to ship goods in anticipation of the higher tariffs likely to be imposed by the coming Trump administration, and other potential disruptions in the coming quarters, the report said.
However, that tailwind for global trade will likely shift to a headwind once the effects of a renewed but contained trade war are felt from the second half of 2025 and in full in 2026. As a result, Allianz Trade has throttled back its predictions, saying that global trade in volume will grow by 2.8% in 2025 (reduced by 0.2 percentage points vs. its previous forecast) and 2.3% in 2026 (reduced by 0.5 percentage points).
The same logic applies to Allianz Trade’s forecast for export prices in U.S. dollars, which the firm has now revised downward to predict growth reaching 2.3% in 2025 (reduced by 1.7 percentage points) and 4.1% in 2026 (reduced by 0.8 percentage points).
In the meantime, the rush to frontload imports into the U.S. is giving freight carriers an early Christmas present. According to Allianz Trade, data released last week showed Chinese exports rising by a robust 6.7% y/y in November. And imports of some consumer goods that have been threatened with a likely 25% tariff under the new Trump administration have outperformed even more, growing by nearly 20% y/y on average between July and September.
Declaring that it is furthering its mission to advance supply chain excellence across the globe, the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) today announced the launch of seven new International Roundtables.
The new groups have been established in Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Toronto, Panama City, Lisbon, and Sao Paulo. They join CSCMP’s 40 existing roundtables across the U.S. and worldwide, with each one offering a way for members to grow their knowledge and practice professional networking within their state or region. Overall, CSCMP roundtables produce over 200 events per year—such as educational events, networking events, or facility tours—attracting over 6,000 attendees from 3,000 companies worldwide, the group says.
“The launch of these seven Roundtables is a testament to CSCMP’s commitment to advancing supply chain innovation and fostering professional growth globally,” Mark Baxa, President and CEO of CSCMP, said in a release. “By extending our reach into Latin America, Canada and enhancing our European Union presence, and beyond, we’re not just growing our community—we’re strengthening the global supply chain network. This is how we equip the next generation of leaders and continue shaping the future of our industry.”
The new roundtables in Mexico City and Monterrey will be inaugurated in early 2025, following the launch of the Guadalajara Roundtable in 2024, said Javier Zarazua, a leader in CSCMP’s Latin America initiatives.
“As part of our growth strategy, we have signed strategic agreements with The Logistics World, the largest logistics publishing company in Latin America; Tec Monterrey, one of the largest universities in Latin America; and Conalog, the association for Logistics Executives in Mexico,” Zarazua said. “Not only will supply chain and logistics professionals benefit from these strategic agreements, but CSCMP, with our wealth of content, research, and network, will contribute to enhancing the industry not only in Mexico but across Latin America.”
Likewse, the Lisbon Roundtable marks the first such group in Portugal and the 10th in Europe, noted Miguel Serracanta, a CSCMP global ambassador from that nation.
In response to booming e-commerce volumes, investors are currently building $9 billion worth of warehousing and distribution projects under construction in the U.S., with nearly 25% of the activity attributed to one company alone—Amazon.
The measure comes from a report by the Texas-based market analyst firm Industrial Info Resources (IIR), which said that Amazon is responsible for $2 billion in warehousing and distribution projects across the U.S., buoyed by the buildout of fulfillment centers--facilities that help process orders and ship products directly to end customers, ensuring deliveries of online goods from retailers to buyers.
That investment is inspired by U.S. Census Bureau data showing $300.1 billion in a preliminary estimate of U.S. retail e-commerce sales for third-quarter 2024, adjusted for seasonal variation but not for price changes, compared to $287.5 million in the first quarter, and an increase of 7.4% compared with third-quarter 2023. In addition, e-commerce sales accounted for 16.2% of total retail sales in the third quarter of this year, the report said.