Dimensions / Industrial & logistics / Export wooden crates / Plywood box
A plywood box is plywood panels joined by cleats or a frame, often on a pallet or skids. Wood packaging made wholly of processed wood such as plywood is exempt from ISPM 15 (§2.1), and so is wood 6 mm thick or less, but a solid-wood pallet or cleats under it still need treatment and the mark: Uline’s crates have exempt plywood on a heat-treated, stamped pallet. Uline’s standard crates in 1/4" plywood run from 12 x 12 x 12" to 84 x 48 x 48" at 250 to 3,500 lbs; its heavy-duty crates in 3/4" plywood carry 4,000 to 7,000 lbs. Its S-9922 is 48 x 40 x 42" outside and 47 3/16 x 39 3/16 x 36 1/2" inside, rated 3,000 lbs. ASTM D6251 covers cleated plywood boxes up to 1000 lb [454 kg], China’s BB/T 0040 assembled plywood boxes up to 2000kg.
| ISPM 15 exempts plywood, and wood this thick or less | Uline plywood, standard / heavy duty | Cleated plywood box, ASTM D6251 |
|---|---|---|
| 6mm | 1/4 / 3/4in | 1000lb454 kg |
Sources: ISPM 15, Uline (1/4"), ASTM D6251/D6251M-23. Checked October 2026.
Uline’s S-9922 plywood crate and Triton’s 20 ft are filled in. Enter your goods; each check uses the numbers in the tables on this page.
Sizes in millimetres, weights in kilograms (1 in = 25.4 mm, 1 lb = 0.4536 kg). The gap goes on each side and on top; crates go one high, in straight columns.
Goods of 1100 × 900 × 850 mm with 30 mm on each side and on top need 1160 × 960 × 880 mm, within the 1199 × 995 × 927 mm inside.
Filled in: Uline’s S-9922, 47 3/16 x 39 3/16 x 36 1/2" inside (1199 × 995 × 927 mm), and GDV’s 3 cm gap.
900 kg of goods is 461 kg under the crate’s 1361 kg rating; with the 40 kg crate it ships at 940 kg gross.
Uline rates S-9922 at 3,000 lbs (1361 kg), with 10,000 lbs stacking; it weighs 89 lbs (40 kg).
The crate clears the 2340 × 2280 mm door; one high, 9 crates of 1219 × 1016 mm fit on the 5898 × 2352 mm floor, enough for your 9, and 9 × 940 kg = 8460 kg is within the 28380 kg payload.
Its plywood needs no heat treatment, but the wood pallet under it is heat treated and stamped (Uline). Triton’s 20 ft door opens 2,340 × 2,280 mm.
Exporting in plywood boxes? Photograph the packed box, mark its outside size, pallet and lifting points in SizeMarker and send it with the packing list.
Mark a photoRatings and sizes as each seller prints them; Uline’s outside sizes include the pallet.
| Crate | Outside; inside | Capacity; stacking; weight |
|---|---|---|
| Uline S-182461/4" plywood, no pallet | 12 x 12 x 12"Inside 11 1/3 x 11 1/3 x 11 1/2" | 250 lbs.; 12,000 lbs.; 8 lbs |
| Uline S-13373 | 36 x 36 x 36"Inside 35 3/16 x 35 3/16 x 30 1/2" | 2,000 lbs.; 10,000 lbs.; 63 lbs |
| Uline S-99225-ply birch, 4-way pallet | 48 x 40 x 42"Inside 47 3/16 x 39 3/16 x 36 1/2" | 3,000 lbs.; 10,000 lbs.; 89 lbs |
| Uline S-14460 | 72 x 48 x 48"Inside 71 1/4 x 47 1/4 x 42 1/2" | 3,500 lbs.; 7,000 lbs.; 146 lbs |
| Uline S-15190 | 84 x 48 x 48"Inside 83 3/16 x 47 1/4 x 42 1/2" | 3,500 lbs.; 7,000 lbs.; 200 lbs |
| Uline S-18995, heavy duty3/4" plywood, steel clips | 36 x 36 x 36"Inside 34 1/4 x 34 1/4 x 30" | 4,000 lbs.; 20,000 lbs.; 125 lbs |
| Uline S-18250, heavy duty | 96 x 48 x 48"Inside 94 1/4 x 46 1/4 x 42" | 7,000 lbs.; 14,000 lbs.; 395 lbs |
| Uline S-23282, heavy duty | 96 x 48 x 60"Inside 94 1/4 x 46 1/4 x 54" | 7,000 lbs.; 12,000 lbs.; 405 lbs |
| Nefab ExPak PBottom, lid and folding frame; 5, 6 or 8 mm | Sample 1200x800x870 mmInside 1180x780x750 mm; up to 1600x1200x1000 mm | Stacking 2000 kg; tare 30 kg |
| Nefab ExPak SSix sections; 6, 8 or 12 mm | Inside up to 6000x2900x2900 mm | Stacking 3500 kg/m2 |
| RAJA 288017, with skidsReseller listing | 800 × 600 × 530 mmInside 780 × 580 × 400 mm | Payload 300, as printed; 18 mm floor, 10 cm skids |
| Steel-strap plywood boxChantpack, Shanghai | Length 200mm～5000mm | Below 2 t; 7mm to 15mm plywood |
Sources: Uline (1/4") · Uline (S-9922) · Uline (3/4") · Nefab (ExPak P) · Nefab (ExPak S) · RAJA (udobaer) · Chantpack
| Rule | What it says |
|---|---|
| ExemptISPM 15, 2.1 | Packaging made wholly of processed wood such as plywood, particle board, OSB or veneer; and wood 6 mm or less in thickness |
| Solid wood in the same unitUline | Plywood does not require heat treatment; the attached wood pallet is heat treated and stamped |
| Mark on a composite unitISPM 15, Annex 2 | May appear on the processed wood components |
| China export ruleDecree 69, Art. 2 | Wood packaging excludes processed wood such as plywood and fibreboard, and wood 6mm thick or less |
| Solid wood treatmentISPM 15 | 56 °C for 30 continuous minutes, core included |
Sources: ISPM 15 · Uline (S-9922) · AQSIQ No. 69
| Standard or source | What it says |
|---|---|
| ASTM D6251-23Wood-cleated panelboard boxes | Not exceeding 1000 lb [454 kg], depending on box type |
| BB/T 0040-2007Assembled plywood boxes, China | Loads not over 2000kg; combined size not over 6m |
| No diagonalsAH-252; GDV 6.3.2 | Plywood sheathing eliminates the diagonals lumber-sheathed crates need |
| No linerAH-252 | A plywood-sheathed crate does not require a liner for waterproofing |
| Panel materialFedEx Freight | Plywood, not OSB, MDF or particleboard |
| Up to 500 netFedEx cleated chart | 1/4 plywood; side panel (L + 2) x D; 1 x 2 cleats |
| 800–1,000 netFedEx cleated chart | 3/8 plywood; side panel (L + 2-1/4) x D; 1 x 4 cleats |
| Folding boxesNefab | Nail-less, foldable; lighter, so chosen over heavier packaging for air shipments |
| Gap to the goodsGDV 6.1 | Not smaller than 3 cm |
| S-9922 in mmOur conversion | Outside 1219 × 1016 × 1067 mm; inside 1199 × 995 × 927 mm; 3,000 lbs = 1361 kg; 89 lbs = 40 kg |
| 20 ft door and insideTriton | Door 2,340 × 2,280 mm; inside 5,898 × 2,352 mm; 28,380 kg payload |
| S-9922 in that 20 ftOur calculation | 9 on the floor, one high |
Sources: ASTM D6251/D6251M-23 · BB/T 0040-2007 · USDA AH-252 · GDV 6.3.2 · FedEx Freight · Nefab (ExPak) · GDV 6.1 · Triton (20ft)
Not for the plywood: ISPM 15 exempts packaging made wholly of processed wood such as plywood, and China’s export rule (Decree 69) excludes plywood too. But any solid wood in the same unit, such as the pallet, still needs treatment and the mark: Uline’s plywood is exempt while its pallet is heat treated and stamped.
Uline’s standard crates in 1/4" plywood run from 12 x 12 x 12" to 84 x 48 x 48", its heavy-duty crates in 3/4" plywood up to 96 x 48 x 60". Nefab’s ExPak S goes up to 6000x2900x2900 mm inside, and Chinese steel-strap boxes run 200mm～5000mm long.
It depends on the build: ASTM D6251 covers cleated plywood boxes up to 1000 lb [454 kg], BB/T 0040 assembled plywood boxes up to 2000kg, while Uline rates its 1/4" crates at 250 to 3,500 lbs and its 3/4" heavy-duty crates at 4,000 to 7,000 lbs.
Plywood sheathing does away with the diagonals a lumber-sheathed crate needs and needs no liner for waterproofing (AH-252), and folding plywood boxes such as Nefab’s ExPak are lighter, which suits air shipments. FedEx recommends plywood over OSB, MDF or particleboard.
FedEx’s cleated crate chart starts at 1/4 plywood with 1 x 2 cleats for up to 500 net, and moves to 3/8 plywood with 1 x 4 cleats for 800–1,000; Uline uses 1/4" plywood on its standard crates and 3/4" on its heavy-duty ones.
Buyers often ask for a fumigation-free plywood box, and then whether the pallet under it is treated and marked, the outside size and gross weight, and whether it folds flat for the return trip. Mark the real box, its pallet and lifting points on your own product photo in SizeMarker, as in the picture at the top, and send one product card for WhatsApp or WeChat.
