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Four Benefits of Packaging Automation

Based on the name of our company alone, you can probably guess that we’re big proponents for packaging automation, and you would definitely be right with that guess. Our advocacy on behalf of packaging equipment isn’t unjustified though. We know and understand that it’s a hugely useful tool that brings major benefits to businesses across the world. With one simple investment in packaging machinery, a company will soon see incredible returns — and that’s not just in money saved (though you’ll save quite a bit!). Organizations who take advantage of packaging automation see huge gains across the board, including in throughput, labor, inventory, and sustainability. Check out four of the major benefits of packaging automation below.

Packaging Automation Increases Your Throughput

The amount of goods our businesses are able to produce is always a chief concern. When demand peaks, you need to be able to keep up with it and turn out high-quality results that will impress your customers and keep your products safe. Packaging equipment will drastically reduce or even eliminate complications that come from human error and provide consistent outcomes every single time. Take a look at some of the productivity facts that come along with automating your packaging line:

Automatic Case Erector

  • One person can erect approximately three boxes per minute, while one automatic case erector can set up about 27 in the same amount of time.
  • It will take a single person about one minute to seal ten cartons. An automated case sealer can close approximately 40 uniform boxes in that same minute.

In order to truly understand your situation, our team can perform a free needs assessment to determine just what kind of packaging automation will set you apart from the rest. Whether you need assistance with faster, more consistent load wrapping through the help of an automatic stretch film machine or simply need to bag your goods more quickly with a poly bag opening device, we’re well equipped to help.

Packaging Automation and Labor Concerns

Manual labor is an excellent choice for many aspects of most businesses, but it isn’t always ideal for the packaging line. When workers are present and diligently completing packaging-related tasks, it can result in a serious problem — injuries.

Did you know that musculoskeletal injuries are one of the leading causes of employees missing work in the United States? A large chunk of manual packaging line tasks can result in just this type of harm – from repetitive tasks related to bending, reaching, or working in awkward positions to lifting, pulling, and pushing heavy objects. Packaging automation reduces the necessity for this type of work, meaning that it also reduces the risk for worker injuries. Not only do you protect your team members with packaging automation, but you can also allow them to focus on less strenuous and more thoughtful work.

On top of all that, the U.S. is currently facing workforce shortages across a wide variety of industries, presenting companies with significant dilemmas in how and when they will produce goods. Businesses across the nation are dealing with labor shortages that have forced them into temporary closures, reduced their output, and beyond. Packaging automation can quickly solve this problem. Packing equipment is capable of running at all hours of the day and night without taking a break, all while producing exceptional results — no need to worry about whether or not the next shift will show up.

Packaging Automation and Your Inventory

Approximately one out of every ten boxes shipped in the United States will be damaged at some point during its supply chain process. While this statistic might not sound huge, just think about it. That’s 10% of all boxes, and about 36 million packages are delivered in the U.S. every single day. That’s 3.6 million packages damaged each day. You might be thinking that once your inventory is out of your warehouse, what happens to it is out of your control, but that’s not quite the case. Packaging automation can actually help both palletized loads and individual packages stay safe and secure while in transit.

In fact, the creation of a more stable load can actually help you recover as much as 50% of your potentially lost or damaged products. Fewer items will have the chance to slip off the pallet or vibrate while riding on the back of the shipping trailer. Meanwhile, packaging equipment like automatic strapping machines or automatic carton sealers can safeguard individual boxes. They do an outstanding job keeping each carton tightly closed, preventing the items inside from bursting out when the truck hits a particularly bumpy patch of road or the cargo ship tackles rough seas.

aerial shot of landfill with yellow truck on right, blue truck in middle, and yellow truck on left

Packaging Automation Encourages Sustainability

Packaging sustainability is an important issue that consumers around the globe care deeply about. One of the primary concerns among businesses and end users alike is what to do with the massive amount of packaging waste generated each year. With about 37.5 million tons of packaging waste going into global landfills annually, it’s imperative that action be taken to mitigate this issue. 

The good news is that packaging automation can actually play a role in doing just that. When compared to manual labor, packaging equipment wastes significantly less material. Take a look:

  • An automatic case sealer will utilize a single 1,500-yard roll of tape to close about 3,176 boxes. A person closing those boxes by hand would need a whopping 6,532 yards of tape to achieve the same output as the case sealer.
  • An automatic stretch wrap machine is capable of pre-stretching the film by as much as 300%. Most often, one or two people hand wrapping a pallet are only able to pre-stretch that same film by about 10-15%.

Even the smallest steps toward minimizing our negative impact on the environment can accomplish quite a bit. Starting with packaging automation is an excellent way to begin reducing the waste we produce and leave behind in the natural world.

IPS Packaging & Automation is Here to Help

The benefits to automating your packaging process are clear. Between the throughput, labor, inventory, and sustainability advantages, you’re missing out if you choose not to automate. Contact IPS Packaging & Automation today at (800) 277-7007 so our packaging automation specialists can help you get started on a free needs assessment to find the right equipment for your business.