The Packaging Group

  Whether you use them or not, single-use coffee pods have taken the world by storm... and with quite a large amount of controversy. So what made a luxury coffee producer choose aluminum for their coffee pods?   Luxury coffee producer Nespresso chose to use aluminum to create their pre-portioned capsules because it offered the best protection from oxidation, preserved coffee freshness, and prevented food waste through leftovers. (According to the Sustainability Manager at Nespresso, the kitchen sink is the largest source of consumption of coffee made by standard drip pots.) Now, we know individual coffee pods can be controversial, even to the point of attempted ban in the US and Europe, and creating aluminum is no easy process either. So why did Nespresso choose Aluminum where Keurig chose plastic?   In 2009, Nespresso decided to source sustainable aluminum with the help of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. By 2015, Nespresso has 14 non-g...

Custom poly bag solutions 3 different case studies, 3 different custom poly bag solutions. It's always good to see how different industries are using packaging materials for different applications. In the follow case studies we'll look at a manufacturer of tool chests, a meat packing company, and a manufacturer of automotive parts.   Case study 1 Problem A manufacturer of high-end tool chests needed a better way to protect their products during storage. The large, polished chests needed protection from dirt and scratching. The current poly bag they used to cover the chest caused surface abrasion. Solution The Packaging Group provided them a proprietary LLDPE-HSB formula specially engineered to eliminate abrasion and scratching. The custom poly bags were also easier to open and use on the high-end tool chests. Case study 2 Problem A meat packing company was using an LLDPE poly bag to line their corrugated containers during their blast freeze operation. The streng...

Brick Manufacturing company spending to much on broken bricks. In certain regions across the globe, peat is an excellent and abundant form of fuel. The manufacturing of this natural resource, however, poses a number of challenges. In order to transform the loose matter into something that can be burned, it must be compressed and the water removed. Achieving this dryness so quickly and on an industrial scale proved to be a massive issue for one frustrated customer. The regular stretch film that the manufacturing plant was using was causing an extreme amount of moisture to be produced on the bricks that were supposed to be dry. The result was expanding, rotting, and broken bricks. Entire loads were rejected by customers because of the poor quality of the bricks.  Fixing the mess cost the manufacturing company a great deal of time and money. In order to prevent more bricks from breaking and another costly catastrophe, the manufacturing company contacted  The Packaging Group ...

A new poly strapping tool process In the lumber industry, strapping is used to bundle mixed loads of lumber product. The right strapping and strapping tool is crucial to bundling and protection because of the heavy-duty load. The lumber company was experiencing long strapping times and increased expenses. Switching from a poly combination tool to the new BXT3 poly strapping tool provided the company with thousands of dollars in annual savings.     Problem The lumber company was using an expensive and time consuming process to secure loads. The slow process of strapping lumber was causing downtime and increased costs. Strapping tool solution The BXT3 poly strapping tool saved the lumber company $25,000 in annual savings just by switching tools . The new tool is made to enhance speed and convenience for the operator. This helped cut their strapping process of lumber in half, getting rid of all that extra downtime from before. The adjustable tension helped smooth the p...

Dunnage air bag turbo flow inflation system Dunnage air bag inflation devices offer unparalleled inflation speed and safety. Turbo flow inflation reduces the time and labors costs associated with filling dunnage air bags. Once optimal pressure is achieved, the inflator ceases airflow which eliminates the risk of bursting bags. They work for both vinyl and poly-woven style of air-bags.  Dunnage air bag inflators for vinyl airbags Dunnage air bag inflators for poly-woven airbags Dunnage air bags Fast inflation speeds Inflate dunnage air bags with ease that improves efficiency and loading time. Smaller airbags inflate in just 10 seconds. Operator friendly valve  The valve is easy for any operator to use, and even gloved hands can open and close the valves. Easy deflation The cap is easy to lock and unlock which prevents accidental deflation. To deflate the air bag, just press and turn the lock counter-clockwise and gently push the airbag in on itself.     ...

Bubble packaging One way we decrease packaging costs is with a bubble packaging system . These machines create air pillows to protect your products from damage. These air pillows are made on-demand from a roll of film that is attached to the machine. The small, and in some cases table-top size, machines create a cushioning system to wrap around the items. The AirSpeed Fit is bubble packaging machine than can reduce your packaging costs in just 4 ways. Take a look at what could lead to some major cost savings in your packaging process. Package cost One thing to remember is it's not just about the cost of the packaging materials. It's important to focus on the average cost per package. It can be cheaper to use less material of more expensive bubble packaging than to use more of a less expensive packaging material. The inflatable bubble wrap that an on-demand system creates uses less material than traditional bubble. It's just one way to cost your cost per package by usin...

The construction industry uses poly sheeting. Poly sheeting for the construction industry   provides a temporary support of existing structures and the soil their on. The polyethylene material stands up to the elements and pressures during construction. Their biggest advantages to working in the construction industry is that they're water-proof, rot-proof, and resistant to chemicals. Poly sheeting can be used for construction, landscaping, masonry and more. Poly sheets are highly durable, have high strength, and are tear resistant. Plastic sheeting is useful for industrial applications, protection against the elements on construction sites, moisture and gas barriers and many other innovative uses. Poly sheeting for construction benefits: Construction enclosures Erosion control Shipping and packaging Insulation membranes We offer many poly sheeting packaging supplies in different mil thicknesses: 1 mil ,  1.5 mil ,  2 mil , ...

Stretch wrap in colors Colored stretch wrap comes in a variety of colors to provide easy identification, product coding and dating, and in some cases, tamper-proof evidence. This wrap comes in both hand wrap and machine wrap grades depending on your application. Wrap color options: blue green yellow red black orange custom colors also available Color stretch wrap benefits Color film is known to decrease tampering in products as it's easier to tell if something is broken into. C olor coding your loads and pallets with this film will also prevent unwanted reloading and cross docking of freight.  More benefits: Quiet and Smooth Release Available in colored   hand stretch film   and   colored machine stretch film Inventory Dating Quick and Easy Load Identification Tamper Evident Stretch Film Packaging Improved Organization If you liked this post, GREAT!  Check out our most recent articles.

Wrapping pallets correctly with stretch wrap Pallet wrap, stretch film, stretch wrap , however you'd like to call it, is commonly used to protect pallets and other loads during storage and transportation. Securing your items to a pallet is one of the most important techniques to master if you're using hand wrap. If you're not doing it correctly, you're costing your business money in transport damage. In this case, we'll be talking about hand stretch wrap and the manual wrapping process that happens during packaging. Here's a quick step by step process to correctly wrap your pallets. 1.  Pick the right size pallet : We'll start outside of the wrap first, where the pallet size is very important. If you choose a pallet that doesn't completely cover the base area of your products, you're already off to a bad start.  2.  Wrap the film tightly around the products : In order for the stretchwrap to do its job right, the film needs to be wrapped tight...

What is plastic sheeting used for? Plastic sheeting , is commonly referred to as poly sheeting, plastic on a roll, polyethylene film, visqueen, and plastic sheets. The sheeting on a rolls have a variety of commercial and industrial applications. Poly sheeting is waterproof, rot proof, and is resistant to numerous chemicals. Many industries use the poly sheeting such as; agriculture, construction, electronics, automotive, lumber and more. These sheets are ideal for water proofing products and loads during storage and transport. The sheeting rolls come in : 1 mil ,  1.5 mil ,  2 mil ,  3 mil ,  4 mil ,  6 mil ,  8 mil ,  10 mil   Plastic sheeting applications   Poly sheeting for construction Large plastic sheeting is ideal for residential and commercial house wrapping. This has one of the highest levels of water and weather resistant materials in the market. Erosion control covers Lead & asbestos abatement Reme...

What is pre stretch wrap? Pre stretch wrap is stretched as close to its ultimate breaking point before its wound onto rolls. This way of pre stretching requires much less energy than standard stretchwrap. There's major savings to be had with pre stretch, in some cases almost half of that of traditional stretch wrap. Pre-stretched wrap is just one of the numerous types of stretch wrap film available at The Packaging Group . Pre stretch wrap benefits There's several benefits to using pre stretchwrap . One of the major benefits is that it eliminates neckdown. Neckdown is when the stretchwrap has a tendency to narrow over time, as it's wrapped around a load. When this narrowing of the film happens, it increases the amount of times a pallet or load needs to be wrapped. With pre stretch wrap, neck down is eliminated.  There's of course more than one benefit to using pallet wrap that is pre-stretched:   Easy to handle Lower material costs Increased load tension L...

Polyethylene Tape Choosing the right tape for your application is an important decision. Polyethylene tape is one that has many uses. It's high performance, durable, and moisture resistant that's made to stand up to the toughest conditions. This is great to use on plastic sheeting because it's easy to pull off and won't rip apart the sheets.  Applications for polyethylene tape Like we mentioned before, if you're taping down plastic sheeting, this is the one you want to use. Other applications include: Sealing Splicing and Surface Protection Patching Wrapping and Bundling Exterior Paint Masking Floor Marking Benefits Easy to tear off by hand Flexible Moisture resistant High tack Excellent adhesion to many surfaces _______________________________________________________________________ See Also: The Packaging Group Packaging Library If you liked this post, GREAT!  Check out our most recent articles.

Dunnage air bags are perfect for the beverage industry With the push for supportability and lower costs, the plastic containers fabricated today in the beverage industry are a substantially less plastic than they used to be. This more slender plastic, while extraordinary for the earth is trickier to deliver without harm. Transportation is difficult for items, yet the more slender the plastic, the more basic it is to evacuate any potential for development. What's the best way to protect beverages during shipping? Packaging for the beverage industry, in general, is made easier with dunnage air bags .   Beverage industry packaging  Most trailers of palletized beverages are twofold stacked. In this arrangement, any development of the beds is exchanged from the best to the base. Moving bed weight on more slender jugs will make harm the base stacked containers, including popping and spilling. Once the trailer arrives, not exclusively is there the work to em...

Replastec Coil Separators Stacking those steel coils can be dangerous if not done properly. They're heavy, slit metal coils that aren't easy to stack or transport. Replastec Coil Separators are engineered specifically for separating slit metal coils when stacked and strapped to a skid. Load stability improvements Replastec coil separators are made with an inner core of rigid plastic and an outer core of softer, more flexible plastic. This allows the coil edges to embed in a cushion to help prevent damage and slipping.  How much can these separators support? Over 5,000 lbs. with only 1% compression . This makes the coils highly stable and stackable at the same time. Don't trust wood or paper separators with this job, they can compress under typical coil weights. If the separators fail, the stacks will start to lean and will be a safety hazard. Who's going to want to pick up those sharp stacked coils if they fall over? Yeah, me neither. Superior Performance Get r...

Dunnage air bags- filling voids and stabilizing loads Let your shipments catch some Zzzzs with dunnage air bags. Well, not really, but they do look like large pillows for your pallets. Instead of sleeping, they fill the void between pallets and stabilize your truck loads. Whether you're shipping full truck or LTL dunnage air bags will help your products get to their destination in one piece. Dunnage air bags are air-inflated bladders that are made of different materials. They can be paper , poly-woven , vinyl , and plastic materials. They're used to effectively fill the spaces left between pallets when loaded into a trailer. Airbags start deflated, are inserted between pallets, and are then inflated for stabilization. This helps the pallets stay in one place, lessens the amount of movement between pallets, and keeps them upright.   Air bags are great for the beverage industry Time for a history lesson Alright, try to stay awake for this quick lesson in history. Not too...

The Benefits of Foam in Place Packaging   Foam in Place Instapak  - "The Instapak Quick RT Foam Packaging is activated right out of the box by hand, at room temperature. This foam in place alternative is a quick, easy-to-use expandable foam packaging which virtually eliminates shipping damage." Foam in place packaging is a unique process to protecting your products. Think of it as a snug cushion that wraps itself around the product to better protect it than other packaging supplies. There's a molding process that happens when two liquid chemicals are injected into a high density polyethylene bag. That chemical reaction causes the foaming and expanding around the product, effectively filling the void between container and product.  Enough about the science behind it Now that we got the science descriptions out of the way, let's focus on why you came here in the first place. LET'S TALK ABOUT THE BENEFITS. Foam in place packaging has many benefits as the o...

For all your company and personal e-commerce sellers out there, it's important to remember a crucial part of your business. The packaging. E-commerce packing can make or break your small business or large operation. Customers are happier when the products they order are delivered safely and in one piece. Damaged and returned product hurts companies in the millions every year. It also leads to customers not coming back. It's about the presentation of the packaging and the protection. E-commerce packing tips Focus on the product Take a look at your product to asses how they should be packaged. It's more than just the dimensions of your product though. E-commerce packing depends on numerous factors outside the length, width, and weight of your products.  How long is the shipment? Will it be exposed to weather? Are your products fragile? How much void fill do you need? Do you want branded packaging? All these factors matter when deciding how to package your product...

What's an inflatable system? Inflatable systems create air filled packaging cushions on-demand. A roll of film gets mounted to a small piece of equipment to create the cushioning pads. They come in either single-chamber pillows or multi-chamber hybrid cushioning pads. This all depends on your application needs. The variety of equipment models are available to fit your performance and environmental requirements. Let's look at things you can evaluate before purchasing an inflatable packaging system. Inflatable systems can reduce your overall packaging costs and still hit your performance goals. Material It's smart practice to keep in mind the average cost per package, and not just the cost of materials. We all know how different the units of measure can be when it comes to packaging. They're all over the place right? cubic foot, square foot, length, width, grams, lbs., gauges, etc. You get my drift, and it can be hard to compare them to each other, but that's wha...