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CS Packaging, Inc.

1270 Douglas Road, Batavia, IL 60510
(630) 690-1300

Protective Packaging

CUSTOM SHIPPING PACKAGING SUPPLIES YOU AREN’T USING (BUT SHOULD BE!)

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“It’s what is inside that really counts.” Although we often say this about people, some manufacturers and distributors think the same way about product packaging. They pore over every product detail, and then ship it out in whatever box that is available, without any thought to protection or presentation. Ignoring custom shipping packaging, however, can have a negative impact on your brand and your bottom line.

Why You Need Custom Shipping Packaging Supplies:

There are lots of people who will see your package, so why not use it to make a positive brand statement? If your product arrives damaged because the packaging did not perform its job, your company loses time in customer service and wastes the effort of sending a replacement.

And this doesn’t take into consideration whether that person remains as a customer, or how many other people they tell about their “lousy” experience!

What They Are:

There are two sides to custom packaging. One is the packaging itself, which needs to be constructed specifically for a particular product to protect it during the shipping process. A well-constructed package also makes a positive impression when end consumers first receive it.

The other side of custom packaging is what it says to everyone who handles it. Your package may be handled by delivery people, sales people, warehouse workers and many others before it gets to the consumer.

Use every chance to make a brand statement with digital printing on the outside of your box. What can this strategy do?

  • Present a positive association with your brand
  • Promote your subscription service
  • Serve as a walking billboard when used in custom retail packaging

Which Packaging Supplies Should Be Customized?

Some of the many ways to customize shipping packaging supplies include:

1. Packing Tape

Although tape doesn’t get a lot of attention, it can cause a lot of problems if it doesn’t hold the box closed. Once you’ve got the right tape strength for the job, print a logo on it to increase brand awareness.

2. Boxes

In addition to outside printing, the construction itself is crucial. You can order a special thickness for a custom-printed corrugated box that will keep your product safer. Custom retention packaging or foam packaging will protect sensitive products from shock and vibration.

3. Partitions

Custom partitions keep multiple products inside a box from bumping into each other and becoming damaged. Combined board or corrugated flutes can be customized to provide the necessary level of protection.

4. Edge Protectors

These provide corner integrity with capacity from light to heavy duty. They can be printed with “Do not double stack” to further prevent crushing.

Additionally, you’re custom shipping packaging supplies provider can ensure product safety with an edge crush test — making sure your box will not be easily damaged in transit.

5. Delicate Items

Glassware, wine bottles, and delicate electronic items are best protected by custom molded pulp trays or air cushion packaging, which creates a secure, resilient barrier between your product and its shipping container.

 
Not Sure What to Customize?

Although stock packaging has its place, you should definitely use custom shipping packaging supplies to make sure your products look their best and are properly protected whenever possible.

Not sure what to customize for your business? Talk to one of our packaging experts!

WHAT TYPES OF PROTECTIVE PACKAGING DOES MY PRODUCT NEED?

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protective packaging

Packages often live hard lives. They are jostled about by machines and conveyor belts. People toss them on trucks, or stack them to unreasonable heights without worrying about crushing what is inside.

If it is your precious product inside that package, you might have a big problem on your hands.

So, whose fault is it when a product arrives broken or damaged? Some responsibility lies in the transportation process, but most fault can be traced directly to poor product packaging — meaning, it’s actually your fault.

Protective Packaging Saves You Money

Fortunately there are a number of protective packaging products that can keep your fragile merchandise safe — saving you from having to send the product again, wasting countless dollars (and hours) in the meantime.

Products that arrive in good condition make a great first impression, keep the customer happy, and avoid return problems. Best of all, packaging can even be customized to meet your exact product shape and shipping requirements.

How do you know the best way to keep your product safe? We’ve outlined the best custom shipping packaging supplies to keep even the most uniquely shaped products from breaking.

Retention Inserts & Suspension Packaging

You’ve heard of the benefits of suspension bridges – they absorb a lot of weight and movement with minimum materials. Imagine if the same concept could be applied to protecting delicate electronic items like laptops and smartphones, or easily breakable items.

Instead of surrounding your product in an avalanche of eco-unfriendly “peanuts,” it is gently suspended and secured between two pieces of high-quality protective film — almost as though it is resting on air.  

Customers don’t have to dig through packaging that wastes your money and makes a mess for them. When they open the box, their purchase is instantly displayed and easily accessible so they can experience immediate enjoyment.

If you customize your retention inserts and suspension packaging, you can ensure they fit your product perfectly — eliminating any risk of damage.

Custom Foam Cushioning

Let’s say your product has a unique shape or a number of delicate parts that need to be separated and held securely. This shipping challenge calls for custom foam cushioning, where an exact mold is made of your products and then transformed into a gentle foam cushion that safely envelops and displays each individual part.

The foam can be created from a variety of materials and endlessly crafted to meet your exact product needs. Your end user simply removes your product from its protective nest and gets right to work.

Air Cushion Packaging

We’ve come a long way from using linens or paper to protect items during shipping. Now we can simply create a series of cost-effective air “pillows” that are joined together to create a shock barrier between your product and the outer packaging.  

Air cushioning is perfect for light-weight or delicate items, products like toner cartridges, or for products with a number of smaller parts or compartments such as tool kits or make-up collections.

Custom Molded Pulp Trays

Fragile items such as wine bottles or glass wares need an extra level of protection that can only be provided by a custom molded pulp tray. Although they are light-weight and cost-effective, they provide a high degree of protection for the most delicate of shipments.

Custom molded pulp trays are made from recyclable materials, stack easily in your warehouse, and are ready and waiting when you need them for larger shipments.  

Custom Box Partitions

Nothing is worse than opening a box only to find that the contents have collided with each other and broken. This common shipping challenge can easily be avoided with the use of custom box partitions — which keep shipments from coming into contact with each other.

They can be corrugated or chipboard, and customized for size and thickness.

How to Know For Sure What’s Best For Your Product

Are you shipping a product that is so unique, you still don’t know the best way to protect it? Give us a call! We’re always happy to walk you through your protective packaging options, and guarantee to keep your product safe.

RETENTION & SUSPENSION PACKAGING: WHAT IT IS AND WHY YOU NEED IT

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 retention and suspension packaging

If you’re unfamiliar with retention and suspension packaging and the increasingly important role it plays in e-commerce packaging, allow us to explain:

Let’s say you ordered some sort of expensive electronic product online, like a laptop.

You’re obviously excited for it to arrive at your home, and you may have even thought about the perceived risk that you took in ordering it online rather than at the store.

The risk we’re talking about? Shipping.

Retention and Suspension Packaging Eliminates Risk

Yes, product packaging isn’t too much of an issue for soft goods that are purchased online, but for expensive, fragile things like computers, it’s a different story.

After all, packages get tossed around, might be dropped or even stacked on top of one another as they go from Point A to Point B.

The last thing you want to do is have to worry about returning a damaged or busted product upon home delivery. And that’s where retention and suspension packaging come into play.

How Does Suspension Packaging Work?

Retention and suspension packaging uses special corrugated inserts and plastic flexible film.

The inserts fit into the shipping box and work to suspend the product so that it’s more centrally located within the open airspace of the box and away from the major points of impact.

Additionally, the product is secured into place with plastic flexible film, which prevents it from slipping around or moving within the box itself.

What Are the Benefits of Suspension Packaging?

  • Customizable.
  • Reusable.
  • Impresses customers.
  • Is easy to assemble and install.

There are several benefits to using retention and suspension packaging. For starters, it presents a more cost effective alternative to conventional means of secure shipping, which often involves the use of foam, die cut molds or other materials.

Here’s a look at some of the key benefits to this type of packaging:

It’s easily customizable:

Because products are secured in place with flexible plastic film, most retention and suspension packaging is a one-size-fits-all type of solution thanks to the conforming properties of the film itself.

It’s reusable:

The flexible film used to hold products can be easily reused, as it maintains its effectiveness.

Noting this, it’s a more eco-friendly option.

It looks great:

On most packages you’ve opened over the years, you likely had to dig through the box and break apart foam to get to the product you bought.

This creates a bit of a mess that you’re left to clean. When you open a box with retention and suspension packaging, you’re able to see the product right then and there as soon as the box is opened.

There’s no digging around or messy cleanup. In fact, the corrugated retention inserts can be recycled too.

It’s easy:

Retention and suspension packaging is easy to assemble and install.

Switch to Suspension

Keeping your product safe is a top-priority for your business.

If you’re looking to upgrade your packaging, but aren’t sure where to start — just call Bob!

WHAT IS MOLDED PULP PACKAGING? + WHY YOUR PRODUCTS NEED IT

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Molded pulp packaging is a newer type of packaging typically made from recycled materials. It is used for protective packaging mostly for food and beverages.

However, it is also a great option to package delicate items of any kind that need extra considerations throughout the shipping process.

Custom Molded Pulp Packaging 101

This type of packaging is eco-friendly and can be recycled again after its life-cycle. In three words, molded pulp packaging basically saves money, time, and space.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the benefits that molded pulp packaging by CS Packaging offers:

1. Affordable 

Molded pulp packaging is made from recycled materials, making it an affordable option. We also form them into the shape our customers need. This eliminates the assembly process and in turn, saves you money.

We are also constantly up to date on new developments and ways to reduce extra steps and costs.

2. Time

In every business, time is money. Investing in molded pulp packaging will save time from the first to the last step. Consequently, costs will be lower for both the business and customers.

Due to the way that molded pulp packaging is designed, shipments are also less frequent. This saves you time in transportation and the packaging process.

3. Space and Performance 

The way that we design our molded pulp packaging allows us to nest and stack the pieces together. Performance wise, they provide excellent bracing, blocking, and cushioning protection. Both employees and customers can handle it with ease. Every model is designed for instant use.

This style of packaging:

  • Is not affected by extreme temperatures
  • Is water resistant 
  • Reduces the percentage of damaged merchandise by over fifty percent

The best part is that because it’s made from recycled materials, customers can recycle their packaging after use.

4. Eco-Friendly 

At CS Packaging, we pride ourselves in providing our customers with 100 percent recycled materials.

Our packaging meets global standards and most importantly, it meets the expectations of customers that are environmentally sensitive.

If you are looking for the perfect way to package your products take a look at molded pulp packaging. Call or visit our website and let the experts at CS Packaging create the perfect molded pulp packaging for your business.

PACKAGING AND SHIPPING SUPPLIES TO BUDGET FOR IN 2019

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packaging and shipping supplies budget

The key to the overall success of any business is the quality of their products. Ideally, products don’t just meet a need — but they’re quality designed and made, long-lasting and easy to use.

And while much attention is placed on product development and quality control during the design, engineering and manufacturing processes, there’s an important end-of-line task that also cannot be downplayed.

We’re talking about packaging and shipping the product. Yes, a great product is ideal, but it does the end user no good if it’s broken, damaged or not working when the consumer goes to use it.

The right packaging and shipping products can help safely get a product from Point A to Point B, whether that Point B is a retail store or consumers themselves.

It’s why it’s so essential to budget for these costs on an annual basis, as not having the right solutions in your warehouse is going to do more to harm your business than it will do to help it. 

5 Important Packaging & Shipping Supplies to Budget For

Here’s a look at the packaging and shipping supplies that you need to be budgeting for:

1.Boxes

Every business likely uses some type of boxes for packaging purposes. Whether the product is large enough to take up a single box, or many of the same product are packaged into the box for shipment, boxes are simple yet arguably the most important type of packaging you can have in your warehouse.

A lot of businesses make the mistake of thinking that since most cardboard boxes look the same, they all perform the same.

Box considerations include:

Make sure you select the right box (or boxes) for your product. Boxes are priced by type and quantity ordered. They can range anywhere from about a quarter to several dollars per box.

2. Protective Packaging

After you’ve settled on the type of box or boxes you need, you then need to “think inside the box” to account for the protective packaging solutions that are going to prevent your product from moving around and potentially breaking while in transit.

Just think of all the people that handle your product as it goes from Point A to Point B and you’ll see what we mean.

Some popular types of protective packaging solutions include:

Pricing is largely dictated on what you purchase. Other forms of protective packaging such as heavy-duty bubble wrap, for instance, can cost more than $150 per master roll. Foam can cost more than $700 per bundle. Loose fill tends to be the most affordable protective packaging, running less than $20 per 7 cubic feet of bag.

Although up front the cost of protective packaging can cause a little sticker shock, it is oftentimes worth it in the long run to invest now — and save the headache (and money) of dealing with products that arrive broken to customers.

3. Machinery

Sealing shrink film systems, heat guns, pallet trucks and platform trucks are all examples of some of the machinery and equipment that’s necessary to help bolster warehouse packaging.

Make sure to budget appropriately for any of these items. Heavy-duty pallet trucks can cost more than $1,000, shrink film systems can cost in the $500 range and heat guns run about $80 per item.

Packaging and shipping equipment helps streamline operations and get product out faster and safer, helping you save both money and mishap down the line.

4. Tape and Other Shipping Supplies

Things like tape, box edge protectors, shrink film, and ties must all be accounted for in any firm’s packaging operations. These may seem like small accessories, but they play an important role in sealing boxes, protecting box edges, wrapping pallets and more.

As these are packaging accessories, they’re generally much cheaper to acquire than the primary packaging supplies, like boxes and protective packaging.

Edge protectors can cost more than $1,000 per skid (there’s usually 2,240 items per skid), while standard ties cost as little as $7 per case. Shrink film rolls can cost a few hundred dollars per case and sealing tape costs can range from $60 to about $600 per case depending on what type of tape is needed.

When it comes to your packaging and shipping operations, don’t forget about the little things. They can make a big difference – both in your operations and in what you have to budget.

5. Safety Accessories/ Other Supplies for the Warehouse:

In addition to everything we’ve mentioned on this list so far, there are various safety accessories and items that you’ll likely need in the warehouse as part of a packaging and shipping operation.

These include gloves ($20 to $60 per case), safety masks ($140 to $440 per case), safety glasses (up to $34 per case), first aid kits (about $150 per kit), ear protection (up to $50 per case), hard hats ($60 per case) and back support belts (about $35 per case). Shelving and storage solutions should also be considered.

Wire shelves can cost up to $500, while heavy-duty storage bins can run up to $90 per item.

What Else Should Be Included in Your Budget?

As you can see, there’s a lot that goes into packaging and shipping than what might initially meet the eye. And all of these expenditures need to be accounted for in your company’s budgeting.

So if you haven’t yet already done so, be sure to take stock of all the packaging and shipping items you have and what you expect to need this year.

Be prepared so that you can ensure product moves out swiftly and your product arrives in great shape at its final destination.

PROS AND CONS OF CUSTOM CORRUGATED PACKAGING

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pros and cons of custom corrugated packaging

When it comes to packaging, is the stock route or the custom route right for you? Stock packaging is exactly what it sounds like — packaging that comes ready-made and in standard formats.

Custom packaging, on the other hand, can be tailor-made to fit a specific product, promote brand awareness or relay a message right on the box.

So what’s best for you?

Here’s a closer look at the pros and cons of custom corrugated packaging for you to consider when it comes to selecting your next packaging run:

4 Pros of Custom Corrugated Packaging

There are many significant advantages to going the custom corrugated route. Some of them are as follows:

1. Brand Building

This is one of the biggest benefits to going the custom route for your next run of corrugated packaging. Customizing boxes can help differentiate your brand from your competitors.

Whether it’s an advanced box design, a high-quality printing job or some sort of value-added feature, sometimes investing in a custom package format can also provide a competitive advantage and help build further brand awareness. These benefits alone are usually enough to placing a custom packaging order.

2. Purpose-built Packaging

With a standard package, you’re essentially purchasing a box to fit the product. Conversely, with a custom package, you can take the product and create packaging to fit it to the box.

This can help eliminate any wasted space, decrease the necessity for protective packaging materials, which can save money, and even result in cheaper shipping prices due to decreased weight.

3. Enhanced Protection

Arguably the biggest benefit of custom packaging is the ability to offer enhanced product protection. Like we noted earlier, a package that’s custom-made to fit a product means you can also fine-tune the protective packaging that’s used. In addition to this, a package that fits the product also helps keep the product more snug and secure as it is.

And finally, a better protected product also helps build trust with consumers, as there’s perhaps nothing more disappointing than opening a package only to find that the product inside is broken or damaged.

Custom corrugated packages are especially ideal for high-value or fragile items, such as electronics, glass and more. Just think of how many people might interact with a package before it reaches its final destination. For many companies, customization to ensure safekeeping is a very worthwhile investment.

4. Recyclability

This final benefit doesn’t have so much to do with the customization as it does with the corrugated material the package is being made from. And by that, we’re referring to the recyclability of corrugated material, which is a key differentiator from its plastic packaging counterparts.

Customizing packaging that’s also recyclable can offer a nice one-two punch, serving both as a brand building tool and helping to establish your company as one with sustainability in mind.

If sustainability is important to your company, you can even convey that message to the end user on your custom package.

3 Cons of Custom Corrugated Packaging

Though the pros of custom packaging are notable, there are some disadvantages to going this route that also bear mentioning:

1. Cost

This is arguably the biggest disadvantage of going the custom corrugated packaging route, as any package that’s not standardized is going to cost more. This may especially be a challenge for startup firms or small businesses that may not be able to absorb the price increase of custom packaging and are also unable or unwilling to pass any additional cost on to their customers.

2. Lead Time

Stock packaging is usually always readily available. The same can’t be said for custom packaging. Custom packages aren’t just lying around the warehouse waiting for someone to place an order, they need to be created.

Depending on the scope of the custom package, this can add some significant lead time to packaging runs, which aren’t always ideal in this first-to-market world that most companies operate in these days.

3. Additional Details

Finally, another potentially complicating factor with custom packaging is that more tooling, inks and dyes may be required to create the package that is desired. This can lead to both of the aforementioned: increased costs and increased lead time.

How much of an increase there is in both categories is largely specific to the package that’s needed, but it’s something that must be considered when weighing the pros and cons of custom corrugated packaging.

What Type of Corrugated Packaging is Best for You?

What type of corrugated packaging is right for your company and your application?

Both stock and custom packaging have their place, it’s just up to you to determine what type of format fits with the product or application you’re offering.

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