Nellore · Andhra Pradesh
Packing-grade plywood, crates and pallets for Nellore's seafood, mica and granite exporters
We manufacture the packing plywood, export crates and pallets that move shrimp, mineral and stone cargo through Nellore's coastal ports. Built in our Perumbavoor facilities, where our group has run the same packing lines since 1986, and trucked straight up the coast to your yard.
The industrial picture
A coastal export district with three port mouths in reach
Nellore is one of those coastal Andhra districts that does not get the attention it deserves. Sandwiched between Chennai and the Krishna delta, it quietly moves shrimp, granite, mica, silica sand and a growing list of engineering goods through Krishnapatnam Port and Chennai Port. Every one of those export lines needs wooden packing — treated crates for reefer cargo, stamped pallets for break-bulk, plywood-skinned boxes for mineral and machinery shipments.
The district sits on the Chennai-Kolkata highway (NH-16) with three port mouths within trucking distance: Krishnapatnam in the south of the district, Kakinada to the north, and Chennai about 175 km down the coast. That port density is the reason the export-oriented industries here cluster the way they do.
Krishnapatnam Port and the export hinterland
Krishnapatnam handles dry bulk, containers, project cargo and a meaningful share of South India's coal, iron ore and granite movement. The container terminal pulls in shippers from across Rayalaseema and southern Andhra. For a plywood manufacturer the relevant cargo categories are:
- Frozen and chilled seafood — Nellore and the broader Krishna-Godavari belt are India's shrimp heartland. Reefer container exports leave through Krishnapatnam and Chennai bound for the US, EU, Japan and the Gulf.
- Mica, silica and mineral exports — Nellore is historically the mica capital of India. Processed mica blocks, splittings and silica sand still ship in wooden crates and on pallets to electronic-grade buyers abroad.
- Granite blocks and slabs — quarries around Chimakurthy and Ongole feed the Krishnapatnam stone yards. Slabs travel on heavy bearers and plywood-skinned A-frames.
- Engineering and auto-component cargo — the Sri City SEZ sits just across the Tamil Nadu border (about 80 km from Nellore town), but a lot of its ancillary packing work happens in Nellore's industrial estates.
Industrial estates and clusters
The APIIC estates worth knowing when you map plywood demand:
- Naidupet Industrial Park — close to Sri City, hosts auto, electronics and FMCG units that need export-grade pallets and crates.
- Menakur and Tada belts — feed Sri City, with light engineering, packaging and component makers.
- Krishnapatnam SEZ and port-side warehousing — bulk packing, fumigation yards and CFS operators.
- Kovur, Buchireddypalem and the Nellore-Atmakur road — sawmills, rice mills and seafood processors.
What we ship
Three manufactured lines that do almost all the work
Our range is built around bulk packaging, not retail dealer stock. For Nellore buyers, three lines carry nearly every order.
Packing-grade plywood
This is our workhorse for crate skinning, base boards and side panels. The standard packing range is MR-glue commercial plywood with hardwood face and back veneers — rubberwood, jackwood or a Gurjan or Okoume face depending on the order — supplied in 8x4 ft sheets across thicknesses from 6 mm to 18 mm. Typical use:
| Thickness | Typical role in the crate |
|---|---|
| 6–8 mm | Top covers and dividers for light cargo |
| 10–12 mm | Standard crate sides for engineering goods and packaged minerals |
| 14–18 mm | Base boards under heavy loads, bearers and reusable export crates |
For seafood exporters the question is usually about moisture behaviour around reefer cargo. The MR packing grade handles ambient humidity and chilled-room exposure fine for single-trip export crates. For repeated cold-chain cycling or marine-exposed cargo, we step the grade up to BWR or specify an Okoume face.
Crates and pallets
We build closed plywood crates, open-batten wooden crates and standard four-way pallets to the buyer's drawing. Heat-treated and ISPM-15 stamped material is available for any export-destined consignment — non-negotiable for shipments to the EU, US, Australia, China and most of the Gulf. Common sizes for the Nellore lane:
- 1200 x 1000 mm and 1200 x 800 mm (Euro) pallets for containerised seafood and FMCG cargo.
- 1100 x 1100 mm for Japan-bound mica and electronics.
- Custom heavy-duty crates for granite slabs, mineral lumps and project cargo.
Container flooring and shuttering
Container repair yards and refurbishers around Krishnapatnam pull container-flooring plywood (28 mm, hardwood face, phenolic-bonded) on a steady cycle. For construction buyers in Nellore town and along the SH-57 corridor, our film-faced shuttering ply in 12 mm and 18 mm covers high-rise formwork and infrastructure jobs.
Logistics
The Kochi-to-Nellore lane
Road distance from our Perumbavoor dispatch yard to Nellore town is roughly 1,050–1,100 km depending on route. Trucks typically run NH-544 (Salem) → NH-44 (Bengaluru-Chennai) → NH-16 (Chennai-Krishnapatnam), with transit time of 3 to 4 days for a single-driver truck and 2 to 3 days when we run a relay. For port-side delivery into Krishnapatnam, drop is normally at the consignee's CFS or fumigation yard inside the port-zone gates.
Typical lane economics
| Load type | Vehicle | Sheet capacity (8x4) | Pallet capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full truckload plywood | 32 ft single-axle | ~700–900 sheets (mixed thickness) | — |
| Full truckload pallets | 32 ft single-axle | — | ~280–320 standard pallets |
| Crate consignment | 22–32 ft | Built crates loaded nested or knock-down | Quoted per drawing |
Quotes from Kochi are ex-factory by default; GST and freight are extra and we share the landed Nellore number per consignment based on diesel and lane availability at the time of dispatch. ISPM-15 treatment, the IPPC stamp and the treatment certificate are included on any export-destined units.
Choosing a grade
Which grade for which cargo
A quick checklist for Nellore buyers picking between our lines:
- Single-trip export crate, light to medium engineering cargo, dry container → MR packing-grade plywood, 10–12 mm sides on an 18 mm base.
- Seafood reefer cargo, chilled or frozen → MR packing grade for single-use; BWR or an Okoume face for premium buyers and longer voyages.
- Mineral and mica exports to Japan, EU, US → ISPM-15 stamped hardwood pallets; an Okoume-faced plywood crate where the buyer specifies a clean export finish.
- Granite, project cargo, machinery → 18 mm packing-grade base on heavy bearers, sawn-timber framing and open-batten side construction.
- Shuttering and concrete formwork inside Nellore → film-faced shuttering ply 12–18 mm, not the packing grade.
Okoume here is a face-veneer option on the packing and BWR grades — a clean, presentable face for FOB crates — not a separate product line.
FAQ
Common questions from Nellore buyers
Can you supply ISPM-15 stamped pallets directly to Krishnapatnam Port?
Yes. We supply heat-treated and ISPM-15 stamped pallets and crates for any export-destined cargo through Krishnapatnam, Chennai or Kakinada. Marking, the treatment certificate and the IPPC stamp are all included on the supplied units.
What is the minimum order quantity for a Nellore delivery?
For a direct full-truck delivery the practical minimum is one 32 ft truckload — roughly 700+ sheets of plywood or about 300 pallets. Smaller part-loads are possible when we have a consolidated truck running the Kochi-Chennai-Nellore corridor; ask when you raise the enquiry.
Do you supply Okoume-faced plywood for premium seafood export crates?
Yes. An Okoume face is one of the veneer options on our packing and BWR grades, used by buyers who want a clean, presentable finished crate for FOB shipments and longer transit cycles. Because it sits above the standard packing line, pricing is quoted separately on request.
Get a quote
Request a Nellore quote
If you are packing seafood, mica, granite or engineering goods out of Nellore and want a working number against your drawing or sheet schedule, send us the spec and we will come back with an ex-factory Kochi rate plus an indicative landed Nellore figure. Our group has manufactured packing plywood and crates in Perumbavoor since 1986, and the Nellore lane is one we already serve regularly.
Request a quote with your sheet sizes, thickness, monthly volume and delivery point, or browse the resource hub for grade comparisons, ISPM-15 notes and crate-design guides before you write the enquiry.