Service area · Huntsville, AL
Pallets deliveredin Huntsville, AL.
The Huntsville–Decatur area builds rockets, engines and SUVs along I-565 between I-65 and Redstone Arsenal. The Port of Huntsville ties the airport's freighter ramp to a rail-served intermodal center inside Foreign-Trade Zone 83, with direct trains to Charleston and Savannah.
Dock date
In writing, on every quote.
Standard 48x40s often land in 0–2 business days.
Delivered, per pallet
$4.75–$10.50Recycled 48x40s per 53' truck
616How we supply it
An Atlanta broker, a yard near your dock.
Chesapeake Pallets is a pallet broker based in Atlanta. We don't run a yard in Huntsville. For each load we buy from an independent yard close to your dock that has your grade in stock, and the delivered price includes the freight. One account manager handles the quote, the paperwork and the invoice.
Where we deliver
Around Huntsville.
Docks sit around the airport and Jetplex on the west side, along I-565 through Madison, at Cummings Research Park and Redstone, in Limestone County near I-65, north toward Meridianville and Hazel Green, and in Decatur and Athens.
- Madison
- Jetplex Industrial Park
- Cummings Research Park
- Redstone Arsenal
- Decatur
- Athens
- Mooresville
- Meridianville
- Hazel Green
- Harvest
- Limestone County
- Madison County
- Morgan County
Served from our Atlanta office through vetted yards near Huntsville.
Huntsville at a glance
What Huntsville makes and moves.
Aerospace and defense define Huntsville. Redstone Arsenal, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and Cummings Research Park anchor a large engineering workforce, and rockets for government satellite launches are built in Decatur and shipped down the river. Vehicle production has grown alongside: an engine plant opened in 2003, and an assembly plant on a Limestone County megasite started building SUVs in 2021 with room for up to 300,000 vehicles a year. Decatur's major employers also include a poultry processor and a pet-food plant that ships from its riverfront site.
Pallet demand here splits between precision and volume. Defense and space contractors ship costly, oddly shaped hardware on custom skids. Engine and vehicle suppliers buy block pallets in sizes that fit returnable racks, built to a customer print. Food and pet-food plants in Decatur run standard 48x40s. The intermodal center and the international air cargo ramp add import and export containers, so heat-treated pallets matter well inland from any seaport.
Who buys pallets here
The docks that run on pallets in Huntsville.
- 01
I-565 vehicle and engine plants
The assembly plant on the Limestone County megasite started production in September 2021 and is sized for up to 300,000 vehicles a year, and an engine plant has run in Huntsville since 2003. Their suppliers deliver on tight line-side schedules, so pallets must match racks and returnable packaging. Block construction and custom sizes are the norm.
Manufacturing → - 02
Redstone and research-park contractors
Contractors around Redstone Arsenal, Marshall Space Flight Center and Cummings Research Park support rocket, missile and space programs. Much of their hardware ships in small lots on custom skids or inside crates, and anything sent abroad needs ISPM 15 treatment. Exact dimensions and smooth decks matter more here than price per pallet.
Manufacturing → - 03
Decatur riverfront food plants
Decatur, near where I-565 meets I-65 on the Tennessee River, counts a poultry processor among its major employers, and a pet-food plant ships product from its riverfront property. Food and pet-food cases stack heavy and travel to grocery distribution, so these docks favor Grade A 48x40 stringers or new pallets that stay square.
Food & beverage → - 04
Jetplex air and rail cargo
The Port of Huntsville's International Intermodal Center offers rail service to Charleston and Savannah, nearly 300,000 square feet of cargo buildings, three coolers and weekly nonstop international air service to Luxembourg and Hong Kong. Forwarders and warehouses at Jetplex Industrial Park need HT pallets for export lots and sorted 48x40s for the rest.
3PL & warehousing →
- Warehousing and storage · NAICS 493
- 25establishments
- Food manufacturing · NAICS 311
- 29establishments249 jobs0.08× the US share of jobs
- Grocery wholesalers · NAICS 4244
- 26establishments
How freight moves
Ports, rail and interstates.
I-565 runs about 22 miles from I-65 near Decatur east through Madison, along the south edge of Cummings Research Park and the north edge of Redstone Arsenal, to US 72 in Huntsville. I-65 links the area north to Nashville and south to Birmingham and Mobile. The International Intermodal Center at the airport sits on a five-mile spur to a Class I main line, with customs officers on site around the clock. Since September 11, 2026, a daily direct intermodal train has run between Charleston and Huntsville, alongside existing service to Savannah.
- I-565
- I-65
- US 72
- International Intermodal Center
- FTZ 83
- Port of Charleston
- Port of Savannah
Which pallet to order
The right grade for Huntsville.
Vehicle and engine suppliers should order block pallets or custom sizes, usually new, built to the customer's packaging print. Aerospace and defense shippers often need custom skids with exact dimensions and smooth decks. Decatur food and pet-food plants do well with Grade A 48x40 stringers, or new for retail-bound loads. Any wood that leaves the country through the intermodal center, Charleston, Savannah or an international freighter needs HT pallets stamped under ISPM 15. Your account manager confirms the grade spec in writing.
Delivered prices
Price a load to 35824.
Full-truckload ranges with freight in. Your ZIP and count set the firm number on the call.
Grade B
$4.75–$6.75
per pallet, delivered
Repaired, sound, ready to load.
Grade A
$6.75–$8.75
per pallet, delivered
Three solid stringers. No plugs, no companions.
AAA
$8.50–$10.50
per pallet, delivered
Clean, uniform, no repairs.
Block
$6.25–$8.50
per pallet, delivered
Full 4-way entry on every side.
New
Quoted
to your spec
Fresh lumber, built to your spec.
Freight included — never a separate line.Heat-treated: +$1.00–$1.50/pallet.Full-truckload ranges as of Thursday, October 15.
Delivering to Alabama. Your account manager narrows this to one number for 35824, same business day.
Delivered, freight included
$6.75–$8.75/pallet
- Load total
- $4,158–$5,390
- Trucks
- 1 × 53'
- On your dock
- Exact date on your quote — often 0–2 business days after your PO
Full truck — best per-pallet price.
Your first load runs as a no-contract test load.
Typical delivered ranges as of Thursday, October 15. Your account manager confirms a firm price on the call — same business day.
Straight answers
Buying pallets in Huntsville.
Can you deliver to warehouses at Jetplex and the International Intermodal Center?+
Do containers on the new Huntsville–Charleston rail service need heat-treated pallets?+
Can suppliers to the Limestone County assembly plant get pallets built to a print?+
What pallet should a Redstone-area defense contractor order?+
Do you deliver to plants in Decatur and Athens?+
What do pallets cost delivered to Huntsville, AL?+
When will a load reach Huntsville, AL?+
Your first Huntsville load, priced today.
One full truck, billed at the quoted price. Net 30, no contract. Your dock date in writing on every quote.