Securing heavy-duty cargo pallets with the strength of steel but without its operational risks requires strapping that maintains tension throughout the journey, absorbs transport vibration, and does not rust the merchandise. This polyester (PET) strapping—also called PET strapping or polyester strapping—is manufactured by Fortemo from industrial-grade virgin polyester in a standard 16 mm × 1 mm coil, and is the modern standard to replace metal strapping in construction, agribusiness, and heavy export.
Key Benefits
- Comparable strength to steel: PET maintains sufficient breaking tensions to secure loads of bricks, blocks, solid wood, profiles, and dense pallets without needing to switch to metal.
- Controlled elastic memory: unlike steel, PET absorbs small impacts and vibrations during transport without losing initial tension, which prevents the typical loosening that metal suffers after several hours on the road.
- Weather and Caribbean sun resistance: it does not rust, does not stain merchandise, and withstands exposure to humidity, rain, and solar radiation without accelerated degradation, allowing pallets to be stored outdoors.
- Operational safety: with no sharp edges and no dangerous snap-back when cut, it drastically reduces the risk of accidents compared to metal strapping.
- Uniform gauge virgin polyester: 1 mm thick over 1200 m of coil with factory-controlled width, compatible with manual, pneumatic, and battery-powered strapping tools, as well as high-security notched seals.
Typical Applications and Uses
- Securing pallets of heavy construction materials: bricks, blocks, grouped cement bags.
- Securing loads of wood, planks, metal profiles, and industrial parts.
- Export and inter-island transit of heavy merchandise where the pallet spends days in the sun before shipping.
- Agro-industrial operations: grouping fertilizer bags, bales, dense inputs.
Quality and Durability
The difference between premium PET and generic PET is noticeable in the tension retained after 48 hours of transport. Economic PET quickly loses tension because the polyester formulation is of lower quality and the gauge is irregular, causing the seals to loosen with truck vibration. Fortemo works with virgin polyester and controls the gauge within narrow tolerances, which results in loads arriving at their destination with the same securement as when they departed.
Yes, in the vast majority of medium and heavy load applications in general logistics. PET handles break tensions comparable to steel at the same operating gauges, with the critical advantage of absorbing transport vibration without losing initial tension. Where steel still makes sense is in extremely heavy loads with sharp cutting edges (metal sheet, industrial profiles with sharp edges) that can sever the plastic in extreme conditions, but those cases are a minority.
PET when the load is heavy (bricks, blocks, lumber, profiles, dense sacks), when transport is long and vibrating, or when the pallet stays outdoors for days. PP when the load is light to medium (cardboard, parcels, package consolidation) and the operation prioritizes speed. The practical rule: if the pallet weighs more than 400 kg or sits in the sun for days, PET; in standard cardboard general logistics, PP is enough.
Yes. Polyester is highly resistant to UV radiation and humidity — it does not rust or degrade with occasional rain or prolonged sun exposure. It is the standard for pallets stored outdoors for days or weeks in construction yards, agricultural patios or export aprons. Versus steel, it wins in that it does not rust or stain the cargo. Versus PP, it wins in that it keeps tension under direct sun for much longer.
Considerably safer. When cut, steel releases stored elastic energy as a whip-back — a frequent cause of workplace accidents in heavy-load strapping — and its edges cut when handled without proper gloves. PET, although it tensions with high force, does not produce a violent whip-back and has no sharp edges, so operational risk is much lower. As with any tensioned strap, gloves and goggles should be used when cutting bobbins on the machine, but the difference vs. metal is noticeable.
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| UV protection | Yes (high) |
|---|---|
| Color | Green |
| Material | Virgin polyester (PET) |
| Strap width | 16 mm (5/8 in) |
| Spool length | 1200 m (3937 ft) |
| Internal mandrel dimensions | 406 mm (16 in) diameter and 152 mm (6 in) wide |
| Edges | Rounded, anti-cut |
| Mandrel material | No mandrel |
| Embossing | Yes (both sides) |
| Strap thickness | 1 mm (0.04 in) |
| Coil: Width | 58.0 cm (22.83 in) |
|---|---|
| Coil: Height | 15.0 cm (5.91 in) |
| Coil: Depth | 58.0 cm (22.83 in) |
| Coil: Weight | 20.0 kg |
Payment & Security
