Stability of unit loads?

[brayfield]

I'm trying to find out if there is a equation, recommendation, study or any article that evaluates the stability of a unit load for shipping/handling. For example, it may give height vs. width ratios in relation to weight. Anybody have any ideas, or suggestions for places to look?

 

[BillPSU]

Stability of a load depends on what you are shipping not on how to package. Example is rolls of paper. I have seen rolls of paper which weighed 1000 lbs and were 2-3ft in diameter up to 2 ft wide (fancy printing paper). I have also seen rolls of paper weighing 6000 lbs 7ft in diameter and 4 ft wide (cardboard feed stock). I have also seen rolls of paper 8ft wide by 4ft diameter weighing 1500lbs (paper towel feed stock).
The density of the product and its shipping configuration is more of a controlling factor. An example is Gatorade. The amount of weight per pallet must be limited to allow even distribution of the product on a truck to not concentrate the load in the trailer. Typical load requirements on a 18-wheeler is 12,000 lbs on the front axle, 34,000 lbs on the drive axle tandem and 34,000 lbs on the trailer tandems. If pallets are too heavy the drive tandems will be over weight because trailers are filled from the front to the back.