C.R.I.L. srl - CENTRO RICERCHE IMBALLAGGI LEGNO E LOGISTICA

CRIL – Centro Ricerche Imballaggi Legno e Logistica Srl is a specialist testing and research centre founded in 1996 in the industrial district of Viadana (Mantova), in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. Established with both public and private contributions, the centre was created to support the wood-packaging supply chain by providing objective, technically rigorous qualification of wooden materials used in transport packaging. Over subsequent years CRIL expanded its scope beyond solid wood to encompass plastics, paperboard, metals, and composite materials, reflecting the increasingly mixed-material reality of modern transport packaging. Today CRIL is recognised as Italy's reference laboratory for the mechanical testing of pallets, load units, and transport packaging of all material types, serving manufacturers, logistics operators, distribution companies, and supply-chain stakeholders who need reliable technical data to reduce breakage, risk, and costly failures in the field.

CRIL operates two distinct technical facilities: a mechanical (technological) laboratory and a chemical laboratory. The mechanical laboratory is comprehensively equipped to perform physical performance tests on pallets, industrial crates, and complete palletised load units. Tests follow national and international standards across the UNI, EN, and ISO series, with particular focus on ISO 8611 (all parts), the international standard for pallet performance applicable to wooden, plastic, paperboard, and metal pallets. Under ISO 8611, Test A determines the force-to-rupture value of a pallet under progressively increasing load until structural failure or a maximum deflection of 6 % of the pallet's length is reached; Test B evaluates long-term rigidity by applying a constant load at or below 50 % of the rupture value for a sustained two-hour period, simulating real-world static storage and stacking conditions.

Beyond standard pallet qualification, the mechanical laboratory conducts a broad suite of performance tests on transport packaging and complete load units. These include static and dynamic compression tests, vibration tests (under load and unloaded), drop and impact tests, and stacking-load simulations that replicate stresses imposed during warehousing and multimodal transport. Crates, boxes, and complete pallet-based unit loads are assessed for structural integrity, deformation behaviour, and load-bearing capacity under the full range of conditions they will face across the supply chain. Test results enable clients to validate packaging designs before market launch, investigate root causes of in-transit product damage, compare alternative packaging formats against one another, and demonstrate conformity with applicable regulations, customer requirements, or contractual specifications.

CRIL holds a particularly significant institutional position within the European pallet-pool ecosystem. The laboratory is one of only four European facilities — and the sole laboratory in Italy — authorised by EPAL (European Pallet Association) and UIC (Union Internationale des Chemins de fer) to perform verification and approval tests on pallet components, specifically nails and aggregate or block elements. Nail batches and block materials intended for use in the manufacture of EPAL-pool pallets must successfully pass CRIL's qualification tests before receiving approval. This mandated role places the laboratory at the heart of European pallet-pool quality assurance and underlines the internationally recognised technical competence that underpins its accredited test programme.

The chemical laboratory, established after new partners joined the company in 2004, performs analyses on wood and wood-derived materials recovered from end-of-life packaging. A primary application is the characterisation of wood waste collected from packaging at municipal collection platforms and industrial recycling enterprises. Chemical analysis of this waste stream allows evaluation of material quality and potential hazard — determining, for instance, whether recovered wood can safely re-enter production cycles or must be managed as contaminated or regulated material. These analyses directly support the circular economy for wood packaging by providing the documented evidence needed for regulatory compliance across the waste, recovery, and recycling chain. The chemical laboratory is also equipped to characterise wooden raw materials and packaging substrates for broader quality-assurance purposes.

Accreditation and institutional recognition are central to CRIL's credibility as a testing partner. The testing laboratory obtained accreditation certificate number 0232 from SINAL (Servizio Nazionale di Accreditamento dei Laboratori), Italy's former national laboratory accreditation body. In 2009 SINAL merged with SINCERT to form ACCREDIA, the sole national accreditation body designated by the Italian Government, which operates under the European framework for ISO/IEC 17025 laboratory accreditation. CRIL is also formally affiliated with Rilegno, Italy's National Consortium for the collection, recovery, and recycling of wood packaging, reinforcing its central role in the wood-packaging sustainability infrastructure. Together, formal accreditation and multiple institutional partnerships ensure that CRIL's test reports carry recognised weight with regulators, pallet-pool administrators, procurement auditors, and insurance assessors.

CRIL's client base spans the full packaging and logistics value chain. Pallet and packaging manufacturers, packaging designers, third-party logistics providers, retailers operating large distribution networks, and industrial companies seeking to reduce freight-damage losses all rely on the laboratory's services. The centre's technical reports provide actionable data for optimising protective performance against packaging cost, meeting customer or contractual specification requirements, and demonstrating compliance with ISO and EN standards. Located in the Viadana–Casalmaggiore industrial district — one of Europe's most important wood-processing and packaging manufacturing clusters — CRIL is uniquely positioned to serve the dense local base of pallet producers and packaging converters while offering sample-submission services to national and international clients across Europe.