*Updated 8/1/17

Damage, Material Savings, Labor Savings, Safety

FREE EBOOK DOWNLOAD from IPS Packaging

Justifying to upper management the need to spend money on a stretch wrap machine instead of hand wrapping can be difficult. The assumption is that a person will always be cheaper than a stretch wrap machine. However, a careful analysis of the actual quantified savings can help even the staunchest cost conscious managers start to think twice. Let's take a look at the 4 ways to justify the cost of a stretch wrap machine

Damaged products equal lost revenues because damaged products could need repair or replacement.stretch wrap machine - damage statistic

Recent studies have shown that up to 14% of loads were not wrapped to the pallets. Nearly 9% had issues that could cause instability and result in damage to the shipment.

Remember the primary reason you wrap loads is to provide protection during shipment. By creating stable loads and wrapping them properly, it is possible to recover up to as much as 50% of your potential lost products.  And that adds up quickly.

Machines have the ability to perform the same task again and again without jeopardizing quality.  The last load is wrapped just as well as the first.

Material Savings

Stretching the film before applying it to a load actually improves load integrity.  Stretch wrap machines use two rollers to turn at two different speeds, stretching the film as it leaves the machine and wraps around the pallet; these are standard on most machines and can be adjusted to offer up to 300% stretch.

If you’re tripling your product yield, you’re automatically saving money.   In addition to the benefits of using machines to pre-stretch the film, moving away from hand wrapping allows for consistency in wrapping techniques.

Labor Savings

This example shows just how fast your ROI may be when upgrading to a stretch wrap machine.

Companies report that up to 60% of their total packaging costs are labor-related.

60%! That's a lot. Take into account labor's inconsistency, their inevitable over usage of materials, and the propensity for damage when you compare hand wrapped pallets to machine wrapped pallets and the total cost quickly sky rockets.

When you eliminate unnecessary steps, you eliminate labor inefficiencies. Refocusing them to other tasks, including palletizing another load, printing shipping labels, or completing necessary reports.

Another hidden cost saving initiative is an increase in worker health and safety.

Non-fatal workplace injuries related to musculoskeletal disorders cost businesses more than $21 billion every year and account for over 40% of total cost burdens to business.

A good stretch wrap machine can reduce the physical stress on a worker’s body. A great stretch wrap machine will incorporate safety features so that you don’t just trade one set of risks for another. You want the people who will be operating the machine to be as safe as possible.

How Can We Help?

Since 1976, IPS Packaging has been offering comprehensive packaging solutions to industry and manufacturing.  Our goal is to educate and empower you to make the right decisions about the purchase of a stretch wrap machine for your facility.  To help provide you with the most up-to-date data available on what you need to consider when you're thinking of purchasing a stretch wrap machine, we published this FREE eBook.