Industry | Industrial Machinery & Equipment
How a Custom Crate Redesign Solved Three Costly Problems at Once
100%
Increased Panel Thickness
4
Targeted Design Changes
1
Custom Crate Design
SNAPSHOT
Industry Served: Industrial Machinery & Equipment
Products / Services Provided: Wooden Crates, Design Services
Challenge
An industrial equipment manufacturer faced multiple recurring issues with its shipping crates: pinching complaints from an awkward latch mechanism, crate fragility during transit and a lack of clear branding leading to mission-critical components being misplaced at job sites.
Solution
Millwood’s team met directly with plant managers to listen, observe and understand their pain points. Our design team then engineered a new crate from the ground up – one that was stronger, safer and fully customized to the customer’s workflow.
Results
The redesigned crates brought measurable results in the form of increased safety, durability and component visibility – directly addressing customer challenges with a solution still in use today.
A Problem Hidden in Plain Sight
This industrial equipment manufacturer relied on an off-the-shelf crating model to ship solid steel components to customer job sites. These supporting components played a small but significant role in their primary product’s final assembly process. The crates appeared functional and affordable at first, but created costly inefficiencies over time:
- Employees experienced uncomfortable pinching from metal clips on top of the crate as part of the tedious bending process required to secure each lid.
- The manufacturer worried these crates’ standard-duty panels were too flimsy to guarantee safe delivery of the loose metal components they were supposed to house.
- The crates were unmarked, which made them hard to identify among the other crates they were being shipped with, delaying the production process on job sites.
As production scaled, these issues compounded, threatening shipping reliability and employee morale. Company leadership recognized that a safer, smarter solution was needed – one that would support their teams and better protect the components these crates were purchased for.
Listening, Designing and Delivering the Right Solution
One of Millwood’s crating specialists initiated contact after identifying the company as a potential candidate for custom crating. Rather than offering a like-for-like replacement, we led with curiosity – visiting the plant and documenting the customer’s challenges before reporting back to our Design Services team.
The result was a crate tailored precisely to the manufacturer’s needs. Their custom design included:
- A plywood collar to shield latches and prevent impact damage;
- Increased material thickness for greater durability and panel integrity during transit;
- Integrated skids for tool-free handling and reduced assembly time; and
- Stenciled branding to ensure each crate could be identified during the final assembly process.
The new latch system allowed employees to open and close crates quickly using two twist latches – a major ergonomic improvement that eliminated pinching complaints and sped up packing operations.
Safer, Smarter, Stronger
The manufacturer noticed the difference immediately. Our consultative approach directly addressed pinching complaints, gave this client the assurance they needed to ship mission-critical ancillary components without the prospect of product loss and improved workflow on their customers’ job sites – thanks to greater visibility from stenciled branding.
What started as a series of costly, frustrating paint points became a streamlined, dependable system driving end-to-end operational efficiency.
Confidence Through Customization
Millwood’s approach proved that thoughtful design starts with listening. By combining technical expertise with hands-on partnership, we delivered a custom crate that solved real problems – improving safety, saving time and protecting valuable assets in every shipment.
Explore how Millwood can help with custom crate solutions that protect your people, products and bottom line.
Connect With an Expert Today
We understand that time is one of your most valuable assets; that’s why we work hard to provide every one of our clients with a systems-based approach to improving quality and reducing costs while increasing efficiency. Whether you are looking for a single product or need a more comprehensive solution, our business is to support and serve the needs of your business.
We work with each of our clients to:
- Listen to their current and upcoming needs.
- Determine which of our products and services fit their application best.
- Develop an integrated plan to help them succeed.
We look forward to talking with you to learn how our team can serve your business.
Read More Case Studies
Millwood and Litco partnered to redesign corner protection and custom crates, shipping 3.4 million linear feet annually with zero safety incidents and a 10% reduction in total cost per unit, streamlining the customer’s supply chain.
A leading logistics provider partnered with Millwood to streamline pallet operations across six sites, saving $750,000 annually and keeping over 300,000 pallets in use each year through repair and reuse.
Millwood engineered a new crate for an industrial equipment manufacturer, addressing safety, durability, and visibility issues. With targeted design improvements like thicker panels, protective collars, integrated skids, and stenciled branding, the solution improved employee safety, protected components in transit, and streamlined assembly workflows.
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