Fully loaded timber: CJD Equipment

Direct Pallets & Recycling are working to address the problem of wood waste with sturdy machinery from CJD Equipment.

Virtually every manufacturer deals with the issue of waste timber in the form of pallets. Despite their natural resource status, wood pallets are difficult to dispose of and take up significant landfill space.

According to the NSW EPA, approximately 140,000 tonnes of waste wood pallets and crates are sent to landfill each year in Sydney alone.

That said, the problem of wood waste is not being ignored, with proactive resource recovery work through organisations such as the Forest Stewardship Council and private businesses like Direct Pallets & Recycling.

Direct Pallets is a closed loop pallet provider that sells new, near new and fully recycled pallets. To complete the circle, Direct Pallets also shreds excess waste timber to manufacture fully recycled animal bedding, biofuels and garden mulch.

Rob James, Direct Pallets & Recycling Managing Director, says it’s not an over exaggeration to say his company handles a million pallets each year. He adds that 80 per cent of the pallets they sell are manufactured with fully recycled timber.

“Many clients will receive new or recycled pallets through us and then backload our trucks with old pallets for recycling,” Rob says.

Rob started Direct Pallets 25 years ago when he was 23 years old. He says the initial focus was metal recycling, before the company turned its attention to timber.

“Our 10,000-square metre site in Ingleburn NSW handles a near constant flow of trucks, with some dropping pallets off for refurbishing or recycling and others picking new ones up,” he says.

To keep the flow going, Rob says he relies on simple but sturdy equipment.

“We have eight-wheeler hook bin trucks, specialised walking floor trucks, flat top trucks, forklifts, excavators and two large LG946L SDLG wheel loaders,” he explains.

“We purchased the loaders from CJD Equipment after successfully working with them in the past.”

CJD is an Australian owned distributor of construction equipment and trucks for a variety of manufacturing and waste disposal industries.

CJD’s product portfolio includes multiple industry leading brands, such as Volvo, Kenworh, DAF and Fuso.

Rob says being aware of CJD’s long list of international distribution deals made him confident in the company’s ability to provide a loader that met his requirements.

“The SDLG wheel loader is a simple piece of equipment that’s ideal for loading and unloading loose material such as shredded wood.”

The SDLG loader supplied by CJD has high roll buckets, which Direct Pallets uses to load mulch into trucks for transport and reinforce pallet stockpiles.

The wheel loader has a fully certified ROPS-FOPS rollover protection air-conditioned cab, with wraparound pillarless front and rear windscreens for clear visibility.

The SDLG also comes with a standard Volvo compatible quick hitch and general purpose bucket, with a bolt-on cutting edge designed to increase productivity.

According to Rob, the engine is high torque, high performance and fuel efficient, and connects to a tropical cooling package that allows it to work at full capacity in tough conditions.

Rob says he initially brought just one SDLG wheel loader from CJD. However, after watching the machine in action, he went back for a second.

“CJD has been great to work with, not just with supplying the loaders, but also with servicing and after-sales support,” Rob says.

“The comfort of having their back-up was a big influence on our decision to buy the first, and then second SDLG loader.”