Pallets in Wyandotte
Wyandotte is the chemical town of the downriver cities. BASF Wyandotte sits on the north riverfront, descended from the 1893 Michigan Alkali Company.
Questions only a chemical dock asks
- What did the pallet carry? A pallet that has absorbed product should be set aside.
- Is it dry? Wet wood from a spill is a poor candidate for reuse.
- Is the size on the pallet the size you need? Odd sizes are often mixed in by suppliers.
What to send
Pallets that never saw product and pallets that did can be described in the same request, as two lines. The first stack may be re-sold; the second is handled as a core. A photo of the stamp or mark on any pallet bound for export is useful. Chemicals has the wider picture.
Questions from a chemical riverfront
Can a pallet that held chemical drums be resold?
Not without being described. If it was in a spill, it is a core. If it sat under sealed drums and is clean, say so.
What size do chemical shippers use most?
Often the 48 x 42 or 48 x 48, though the 48 x 40 appears too. Measure rather than guess.
Is plastic better for chemicals?
Some shippers think so. Wood remains the usual choice for general freight.
Municipal neighbors
The city's utilities are another source of small, steady loads: pipe, fittings, meters and equipment. Their pallets tend to be clean and in decent condition, with modest counts.
The north riverfront
BASF Wyandotte occupies the north riverfront, a site that descends from the Michigan Alkali Company of 1893. A works that old has layers of buildings, from brick sheds to modern warehouses, and each has its own dock. Some load by rail, some by truck, and a few by barge.
For pallet purposes, the useful distinction is between product docks and supply docks. Product docks handle drums, bags and totes leaving the works; supply docks receive packaging, maintenance parts and office goods. The pallets at supply docks are usually clean and can be listed as ordinary stock. Those at product docks need a note about what they carried.
Downriver routing
Wyandotte lies south of River Rouge and north of the smaller riverside towns. A route heading downriver can stop in River Rouge, Wyandotte, Woodhaven and Flat Rock in turn, and a driver benefits from knowing which of them has pallets.
Riverfront access
The riverfront streets are narrow and some are gated. Give the gate name.
Rail along the river
Two rail lines run parallel through the city between Detroit and Toledo: Canadian National's Shore Line and Flat Rock subdivisions, and the Conrail Shared Assets Detroit Line that Norfolk Southern trains also use. M-85 (Fort Street) forms most of the western edge.