Timber-framed OSB crates made to your internal dimensions, heat treated for export and delivered UK-wide from our Bideford factory.
OSB crates are our most-built crate, and for good reason. Oriented strand board is strong, stable and economical, it uses more of each tree than sawn boards do, and on a timber picture frame it makes a rigid case that protects machinery, components and finished goods through road, sea and air freight. APS Packaging designs and manufactures OSB shipping crates at our 300,000 sq ft site in Bideford, Devon, from one-offs to production runs.
An OSB crate is only as good as the frame it sits on. Ours are built on a two-way entry timber base with the bearers on edge, so the fork pockets are deep and the walls bear on the bearer lip rather than on the floor overhang. Each wall is a 22 x 100 mm timber picture frame clad with 11 mm OSB, with the frame on the outside so the inside of the crate is flat and the internal size is exactly what you specified. The lid is a battened OSB panel that nails or screws down onto the wall tops.
Where the panel is taller than a sheet we stand the OSB on end and joint the width on an upright, so there are no unsupported joins. Everything is cut on CNC and optimising saws from a drawing, which means repeat orders are identical and a knock-down crate goes back together the way it came apart.
Each material earns its place. We will always tell you when a cheaper build will do the job, and when it will not.
The economical choice for most domestic and export freight. Strong in shear, rigid on a frame, and a more efficient use of sustainably sourced wood. Choose OSB unless there is a reason not to.
Better impact resistance, cleaner appearance and more tolerant of standing water. Choose plywood for high-value goods, repeated handling or a crate that will be seen by the customer.
Close-boarded timber for the heaviest loads: plant, engines, gearboxes and anything that needs bolting down through the floor.
Open-boarded crates where ventilation or weight matter more than full enclosure.
Because OSB is economical and easy to work, it suits crates that are built for one journey as well as returnable crates that will do many. We supply OSB crates to manufacturers shipping pumps, valves, motors, control panels, cabinets and assemblies; to defence and marine contractors for equipment and spares; to exhibition and events companies for stands and display goods; and to distributors consolidating mixed loads for export. Sizes run from cases you can carry to crates that fill a 40 ft container.
Every OSB crate can be lined. Foam sheet, convoluted foam, corner blocks, timber cradles and cardboard dividers are cut to the product and either supplied loose or fitted here, and our export packing service can pack the goods for you.
On a timber frame, yes. OSB3 is an engineered structural board with good shear strength and no weak grain direction, and the picture frame carries the load between the base and the lid. For very heavy or point-loaded items we add uprights, thicker board or move to close-boarded timber, and we will say so at quote stage.
OSB itself is exempt because it is a processed wood product, but the solid-timber frame and base are not. We heat treat the timber in our own kilns and stamp the finished crate FC0542, so the whole crate is compliant.
Yes. We build knock-down crates with screwed joints and bag the fixings, so the crate travels flat, is assembled around the product on site, and can be knocked down and reused after the trip.
OSB is normally the lower-cost option for the same size of crate. Plywood earns its premium where impact resistance, appearance or moisture matter. If you are not sure, send us the details and we will quote both.
From a single crate to hundreds. Regular users can have crates held in stock at Bideford for call-off, or supplied flat-packed on a schedule.
Send us the internal dimensions, the weight and where it is going, and we will quote the right crate. Mon to Fri 08:30 to 17:00.
Email our Sales Team : sales@apspackaging.co.uk
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