Finding the right packaging materials for safely shipping products can make or break an online business. The packaging not only protects items from damage during transit, but it also presents a company’s brand to the customer. When choosing materials for delivering products in top condition, business owners have many options to consider including cost, sustainability, and effectiveness at shielding merchandise.Â
Expanded Polystyrene Foam
Commonly known by the trademark name Styrofoam, expanded polystyrene foam or EPS has been used for product packaging and shipping for decades. The bright white foam sheets cushion packed items in boxes with smooth beads fused together. EPS is affordable, ultra lightweight, moisture resistant, and scores high marks for its shock absorbing abilities. It protects everything from wine bottles and electronics to meat and pharmaceuticals while they journey to their destination. According to the experts at Epsilyte, EPS products can be molded into almost any shape and sized precisely to fit packed merchandise.
Bubble Cushioning Wrap
Easy to identify by its popcorn-resembling air bubbles, bubble wrap is a go-to choice to line boxes and wrap fragile goods prone to breaking. The flexible plastic sheets provide excellent puncture and shock resistance. The columns of trapped air absorb impact as products get jostled during handling and transport while also blocking moisture. Bubble cushioning wrap comes in an array of bubble sizes, thicknesses, and lengths to accommodate all kinds of oddly shaped or delicate merchandise. It is handy for do-it-yourself packing jobs because the sheets adhere to themselves without glue or tape for quick wrapping.
Air Pillows
Inflated on demand as needed, air pillows offer a lightweight and adaptable way to fill excess space and absorb impacts inside boxes. Hand held machines or automated systems blow open these cushy polyethylene or nylon pouches then seals them closed trapping air inside. Boxes packed tight with air bags prevent jarring movements, deter theft by eliminating empty pockets, and add thermal insulation.
Manual or automated inflation of air pillows is easy during conveyorized packaging, adapting to order size. Users only utilize what they immediately need so no material gets wasted unlike preformed bubble wrap or foam sheets. Once recipients open orders, deflated air bags take up little room in recycling bins or trash receptacles. Nevertheless, most municipal recycling centers do not process them because of multi-layer film construction. An environmentally responsible way to leverage air pillow technology involves using a specialty supplier that collects, sanitizes and reuses spent air bags giving them extra lifecycles.
Paper Packaging Materials
Void fill, cushioning, insulation, and wrapping products made purely from paper provide natural biodegradable alternatives to plastic filling materials. Renewably sourced paper pulp gets processed into sheets and then crinkled, molded, or shaped as needed for protective packaging purposes. Options include textured kraft paper sheets, embossed paper pads, molded fiber forms fitted for specific product shapes, and honeycomb structural void fill pieces made from recycled cardboard and paper.
Tree-free alternative paper feeds for packaging materials utilize agricultural waste fibers like bamboo, sugar cane, coconut husks, straw, and banana stems. These panels, pads, and blocks offer comparable protective qualities as tree pulp-based paper packaging. When designed and printed properly, paper packaging serves as a biodegradable, compostable, renewable, and recyclable method to present online orders while avoiding plastic waste entering oceans an landfills.
Conclusion
The optimal shipping protection strategy for e-commerce businesses combines eco-friendly paper and plant-based solutions for primary packaging then leverages plastic foam, bubble wrap, and air bags chiefly for secondary inner packing needs. Evaluating new technologies with recycled content and reuse programs helps companies balance functionality, sustainability, performance, and costs when delivering online purchases in perfect condition.