Palletizer buying guide

How to choose a palletizer: measure products, find peak cases per minute, set pallets and patterns, and plan space, power, air, safety, and acceptance tests.

Updated October 2, 2026

This guide walks through what to measure and decide before you ask for a palletizer quote. Work through each step in order. Record the answers in the buyer checklist at the end of the page. For the machines themselves, start with the palletizer systems overview and the types of palletizers.

1. Define your products

List every product the palletizer will handle. For each one, record:

• Length, width, and height, in inches or millimeters.
• Weight, in pounds or kilograms.
• The package: sealed case, open tray, shrink bundle, bag, or pail.
• Case quality: crushed corners, bulging sides, loose flaps, or a slick coating.
• How many SKUs you run. An SKU (stock keeping unit) is one distinct product or package.

Weight sets the robot size. Optamate rates its CPS30P cobot palletizer at “Maximum capacity 30kg (66lbs).” FANUC rates its M-410iB/140H industrial robot at a 140 kg payload. Payload includes the gripper, called the EOAT (end-of-arm tooling). So the case plus the gripper must stay under the rating. Payload ratings also depend on how far the load’s center of gravity sits from the wrist. Kawasaki, for example, lists an “Allowable moment of inertia” for the wrist of each palletizing robot. Send the gripper weight, case weight, and case size. Ask the supplier to check them against the robot’s payload chart. Multipick grippers add to all three.

Case quality matters as much as weight. A weak or damp case may tear under a vacuum gripper or crush in a tall stack. Send real samples, not just drawings. Bags need their own handling, covered in the bag palletizer guide. Different SKUs on one pallet need a mixed case palletizing system.

2. Work out the rate you need

Start from cases per day, not machine speed. The palletizer must keep up with your busiest period, not your average.

1. Write down the cases you must ship per shift.
2. Divide by the minutes the line actually runs, after breaks and changeovers.
3. Find your peak rate. That is often the top speed of the filler or case packer upstream.
4. Plan for the peak rate, with margin.

Worked example (hypothetical): A plant ships 8,400 cases a day. It runs two shifts with 7 hours of real run time each. That is 8,400 ÷ 840 minutes = 10 cases per minute on average. The case packer can run at 14 cases per minute for an hour. So the palletizer needs at least 14 cases per minute.

Compare that with maker ratings. Keep each maker’s unit, because they differ:

A cycle is one pick and place. It may move one case or several. NOVA says multipick raises its rate into “the 20s & 30s.” In the example, 14 cases per minute is above most single-pick cobot ratings in the table. It may need a multipick gripper, an industrial robot, or a conventional palletizer.

Maker speeds are rated under ideal conditions. They are not real output. Ask the supplier to rate your heaviest case and your pattern.

Rated speeds also leave out pallet changes. A single pallet station stops taking cases while a full pallet leaves and an empty one arrives. Robot cycles spent placing pallets or slip sheets do not move cases either. Ask how long a pallet change and a slip sheet take. Ask how many cases the infeed can hold during them. Premier Tech, for example, offers an “Accumulation conveyor” option on its APH Series. A second pallet station also helps.

3. Pick your pallets, patterns, and load height

Record every pallet type you ship on. In the US, most plants use the 48 × 40 in. GMA pallet. That works out to about 1219 × 1016 mm. PalletOne calls it “the most commonly used pallet size in the US.” It lists the pallet as 6.5 in. tall with 4-way forklift entry. Also note plastic, export, or customer-owned pallets. Note the pallet grade and condition too. Broken boards and mixed pallet types can jam a pallet dispenser.

Then record the pattern for each SKU. TI/HI is the common shorthand. TI is the number of cases per layer. HI is the number of layers. A 10 × 5 pattern has 10 cases per layer and 5 layers. Note slip sheets (thin sheets between layers) and how the pattern locks the load together. The pallet patterns guide covers this.

Load height limits the machine. Robotiq rates its PE20 for stacks up to 2150 mm. NOVA lists its NCP-30 for pallet heights up to 84 in. Premier Tech lists APH full loads up to 108 in. and 4,000 lb. Check that your tallest and heaviest loads fit, pallet included.

4. Count the lines

Decide how many production lines will feed the palletizer. One robot can sometimes serve two lines, with a pallet station for each. Vention says its UR20 Rapid Series 3 can “palletize side by side”. Add the rates of every line that feeds one machine. Then check the total against step 2.

5. Plan floor space and layout

Measure the space for the palletizer, its conveyors, and pallet stations. Add room for forklifts or pallet jacks to take full loads away. Add service access on all sides. Footprints vary a lot:

Check ceiling height, column spacing, and doorways. Premier Tech says its APH “must be placed on level concrete floor” and estimates its shipping weight at 22,000 lb. Plan the palletizing conveyor, pallet dispenser, and stretch wrapper at the same time. Ask the supplier for a layout drawing.

6. Check power and air

Get the electrical and air requirements in writing for every machine in the cell. They range widely:

SCFM is standard cubic feet per minute of air. Vacuum grippers can use a lot of air. Have an electrician check your panel. Have someone check that your compressor can supply the added air.

Ask for the control panel’s short-circuit current rating (SCCR). It must be at least the fault current available at your plant. UL says NFPA 79 requires the SCCR on the nameplate. Ask for NFPA 79 compliance and a UL 508A or other NRTL (nationally recognized testing lab) label. OSHA accepts electrical equipment only if “approved” (29 CFR 1910.303(a)). Imported or used panels may need a field evaluation before your inspector signs off.

7. Plan safety and guarding

A palletizer has heavy moving parts and often a robot. The cell needs guarding. That may be fencing, light curtains, or area scanners that slow or stop the machine when a person enters. Optamate lists fencing and light curtains as extra-cost options. So ask what each quote includes.

Ask the supplier which standards its design meets. The main US ones are:

• Robot cells: ANSI/A3 R15.06-2025, the US adoption of ISO 10218 Parts 1 and 2 (2025).
• Conventional palletizers, gantries, hybrids, and stretch wrappers: ANSI/PMMI B155.1-2023, for packaging machinery.
• Conveyors: ASME B20.1.
• Guarding: OSHA enforces machine guarding under 29 CFR 1910.212.

Makers also state a safety performance level. Premier Tech, for example, lists “Category 3, Performance Level D” for its APH Series.

A cobot is not safe on its own. “Collaborative” status comes from a risk assessment of the whole application under ISO 10218-2:2025 and ANSI/A3 R15.06-2025. The 2025 editions now include the collaborative guidance that used to sit in ISO/TS 15066. A heavy case at speed can still hurt someone. See the cobot palletizer guide.

Before anyone enters the cell or clears a jam, use lockout/tagout. OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147 covers servicing where “unexpected energization or start up” could cause injury. Tell affected workers before you lock out and before you restart. Also block or pin raised hoists, layer heads, and elevators, and bleed air and vacuum lines. The standard says stored energy “shall be relieved, disconnected, restrained, and otherwise rendered safe.” On a vacuum gripper, set the load down before you remove air or vacuum, or the load drops. Ask the supplier for the mechanical lock points. Never bypass guards, interlocks, light curtains, or scanners. The palletizer safety guide has more.

8. Decide on controls and integration

The palletizer has to talk to the rest of your line. Ask about:

• PLC brand. A PLC (programmable logic controller) is the industrial computer that runs the machine. TopTier lists “Allen Bradley controls.” Match the brand your maintenance team already supports.
• Line signals. The palletizer needs to know when cases are coming and tell the line when it is full or stopped.
• Plant software. Some plants send pallet data or labels to a WMS (warehouse management system). Ask what the supplier supports and who writes the link.
• Pattern software. TopTier says its EasyStack software stores “up to 99” pallet patterns. Ask who can add new patterns and how.

9. Plan for changeover

A changeover is switching from one SKU or pattern to another. Count how many you do per shift. Ask how long each one takes and what the operator must change. Premier Tech lists “stored recipes” for quick pattern changes on its APH Series. It also offers “automatic product changeovers” as an option. Vention’s Rapid Series includes “3 SKUs programmed by Vention”. Ask what new SKUs cost after that.

10. Set a budget

Price the whole cell, not just the palletizer. Include conveyors, guarding, dispensers, the wrapper, freight, installation, training, and spare parts. The palletizer cost guide lists public prices and published ranges. It also has a payback formula with a worked example. A used palletizer may cut the price, but check controls and safety first. At very low rates, lift aids for hand stacking may be enough.

11. Evaluate suppliers

Compare suppliers on more than price:

1. Acceptance tests. Agree on a factory acceptance test (FAT) before shipment and a site acceptance test (SAT) after installation. Vention’s UR10e bundle lists “pre-assembly & factory acceptance test” and “site acceptance test & commissioning”. Run your products and patterns at your target rate. Record good pallets, faults, and changeover times. Set measurable pass criteria. For example, run a set number of hours at rated speed with your SKUs. Count good pallets and the faults the machine caused. Write the pass criteria into the purchase order. Hold part of the payment until the SAT passes.
2. References. Ask for plants that run similar products at similar rates. Call them.
3. Service. Ask where the nearest service tech is based and how fast they respond. Ask about phone support hours, spare parts stock, and lead times.
4. Documentation. Ask for manuals, electrical drawings, PLC program backups, and a spare parts list.
5. Training. Ask who is trained, for how long, and on which shifts.

For a list of makers by type, see palletizer manufacturers.