Unlike those of us in the packaging industry, most professionals hope to avoid (or at least find unnecessary) the unique details that go into designing the perfect unit load and packaging system. For many buyers, packaging lingo can be confusing, alienating or just plain frustrating. With a variety of stretch wrappers, shrink systems and ergonomic equipment, there's a lot to keep track of and many customers are too busy with their own business to find the opportunity to learn about the transportation of their goods.
That's where we come in! While pallets may be our bread and butter, we offer a wide variety of products to help products safely move throughout the country. Our job is not just to offer the best equipment for the job, but to help you understand why. That's where our packaging lab comes in, where pallets and packaging equipment can be tested on your merchandise to determine that perfect balance between cost savings and protective thriftiness.
Next time you need to talk with a systems expert, be sure to ask if you don't understand!
Here are five important vocabulary words all packaging system students should know:
- Automatic - With no operator intervention during the cycle required, automatic stretch wrapping machines ensure a consistent wrap every time. These systems can generally process up to 100 loads an hour.
- Semi-Automatic - For low-volume operations, processing 10 to 40 loads per hour, a semi-automatic stretch wrapper is a potential solution. These wrappers safely unitize loads and lessen the margins for inconsistency.
- Turntable Wrapper - Turntable wrappers spin the unit load while the film winds around it. Check out this video to see one in action!
- Overhead Wrapper - Overhead wrappers are supported on legs as arms circle around the load. This type of mechanized wrapper works well for light, fragile loads and unstable, heavy ones. Because it can wrap loads so quickly, it is often used in warehouses that have a high volume of pallets that need wrapped. Check out this video to see how our Series 800 wraps a load.
- Tower - The apparatus where the stretch film carriage travels to adhere stretch film to the load.
Did you enjoy this mini-systems lesson, or do you have bigger and bolder questions that need answered? Let us know in the comments and we'll do our best to address your questions as they come!
