A loading dock is a busy, accident-prone place. It’s common for packages to be dropped, kicked, and impacted, in many cases breaking anything fragile inside. Additionally, conveyors, trucks, railroads and even aircraft experience vibrations that can compromise a breakable shipment.
Have you ever experienced a loss in a shipped order? Perhaps a careless dockhand somewhere dropped the box containing your fine Italian vase? Void fill offers a variety of ways to protect fragile items during shipment. By selecting the right void fill shipping supplies you will ensure your investment arrives at it’s destination in flawless, mint condition.
Shocks and vibrations can be controlled by cushioning in a package to decrease the possibility of damage. Some types of internal packaging materials are meant to directly support and stabilize the item, for instance the Styrofoam framework that surrounds a new TV in its box. Other types are meant solely to fill a void and don’t have any cushioning function.
Here are some of the most common types of cushioning to choose from:
Loose Fill – Usually this comes in the form of foam peanuts. These products are flow-able and packed loosely around items in a box. Closing the box tightens the pack and provides some compression resistance.
Paper – Wadded up paper is often used as cushioning fill with smaller packages. Naturally, heavier paper provides more weight-bearing ability than lighter stock.
Corrugated fiberboard – Cardboard can be cut and folded to form shapes and structures to protect items. These are designed to crush and deform under shock or compressive stress. The honeycomb structure of the corrugate offers some cushioning as well.
Structured Styrofoam – You may remember these from your TV or stereo box. Styrofoam is engineered into specific shapes to provide shock protection for many electronics devices.
Molded pulp – Molded pulp is similar to Styrofoam but is more often used for food products. You may have seen apples on molded pulp trays in your local grocery store.
Inflatable Products – Bubble wrap uses “bubbles” of air to protect and cushion the vast majority of products. Many manufacturers will also offer inflatable bags that you can blow up and arrange around products to achieve the maximum amount of vibration reduction and resiliency.
Now you should be able to make an educated decision on how to choose the best infill products and shipping supplies to ensure your product arrives safely at it’s destination.
