Sustainability in contract logistics refers to the practice of conducting logistics operations in a manner that minimizes negative environmental, social, and economic impacts while ensuring long-term viability.

After deciding on the height, width, and depth of your boxes, determine how much lumber you will need. Plywood is sold in 4’x8′ pieces, so I chose to have 1/4″ plywood sheets cut into strips at the hardware store. Priming and Painting the Boxes: When painting your wooden boxes, you should apply a single coat of primer and allow the primer to dry completely. Next, lightly sand down the primer with a high grit sandpaper, such as 320 grit. Be sure to remove any seeping wood glue before it dries! It is very difficult to sand away dried wood glue. And if you plan to stain your boxes, dried glue will repel stain and ruin your finish. Some people choose to wipe away wet wood glue with a damp rag (that’s me!), while others may use a chisel or blade to scrape it away as it begins to harden. To make 11 boxes I used two full sheets of 1/4″ plywood plus about 1/2 of a sheet of 1/2″ plywood. (The 1/2″ sheet of plywood was leftover from this fold-away dollhouse project.)

Take control of your clothes

After dry or wet sanding your primer, you may have to do some touch-up priming in spots where you sanded away the primer. No need to resand these spots, though, unless they’re substantial areas. Lastly, apply two or three coats of paint and your boxes are finished! When using the jig saw in this step, always err for a smaller hole rather than a larger hole. You can use sandpaper to make your jig saw cuts better match the hole saw cuts in step three. This outdoor storage bench is mostly treated plywood, which stands up to the elements but can be unfriendly to work with. It’s often slightly damp, if not soaking wet, so let it dry in your shop for a week or two before cutting. Store it flat to minimize warping as it dries. Caution: Warped boards are dangerous to cut on a table saw. A circular saw with a cutting guide is a safer option.

Step Two: Use a 1″ hole saw bit to cut out the rounded edges of the slotted handle opening. Then use a jig saw to connect the holes, creating one opening. I recommend practicing on pieces of scrap wood before cutting into your box panels. Centering your hole saw and controlling the jig saw may take some practice to get it right.After allowing one coat of the sealer to dry, lightly sand with a super fine sandpaper or 0000 grade steel wool to smooth out any roughness. Then add one or two additional coats of sealer to finish it off. Step Four: Assemble the pieces of your box with wood glue* at all the joints, taped together with duct tape until you’ve added nails. The box won’t hold together super well with duct tape, so you’ll need to work gingerly as you begin to hammer in brads through the joints. Sandpaper— 80 and 120, and 320 grit (120 is for sanding after box assembly, when a palm sander is handy. I always use adhesive sandpaper when using my palm sander.) Wire brads (I used 1/2″ brads to nail through 1/4″ plywood and 1″ brads to nail through 1/2″ plywood.) After staining, you will have rough wood that needs sealed and smoothed down again. I usually use polyurethane to seal my stained wood. If you’re using a light stain or no stain at all, you may want to use polycrylic instead, as urethane does yellow slightly over time.

When creating my built-in Billy bookcase unit, I wondered if should put cabinet doors on the lower section to hide away less attractive items, such as office supplies and most of our children’s books. In the end, I decided matching boxes would be a nice look. Plus, boxes would offer portability to the items inside. Make sure width of the bottom of your box is the same as the width of the left/right sides of your box.Many can probably relate to having a messy wardrobe. But decluttering it is easier than you might think. All you need is some good storage boxes. Our paper and media boxes are sure to make this easy. And if you’re looking to organize the desk, we’ve got some great desk organizers and mini chest drawers. That way, you get complete control over your pens, scissors and associated items. And if you prefer to keep these things out of sight, use inserts with compartments for your desk drawers. Make room in the living room The bottom of my boxes were left unpainted, because I didn’t want paint scraping against shelves as the boxes are slid in and out. I had considered waxing the bottoms of the boxes so they’d slide more easily, but in the end I decided to use felt pads instead. I cut 1″ wide strips from these felt blankets and put them on either side of the bottoms of the boxes. They slide super easily now. Tips for using a hole saw: When cutting holes with a hole saw drill bit, I recommend marking the center part of your hole first, then using a smaller drill bit to drill through that point.