Pallets in Ann Arbor
The University of Michigan is the county's largest employer, and the EPA's National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory and the Toyota Technical Center are here too.
What is here
- Largest employer
- University of Michigan, with its medical center
- Federal lab
- EPA National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory
- Automotive R&D
- Toyota Technical Center
- ZIPs
- 48103, 48104, 48105, 48106, 48107, 48108, 48109, 48113
A university campus buys, receives and surplus-sells in a pattern all its own: construction deliveries, laboratory supply, hospital stores and dozens of departments each running their own small dock.
Pallets from a campus
- Receiving docks with a mix of standard pallets from suppliers across the country.
- Laboratories with imported equipment on Euro pallets.
- Test centers with prototype parts on assorted sizes.
What makes a campus job different
Most departments do not know what they have until someone asks. A single request that lists the loading docks to be visited, with a contact for each, is better than a call per building. Because a pickup in Ann Arbor is farther from the main pallet routes, a bigger count makes it more worthwhile. Pickup lists what to send.
Questions from labs and hospitals
Our equipment came on a Euro pallet. Can we sell it?
Yes, to a buyer of Euro pallets. Say 800 x 1200 mm and send a photo.
A department has one pallet. Is it worth a call?
Not alone. Gather several departments into one request.
Do hospital pallets need special handling?
Pallets from receiving docks are ordinary, but pallets that carried anything biological are not for sale.
Surplus on a campus
Universities run surplus programs for furniture and equipment, and pallets sometimes ride along. Ask who runs yours before arranging a separate pickup.
Construction and renovation
A university city is never finished building. Labs are fitted out, hospital wings added, and dorms refurbished. Each project leaves pallets: tile, windows, fixtures and cables are delivered on them, and contractors stack the empties near the dumpster. Contractors are often glad to hand them over.
A contractor's pallets are typically mixed in size and fair in condition, with a good share of the standard 48 x 40. The request should name the site, the contractor's contact and the day the dumpster is collected, since after that the pallets are gone.
Parking and access
Campus and downtown docks are tight. Say whether a tractor-trailer can reach the door or whether a straight truck is needed.
Peaks in the academic year
Move-in and graduation weeks bring a surge of deliveries and a pile of empties.
Rail and roads
Michigan Central Railroad reached Ann Arbor in 1839, and a north-south line to Toledo followed in 1878. I-94 runs along the south side near Ann Arbor-Saline Road. The University of Michigan employs about 30,000 people, about 12,000 of them at the medical center.