Protecting products during transit is essential for businesses that ship goods to customers, distributors and other businesses. Damaged products can lead to waste, returns, replacement costs and disappointed customers, while poor packaging can also affect how customers perceive your brand.

The challenge is finding the right balance between product protection, packaging costs, storage space and shipping efficiency. From individual products and cartons to palletised goods, effective packaging protection should protect vulnerable areas without adding unnecessary bulk or making your packing process more complicated. Here are three important areas to consider when preparing products for safe transportation.

1. Protect Your Products

Start by identifying which parts of your products are most vulnerable to damage. For flat or almost-flat products such as glass, mirrors, desks, worktops and furniture panels, corners and edges can be particularly susceptible to impact. A drop or knock during handling can chip, crack or dent an otherwise undamaged product. Closed-corner plastic protectors provide a simple way to add protection around vulnerable corners and edges. They can also create a small amount of separation between products, helping to reduce damage caused by items rubbing against each other or against the sides of the packaging during transportation.

Choose Corner Protection for the Product

Different products require different levels of protection.

• For thinner products, 2-3mm Thick Glass Corner Protectors and 3-4mm Thick Glass Corner Protectors can protect exposed corners without adding excessive packaging material.
• For products that require additional cushioning or clearance, 7-8mm Thick Corner Profile Protectors provide a wider protective profile.
• For larger or heavier products such as desks and worktops, thicker corner profile protectors can provide additional protection against knocks and impacts.

Some shaped corner protectors provide additional cushioning around vulnerable areas, helping to protect materials such as melamine and wood against chipping, scratching, dents and other transit damage.

Simplify Packaging for Different-Sized Products

If your business ships products in a wide range of sizes, stocking a different corner protector for every product can quickly become impractical. Expanding corner protectors can provide a more flexible solution. Their adaptable design allows you to use one type of protector across products with different dimensions, helping to simplify packaging processes, stock control and reordering.

Don’t Forget the Packaging Itself

Product protection does not stop with the protective components. Avoid overfilling cartons and allow enough room for suitable protective packaging material. If you reuse shipping boxes, inspect them carefully before use and reject any carton with significant crushing, tearing, water damage or other structural weaknesses. Once packed, seal the carton securely so it can withstand handling and transportation.

2. Protect the Outer Box

Your product may be well protected inside its carton, but the carton itself can still suffer damage during handling. Corners are particularly vulnerable because they can catch on other packages, pallets or handling equipment. Pyramid profile corner protectors fit over carton corners to provide additional protection and help maintain the structure of the packaging.

If your boxes are not being wrapped individually or secured to a pallet, you may need additional measures to keep the protectors in position. Pyramid corner protectors with a glue spot can help secure the protector to the carton. Protecting the outer packaging can be particularly useful when products pass through multiple stages of warehousing, loading, unloading and delivery before reaching their final destination.

3. Protect Palletised Goods

When shipping multiple cartons together, the pallet becomes an important part of your overall packaging strategy. Choose a suitable pallet for the products, weight and environment. Wooden pallets remain common across many industries, while plastic pallets can offer advantages in applications where cleanliness and easy cleaning are important. Once your products are securely packed, consider how you will stabilise and protect the completed pallet.

Use Strapping Edge Protectors

Strapping can help keep cartons and products secure during transportation, but excessive tension can put pressure on the packaging. Strapping edge protectors distribute the pressure from the strap across a wider area, helping to prevent the strap from cutting into cardboard cartons or damaging the products underneath.

Our strapping edge protectors feature moulded ridges designed to help keep the straps positioned correctly rather than allowing them to slip around the load. This provides an additional layer of protection while helping to maintain a secure pallet load.

Add Protection Along the Pallet

For longer or larger palletised goods, you may need additional protection along the edges and lengths of the load. Our 1.2m pallet extrusion can provide additional structural protection for packed pallet loads. Using the right combination of corner protection, edge protection, strapping and pallet packaging can help create a more secure load that is better equipped to withstand the rigours of transportation.

Build a Consistent Packaging Process

Effective product protection is not simply about adding as much packaging as possible. Too much packaging can increase material costs, storage requirements, packing time and shipping volume. Too little protection can result in damaged goods and expensive returns. Instead, develop a consistent packaging process based on the products you ship.

Consider:

• Which parts of your products are most vulnerable?
• How are your products handled during transportation?
• Do individual products need separation?
• Does the outer carton need additional corner protection?
• How will palletised products remain secure?
• Can you standardise packaging components across different products?
• Are your cartons strong enough for the weight and journey involved?

Reviewing your packaging process regularly can help you identify opportunities to reduce waste while maintaining an appropriate level of protection.

Reduce Transit Damage with the Right Packaging Protection

Corner protectors, profile protectors, carton protection, strapping edge protectors and pallet extrusions can all play a role in creating a more robust packaging system. The right combination can help businesses reduce transit damage, minimise product waste and maintain a more consistent packing process without relying on excessive packaging materials.

At BPF Online, we supply a wide range of plastic packaging protection products, including corner profile protectors, expanding corner protectors, pyramid corner protectors, strapping edge protectors and pallet protection solutions. If you are unsure which packaging protection products are suitable for your goods, contact our customer service team by phone or website chat. We can help you find a practical solution for your packaging and transit requirements.