Stretch Wrapping

Learn About Stretch Wrapping

• What Is a Stretch Film?

  Stretch film is a thin and highly stretchable plastic film, usually made from linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE).
  Stretch film secure your load and packages using its elastic property to keep everything tightly bound together. The film also cling to itself, avoiding messiness when wrapping and handling.
  Stretch film is often mistaken as shrink wrap, which does not provide the load securing benefit comparable to stretch wrapping. It is also rarely applied on large scale application such as palletisation.
  Stretch film have many grades, commonly used term includes recycled grade, virgin grade, machine stretch film grade.

• Why Should You Use Stretch Films?

  Pallet stretch-wrapping unitising, have several key benefits. When your pallet and its item is wrapped, it forms a unit load, which improve the stability immensely.
  By wrapping your load, it can also provide protection from environmental damage, notably moisture and dust protection. This helps to keep your items looking new and pristine.
  It can also provide a certain degree of theft and tamper resistance, as removing any items from a wrapped pallets can be obvious due to tearing of the stretch film. It can be difficult to remove an item if the stretch film is not completely removed.
  In storage, material handling and warehousing, stretch film can ensure the items on the pallet are correctly aligned and stayed within the pallet, this increase warehouse handling efficiency as pallet can be place closer to each other while avoiding safety hazard and mishandling.

• How To Apply Stretch Films?

  Stretch film is usually applied using manual hand wrapping or using a stretch wrapping machine.
  Hand wrapping or manual wrapping has virtually zero upfront cost. However, it is an inefficient method to keep your load secure, as the film is not stretch enough to exhibit a strong elasticity that bound the load together. It may also be work safety hazard due to lack of ergonomics.
  A turntable pallet stretch wrapping is a great machine to wrap your products. Utilising frictional brake or powered pre-stretch motor, the film can be stretched and extended, increasing the effective film length and improves securing of the products.

• What Are the Benefits of Using a Stretch Wrapping Machine?

  It saves time and labour. It can wrap a pallet, or a load faster and more efficiently than any human can, reducing the amount of time and labour required for packaging. This can also free up your workers to focus on other tasks and improve productivity.
  It saves money and materials. It can use less film and apply it more evenly and tightly than manual wrapping, reducing the amount of waste and material costs. This can also lower your shipping costs by optimise the materials used for palletisation and preventing damage or loss of goods during transit.
  It improves safety and quality. It can reduce the risk of injury or strain for your workers by eliminating the need for bending, lifting or stretching to wrap loads manually. This can also improve the quality and consistency of your packaging by ensuring that every load is wrapped securely and uniformly, preventing slippage, shifting or unwrapping during handling or storage.

• Should You Be Using a Stretch Wrapping Machine?

  Depending on your volume and frequency of wrapping. If you only wrap a few pallets or loads per day or per week, you may not need a stretch wrapping machine. However, if the palletisation process is having a hard time to keep up with the output, you should invest in a stretch wrapping machine to speed up your packaging process and reduce your labour costs.
  Your budget and space in an important factor as well. A stretch wrapping machine can be a significant investment, depending on the type, size and features of the machine. You should also consider the space required to install and operate the machine in your facility. You should weigh the initial cost and space against the potential savings and benefits of using a stretch wrapping machine in the long run, if you are unsure about this, then feel free to contact us.