Packing Supplies and Solutions

This year is a bit different from many others and we have seen many companies struggle with the changes that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought.  Millions of Americans are out of work and thousands of companies are shutting down or really struggling.  There are lots of reasons why and if you run a warehouse or are in a company that has one this is an area where you can help your company succeed in the trying pandemic times.  The first thing is to make sure your warehouse is operating at the best efficiency possible. There are lots of things to do in order to be at the top of the market but there are a few things we want to go over that may apply to you.

The first thing is that if your company is going to be shipping more online or if you company is about to shift from a brick and mortar to a full blown ecommerce store than the warehouse is going to grow.  The amount of space you will need and organization will become key.  A small thing to know is that expensive racking and crazy pre-made systems are not necessary.  Most billion dollar big box stores have warehouses in stores that are run by a simple ABC’s system for aisles and also simple racks that are filled with corrugated boxes for storage.  The boxes are simply cardboard boxes that are sized to fit the shelves and those are a really inexpensive way to cut down on costs.  It is also a super easy way to constantly make changes without growing costs.  It is really simple to replace a box that costs a dollar or free if you cut them to shape from boxes you already use.  Make sure your aisle letter and number system is simple and consistent and then you can really inexpensive organize your products. I have found that purchasing these products from packaging supplies stores is the best place to do it. 

Packaging Supplies stores generally give discounts and end up being very cheap in other areas as well.  Shipping from the warehouse is generally based on those stores and buying the best quantity and amount from them. This will be another large area to keep track of and that is all the products you are currently using.  Buying from these stores is best done in bulk and the higher the quantity the better deals you can get.  It is also important to be buying the right products you need. Tape for instance.

If the tape you use for shipping takes more than one piece in order to keep the box you are shipping closed then you may need a different tape.  The box you are using may be the wrong thickness or not be weighted enough for your products. I suggest talking to a good customer service agent at a packaging store and find the best product so you are not spending more money on areas that you don’t need.  The best place to save money is to make sure your products arrive safely with less returns and no bad ratings. So asking about the filling for your packaging is just as important at cutting down long term costs and yes this is at the warehouse level.  So rock your warehouse and I hope this helps you become the best one out there!

If you are following this real estate market then you may be thinking about moving.  I know I am and my family keep looking at all the homes being sold.  The big reason for this is that the interest rates for loans are the lowest they have ever been and this has lots of people packing up and getting ready to change homes or buy their first homes.  I feel that the market won’t be this way forever, but if you are going to be moving soon I want to go over a few things that can help that move go a bit easier. 

The first thing is to have the right tape on hand.  I have learned that all tape is not made alike.  When you go to a packaging supplies store or talk to a pro they will ask you what type of box you are using and how much weight is going to be in it. If you are using 5 strips of a regular packing tape they will tell you it is cheaper to buy a thicker stronger tape instead of using 5 strips.  This means you can use one strip of tape that holds just as well and that can lower the cost a lot when moving.  This makes moving faster, cheaper and keeps everyone happy that things are not falling out of boxes.

Another thing to think about is getting the right boxes for the move.  I have found many companies sell moving packages that simply have lots of different types of boxes that people usually use when moving.  I really love the ability to spend 20 bucks from a packaging supplies store and get the entire set up of tape, boxes, and the makers needed to label all the boxes. I have found that having the right box can save you lots of money and pain in the long run.  This is because I have moved with older boxes.  When you use a old used box it bends a lot more.  When the box bends and there is a lot of heavy things in it the box can shift, and bend when carrying it. 

This usually means the box will be dropped and that person will shift their body to hold it until it falls.  When this is done you can get lots of injuries do to many previous injuries or simply weaker muscles that they don’t use very often. So be safe and get the right gear.

There are many options for packaging your products. It is challenging to find the right packaging that will enhance and protect your products. There are two types of packaging you can choose. One is flexible packaging, and the other is rigid packaging. Both have advantages and disadvantages and what you determine is useful for your packaging needs depends on these pros and cons.

Flexible Packaging

Flexible packaging includes malleable packages including shrink film, stretch film, seal bands, blister or skin packs, flexible pouches, and clamshells. Flexible packaging includes protective packaging made from plastic, paperboard, was-coated paperboard, field, paper, and combinations of these items.

 Flexible packaging is used for coffee, meats, poultry, drinks, medications, electronics, industrial powders, produce, and many other types of products. Flexible packaging can be found in grocery stores, drug stores, and any kind of store or place of business that handles products.

Pros of Flexible Packaging

• Reduces the carbon footprint and is environmentally friendly,

• Easy to use, and tends to have easy-open capabilities,

• Lower cost to produce,

• Branding capabilities. You can have printing edge to edge and on both sides,

• Uses less material than other types of packaging.

Cons of Flexible Packaging

• Material can cause the flavor of foods and liquids to change,

• Low-temperature resistance. Products can freeze or melt faster in flexible packaging.

• Difficult to recycle,

• Takes up to 1,000+ years to degrade in landfills.

Rigid Packaging

Rigid packaging is stronger than flexible packaging and is made from materials that include hard plastics, cardboard, glass, and metal. Rigid packaging can be more expensive to use, but rigid packaging is often safer. Rigid packaging is commonly used to protect fragile products and more expensive consumer products. Rigid packaging is a great choice and is heavy-duty in nature.

Pros of Rigid Packaging

• Strong and made from hard materials,

• Represent quality,

• Does not affect flavors of foods and liquids,

• Uses easily recyclable materials.

Cons Rigid Packaging

• More expense than other types of packaging,

• High carbon footprint,

• Higher shipping costs,

• Can take up quite a bit of space in landfills.

What Type of Packaging Do You Need?

If you are looking for exceptional product protection, rigid packaging may be the right choice for you. If you do not have any concern for the environmental impact, but only want your products to arrive safely, rigid packaging can be useful. Looking for packaging that represents high quality? Rigid packaging is the best choice in this case.

If you are looking to reduce your cost of packaging, flexible packaging would be the best choice. Shipping costs do depend on the weight of the packaging, and rigid packaging will add more weight to your shipping.

You can include graphics on both types of packaging, and both types of packaging will keep your products safe in transit. Do note that rigid glass packaging does not degrade quickly, but also consider that plastic pouches also cause difficulties in landfills.

Determine what you need packaging for and look at the pros and cons of both rigid and flexible packaging. Answering these questions can give you a solid answer about what type of packaging is best for your products.

If you find yourself leaving your place of residence for the first time then you are in for a surprise.  Lots of things you have probably never thought of will soon become very important.  What sort of things am I talking about? Well things like, costs for insurance on the rental truck.  Extra tape you may need for the boxes that started to bend and break.  You may also need to go out and purchase cardboard boxes in order to pack your things up.  These little things all take time and also money. 

I have moved at least 10 times in my life for all types of various reasons and I have moved during different aspects of my life as well.  The differences between moving young, at college, moving into a home and moving from one home to another all have different aspects to them.  It also means you may be adding different types of things to the list of moving.  So let’s go over just a few tips on moving out for the first time.

First things first, congratulations on moving to a new location.  Even if you are moving for a sad reason, take this time to realize that a new start is about to occur.  It can be negative if you let it, but it can be very positive because you get to start someplace new and start over in a way.  Now that is just exciting.

The next thing to do is think about moving all your things and finding out how much you have.  This is pretty easy and I like to get a few cheap moving boxes and compare the sizes and think about how many I would need to get my things from one place to another.  This is called planning, and it also help you know how many cheap moving boxes you may need to actually move or purchase.  I like to ask people for old boxes or even companies for boxes so I don’t have to pay for them, but there is a benefit to getting brand new corrugated boxes. 

This is that they are usually stronger and less likely to bend or tear.  I have hurt my back before due to a box bending and the weight shifting while I was carrying it.  This caused a muscle in my back to pull and that was certainly not fun.  New boxes eliminate this issue usually and can be worth the cost of purchasing if that is what may happen. So happy moving!

One task I found that really taught me many lessons was the process of actually creating a warehouse.  This was not simply making the building but taking a completely full area and turning it into a useable, working, productive business section.  This was a very complicated and yet overly simple process that took time.  This was originally at a company that sold old surplus gear and had stored 5 decades of old military gear in piles and massive cheap moving boxes. 

When I first was tasked with taking a several thousand square foot room stacked to the ceiling with gear and making it a usable warehouse I had my doubts it could be done well.  The process took a long time because hidden in every pile was simply money.  All the gear could technically be sold and a profit made on all of it.  Literally everything in the room was money that was sitting there.  The first step was to actually plan out the idea of an end game.  We wanted to create a working moveable shipping area and have a storage area for not only all the old inventory but also the new inventory the store purchased on a daily basis.  

This meant first sorting the thousands upon thousands of items in the warehouse.  This was a task I put multiple hourly workers on every single day.  We created systems for going through each pile and sorting the gear.  Each time we had enough gear to fill a box of the same items we would label and store that box in a corner.  The process took about a year to sort through all the gear.  We used cheap moving boxes to stack all the gear up and ended up throwing out hundreds of square feet of gear that simply could not be sold.  Some things are too far deteriorated or not safe to sell and thus they were dumped.  Each week we filled a dumpster full of gear for a year and then stored whatever was left.  In the end we cleared enough space to begin construction.

The next phase was to create storage for each of the items we needed so we hand built shelves that reached the top of the ceiling and stored the average size boxes we were using. After each shelf was built we would then move the boxes from one corner onto it and then build the next shelf where the old boxes were.  THis process continued until the end when it was turned into a beautiful working warehouse.