Reviewed by Lexie CornerFeb 23 2024
The Pallet LOOP today announces several strategic changes that will help advance the roll out of its circular economy green pallets, which are due to enter the UK construction sector in the coming months.
Image Credit: The Pallet LOOP
The Pallet LOOP is now officially part of BSW Group – the UK’s largest forestry and timber business. The move, which follows BSW’s acquisition of Scott Pallets, also sees The Pallet LOOP become a member of Binderholz – Europe’s leading timber processing operation. Paul Lewis remains at the helm of The Pallet LOOP as Founder and Managing Director.
He will work closely alongside his team to roll out an innovative business to business (B2B) pallet distribution and collection model that will shift the construction sector away from the current pallet practice of ‘deliver, distribute and discard’ to the more sustainable principles of ‘recover, repair, reuse.’ In doing so, The Pallet LOOP will be able to leverage BSW Group’s integrated supply chain capabilities, which span all aspects of timber production and processing from seed innovation and tree nurseries to forestry management and harvesting, sawmilling, timber product manufacturing, and carbon offsetting.
Ahead of the roll out of its green pallets, The Pallet LOOP is also announcing changes to its operating model, which are designed to benefit the entire building materials supply chain. To incentivise returns, The Pallet LOOP will now be offering registered return partners – typically merchants, distributors, principal contractors, and housebuilding companies – a PayBack of up to £4 for every green pallet they put back in the LOOP.
This financial incentive, which recognises best practice, will be in addition to the waste cost savings that those who receive pallets (end users – including general builders) will gain from the service. Holistically, The Pallet LOOP is designed to work out significantly more cost efficient than the current default approach, which sees the vast majority of pallets disposed of via wood skips after just one trip through the building materials supply chain.
In a further boost to The Pallet LOOP, Andy Williamson, former Commercial Director of SIG PLC, has joined the company as Director of Business Development. Andy joins The Pallet LOOP after working with the team for the last six months as a Non-Executive Director (NED). Over the past thirty years, Andy has held notable roles at some of the construction sector’s biggest organisations – including IKO, where he was Group Managing Director.
Paul Lewis, Founder and Managing Director of The Pallet LOOP, said: “It’s an incredibly exciting time at The Pallet LOOP. We are on the cusp of delivering a widespread shift in how building materials are moved around the UK. With a range of green pallets that are engineered to be used again and again, and a nationwide pallet collection service, The Pallet LOOP is designed to have a positive financial and environmental impact.
We are grateful that BSW have recognised the inherent value in our model and delighted to be part of a fully integrated supply chain that is committed to unlocking the full potential of timber, sustaining long-term growth for the construction industry and building a more sustainable world. I’d also like to thank Andy for his support and advocacy of our work. It’s great to have him on board to help amplify our voice and progress conversations with key players throughout the construction sector about our circular economy scheme.”
Mike Faulkner, Commercial Director at BSW Group, said: “We’re delighted to welcome LOOP as a member of BSW and Binderholz. A staggering 20 m pallets are manufactured for the UK construction industry every year, but less than 10 % of these are currently reused. As a major supplier into this sector, we want to do what we can to change this. Our values at BSW are aligned with those of LOOP, and we’re incredibly excited to drive positive change by incentivising customers to reduce waste and reuse pallets.
We’ve already been impressed by the growth and commitment of the business and are keen to build on the great work that Paul and his team have started. LOOP perfectly slots into BSW’s circular business model and we can’t wait to get going.”
Further information about when The Pallet LOOP’s green pallets will enter the market will be announced in the coming weeks. In the meantime, The Pallet LOOP is encouraging housebuilding companies, merchants, distributors, and principal contractors to register for an account with the business so they can take advantage of the PayBack on offer as soon as green pallets reach merchant branches, distribution hubs and building sites.
The Pallet LOOP’s pallet collection service is already up and running, with several large housebuilders and principal contractors using the scheme as a simple, cost-effective way of getting rid of single use pallets. So far, The Pallet LOOP has picked up more than 115,000 ‘white’ pallets from building sites nationwide – saving its collection customers around £450,000 in waste disposal costs; reducing waste volume by more than 23,000 m3; and cutting their collective carbon footprint by around 10 tonnes.
When its distinctive green pallets come on stream, The Pallet LOOP will continue to pick up single use pallets as part of a holistic service designed to reduce waste, repurpose timber and support the sector’s net zero ambitions. To sign up for collections and become an official return partner of green LOOP pallets, you need to register an account with The Pallet LOOP.