New Year’s Resolutions for Improving Your Packing Station

Making the most of your packing station

Want to start the new calendar year with better throughput from your packing station? We assembled a panel of four packaging pros from Better Packages and IPG to share their expertise on making the most of a packaging station.

✓ Michelle Adams, Business Development Manager Omni Channel Fulfillment
✓ Jeff Deacon, Sr. Director, Global Market Development
✓ Rob Hoffman, Senior Vertical Sales Manager
✓ Marc Schaible, Business Development Director, Omnichannel Fulfillment

Here are their suggested New Year’s resolutions for making your 2018 packaging station more efficient, productive and safer.

New Year’s Resolution #1: I will take a good hard look at my packing station to make sure it’s set up right.

Advice from the experts:

✓ “The most important consideration in setting up a packaging station can be summed up in one word: Space. Is there enough space for the pack station?” advises Hoffman.
✓ “You need to ensure that the packer has a safe work environment with minimal risk of injury,” suggests Deacon. Adams adds: “One that safely maximizes throughput.”
✓ Adding to that thought, Schaible counsels” Set up your packing station with workflow in mind.”

New Year’s Resolution #2: I will set up my packing station to avoid the most common mistakes companies make.

Advice from the experts:

✓ “The biggest mistake people make when setting up a packing station is not taking into consideration the space that is required to set to set up a pack station properly,” notes Hoffman.
✓ “People not only make it too small; they make it too inflexible so it can’t grow with their needs,” says Schaible.
✓ “Don’t make the mistake of not accounting for growth in volume and carton size,” says Deacon.
✓ “I’d say the biggest mistakes people make are: a lack of efficient design layout; not having any or enough automation; failing to consider mobile packing station and, building on the others’ comments, failing to consider future growth,” adds Adams.

New Year’s Resolution #3: I will follow the 14 Commandments of efficient, effective and safe packaging station design.

Space Planning – Make sure there is adequate space for the station and the type of product that will be processed.

Power Needs – Ensure there is proper electric service at the pack station, preferably hardwired in conduit and metal outlet boxes.  “Extension cord is a no-no!” advises Hoffman.

Plans For Comfort – Two things make for a more comfortable (and productive) shift: a padded floor and a fan (since most shipping areas are not air conditioned).

Ergonomics For All – Realize the pack station needs to be set up to accommodate all associates.  Shorter associates should not have to strain or step up on something to gain access to boxes or packing materials that are stored on shelves. Conversely, a tall associate should not have to bend down to conduct his or her work.

Packing Station Customization – Determine the workflow, power and connectivity hook-up needs. Have a storage strategy and customize your packing station as needs change.

Work Flow Rules – Design the pack station with work flow in mind to keep the associates’ movement to a minimum.  They should not have to walk very far to pick up a product to be packed or to restock their packaging supplies.

Efficient Layout – Identify proper layout of storage for ease of use of packaging supplies like boxes, bags, envelopes, labels, protective packaging like air pillows and other essential supplies.

Critical Equipment – Identify essential equipment needs to improve automation like scanners, computers, scales, electric or hand-operated water-activated tape dispensers and void fill, such as air pillows.

Mechanical Assistance Availability – Consider the possibility of mechanical assistance like lifts and conveyors if there is a need to ship heavy/bulky packages.

Bottleneck Planning – Identify and plan for potential bottlenecks in the order fulfillment process.

Shipping Options – Provide secondary packaging options that match the products being shipped.  For example there should be cartons on hand for hard goods and polybags for goods like apparel.

Productivity Enhancement – Increase packer productivity by creating exact order process steps to reduce inefficiencies in workflow.

Regular Maintenance – Periodically schedule process reviews and safety training.

Growth Planning – Plan for future growth.

Better Packages | Water-Activated Tape Dispensers and Tape

Better Packages offers a complete line of water-activated tape dispensers. Its parent company, Intertape Polymer Group, produces a full line of Central® brand water-activated tape, including reinforced and non-reinforced tape. In addition to providing products for packing stations, the companies help their customers analyze and solve their packing station challenges.

Learn more about maximizing your packing station productivity by downloading this guide.

The Challenge of Shipping Pharmaceuticals

Shipping pharmaceuticals brings with it a unique set of risks. Shipments must arrive on-time, intact and at the right temperature. When a non-medical shipment goes wrong, a customer can be disappointed. But when a pharmaceutical shipment doesn’t go as planned, it can affect the health of a patient. Yet with all the advances in pharmaceuticals, not much has changed in the last 30 years regarding the way pharmaceuticals are transported. Many are still moved from warehouse to retail stores by small regional carriers.

Lives may depend on packaging that guards the integrity of the drugs from the manufacturer to their destination. Package security is one of the most important keys to making that journey safely. Sealing the corrugated shipping carton with water-activated tape represents a critical packaging element. When combined with other critical packaging capabilities like containment and insulation, it gives shippers the peace of mind that their products will arrive safely and intact. It helps take care of two critical issues: Safeguarding outer packaging security, and maintaining the integrity of the package.

Packaging for Security

Keeping drugs secure during shipment is becoming a more and more complex issue.  “As the industry moves from ‘blockbuster’ products to personalized medicine, especially customized treatments for patients with rare diseases, expensive medications with low volume and high value thefts will become the shipping norm. These shipments present extreme challenges in their intrinsic value,” points out Sue Lee, former global technical portfolio manager for World Courier.  

Pharmaceutical shipments demand secure tertiary packaging to make sure they arrive in-tact. Using water-activated tape, also known as gummed paper tape, provides a layer of security evidence that informs the recipient of possible tampering in transit. Once applied, gummed paper tape bonds to corrugated cartons, creating a tamper-proof seal. A carton sealed with water-activated tape can’t be opened without leaving a broken seal.

Maintaining the Seal

Shipping pharmaceutical drug products­ can involve long, complex routes. Guarding against packaging breakdowns along the way is crucial, especially since many of these high-value drugs are shipped through local couriers that handle a variety of small packages. 

An inadequate carton seal is one of the most common causes of damaged shipments. Weight, handling and temperature conditions can cause regular plastic packing tape to separate and threaten the integrity of the packaging during transport. Water-activated tape gives pharma shippers the advantage of a strong and securely sealed carton. Reinforced water-activated tape also offers the security of a layer of fiberglass that’s embedded within for additional strength.

Want Carton Security? Request a Free Tape Sample

Last-Minute Holiday Shopping and Shipping Tips

There’s still time to get out those business and personal gifts, but deadlines are looming. To make sure you can still delight your recipients, make sure you pack carefully and ship on time.

Here are a few tips for last-minute gift-givers:

Shop Where They Cater to Procrastinators:  For those of us who put things off until the last minute, there is help. 

• ✓ Amazon Prime Members receive receive free, 2-day shipping year-round, including right before the holidays. For those who aren’t members, it's not too late.  You can you sign up for a free one-month trial. That means, as long as you order by December 22, you’re in good shape.
• ✓ Apple offers free, 2-day shipping on all their products. Just make sure you place your order by the end of the work day on December 22 if you want it there by the 24th.
• ✓ Bed Bath & Beyond’s online cutoff for standard shipping (48 contiguous states) is December 19. Expedited shipping by 12/21 and express by 12/22. Shipping price varies.
• ✓ Best Buy offers free, 2-day shipping during the holiday season. Order dates differ among product categories.
• ✓ Macy’s will deliver free with orders over $99. Order by 12/22 and your items will get there by Christmas.
• ✓ Target is offering free shipping during the holidays and will deliver by 12/25 if you order by December 20.

You’ll find a list of other retailers who cater to the last-minute shoppers in an article in the magazine Real Simple.

Know the Deadlines for Shipping:  Here are key shipping dates at major shipping carriers:

FedEx Christmas Shipping Deadlines (within the U.S.)

Dec. 15 – Deadline for FedEx Ground shipments

Dec. 18 – Deadline for FedEx Home Delivery shipments

Dec. 19 – Deadline for FedEx Express Saver shipments

Dec. 20 – Deadline for FedEx 2-Day and 2-Day A.M. shipments

Dec. 21 – Deadline for FedEx Standard Overnight, Priority Overnight, First  Overnight shipments

Dec. 25 -  Deadline for all FedEx SameDay shipments

UPS Christmas Shipping Deadlines (within the U.S.)

Dec. 18 – Deadline for UPS 3-Day Select shipments (delivered Dec. 22)

Dec. 20 – Deadline for UPS 2nd Day Air shipments (delivered Dec. 22)

Dec. 22 – Deadline for UPS Next Day Air shipments (delivered Dec. 23)

Dec. 24 & 25 – No pickup or delivery services.  (UPS Express Critical services available)

USPS Christmas Shipping Deadlines (within the U.S.)

Dec. 15 – Deadline for Standard Parcel Post shipments

Dec. 20 – Deadline for First Class Mail and Priority shipments

Dec. 23 – Deadline for Priority Express Mail shipments

Pack it Right. Gifts that are packed incorrectly risk being damaged in shipment or waylaid during transit.  FedEx alone expects to ship over 22 million packages, so you don’t want your package to get lost in the shuffle. 

The biggest packing mistakes people make are:

• ✓ Not using a new box. Using an old box could mean it won’t be strong enough to withstand the trip.  And if the box still has old shipping labels or bar codes on it, shipping machines might have trouble sending it to the right destination.
• ✓ Not padding the contents well with air pillows to cushion the journey. The rule of thumb is if a package isn’t bulging slightly when you push it down, it’s not packed securely enough.
• ✓ Not sealing the package right. Packages sealed with the wrong tape could open during transit. Use water-activated tape to seal packages and apply it in an H-pattern. This will assure you that the package will stay sealed during shipping.

Check out these additional last-minute shopping and shipping tips from NBC News.

Surprise and delight those on your gift list with a present that arrives on-time and looking special by shopping, packaging and shipping with the journey in mind. And Happy Holiday from all of us at Better Packages and the Intertape Polymer Group.

Get Rid of the Garbage!

As we reflect on 2017, we’ve all probably realized that although we may have accomplished a lot, we haven’t achieved all of our goals. Some missed opportunities can be attributed to common everyday garbage… and when I speak of garbage, I mean waste.

Lean Manufacturing

Understanding the waste in our manufacturing workplace can help us get rid of the garbage and make 2018 more successful. So, what are the types of waste we see every day in our business?

1. Defects. Product errors.
2. Over-production. Making too much or creating more services than our customers need.
3. Inventory. Material not in use by our CUSTOMERS is waste.
4. Over-processing. Too many extra steps in our processes.
5. Transportation. Waste of moving goods.
6. Motion. People moving around doesn’t add value. Period.
7. Waiting. Product sits waiting for something to happen to it. Waste.

We’ve learned of these seven types of waste from Toyota^® and many programs have evolved from our attempts to eliminate this “muda” (Japanese word meaning "futility; uselessness; wastefulness").  Eliminating these wastes, though, is the harder thing to do.

In 2018, let’s plan to “get rid of the garbage” by developing business practices and strategies that eliminate these wastes. Some simple things we can do include:

• Improve scheduling. Turn off the tap and not produce too much (or do too much)
• Link processes together.
• Invest in smaller more flexible equipment.
• Outsource product until volume manufacturing makes sense
• Redesign work stations so people don’t have to walk from one machine to another to another.

Utilize lean processes including 5S, Kanban, Muda walks and Poke Yoke to reduce the waste in your business. 2018 will be more productive and profitable if we start the year off right!


Jeff Coats
Director - Market Development
Intertape Polymer Group

4 Ways Water-Activated Tape Performs Better Than Pressure-Sensitive Tape

Shippers that want to seal cartons quicker, more economically, stronger and more securely under a variety of conditions want to use water-activated tape (WAT).  Those were the conclusions of an industry-leading testing and verification company, SGS North America (SGS).  Intertape Polymer Group (IPG) and its brand, Better Packages, commissioned the tests to help customer compare the performance of water-activated tape (WAT) and pressure sensitive tape (PST).

Here are the findings of those studies:

Productivity - This test compared the number of cartons that could be sealed in a six-hour work day using water-activated tape and pressure-sensitive tape.  The results were that carton sealing productivity was 21 percent higher using a water-activated tape dispenser and water-activated tape compared with the use of a hand-held tape gun with pressure-sensitive tape.

Carton Sealing Material Used – This test looked at the relative amount of tape used to seal cartons, comparing water-activated tape with pressure sensitive tape. The results were that the average amount of tape needed to seal a single carton using water-activated tape was eight percent less than using pressure-sensitive tape.

Tape Integrity Testing – The tape integrity test examined how water-activated tape versus pressure-sensitive tape withstood a consistent force under a variety of atmospheric conditions. The researchers sealed cartons with both kinds of tape.  They used an Instron test machine to apply consistent, compressive force measuring how much pressure would be needed to do one of three things: 1) open the carton along the seal (2) tear the tape or (3) break the carton.

When the cartons were sealed with water-activated tape it took 60 pounds of pressure to cause the cartons to break. When the cartons were sealed with pressure–sensitive tape, it took 16.8 pounds of pressure to open the carton.  The testers noted that this force level is easily employed by the average person. They concluded that pressure-sensitive tape “…cannot secure the carton integrity or prevent the package (and its contents) from incursion.”

Adhesion Testing – This test compared how well water-activated tape and pressure-sensitive tape adhere to cartons after setting for five seconds and 24 hours.  The testers sealed four cartons with both types of tape.  In one test they removed the tape by hand after five seconds and noted how much of the carton was pulled off.  In the second test, they measured the adhesion after 24 hours. 

These were pass/fail tests assessing “tackiness” or bonding, which is a key component of carton tamper-evidence and security. 

Researchers concluded: “Water-activated tape has a strong adhesiveness to the cardboard carton surface while pressure-sensitive tape does not.”  Their results are summarized below.

Conclusion

After the testing was completed, the researchers at SGS summarized their findings this way: “These test results are significant and should lead water-activated tape to be the proper, best method in virtually all carton sealing applications.”

For a complete copy of the SGS report click here.

Learn more about water-activated tape dispensing solutions. 

A Year of Disasters – What Comes Next?

2017 has been a very tough year for the United States with weather-related damage and natural disasters impacting practically the entire nation. Flooding, hurricanes, fire, and tornadoes have impacted more than half the people in the US and its territories. Disasters like these inevitably lead to property damage and even worse–human and animal health problems such as “mold cold,” infections, antibiotic-resistant injuries, meningitis, Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) and even PTSD.

Moody’s Analytics estimates that hurricanes Harvey and Irma alone may cost the US economy $150-200 billion in damage and lost productivity, not to mention health-related costs.

Remediation (abatement) and restoration companies are responding to these disasters. They are setting up temporary locations and fortifying existing locations in the areas impacted by the disasters. Response has been tremendous.

Cleaning up and providing adequate safety measures are essential to the response. Items such as polysheeting and tapes are used to help provide safe conditions and limit exposure by helping to contain the harmful toxins such as mold, asbestos (exposed in old building materials that have been damaged) and fungi. Versatile tapes such as duct tape, polyethylene (PE) tape and masking tapes are essential in hanging barriers, sealing containment areas and tying up bags filled with old building material and waste.

To learn more about the appropriate tape solutions to use in disaster clean-up, see IPG’s Remediation & Restoration page.

Jeff Coats

Director - Market Development
Intertape Polymer Group

Masking Tape Part III: Rolling Out the Next Generation

A 3-part series designed to help you make the right tape choice for your next big project.

Over the past couple months we’ve learned what masking tape is and how it’s made. We also talked about some additives that can be introduced to enhance the tape’s physical properties. In Part three of this series, we will briefly recap what we have already covered and discuss some new technologies that are trending in the industry as we move to the next generation of masking tapes that will help you achieve great results on the jobsite.

In Part one we talked about the composition of masking tape from a fundamental understanding.  “Masking Tape” (a term most often used categorizing paper tapes) comes from the act of protecting or masking an area prior to the application of painting, coating or surface treatment. The composition of masking tape is made up of three layers: Backing, adhesive and release coat. The backing is generally made from a saturated crepe paper. The two types of adhesives used are Acrylic and Rubber (or Synthetic Rubber). The release coat controls the tape’s unwind values, its adhesion to backing values and adhesive consistencies. In other words – the release coat allows the tape to come off the roll easily and not stick to itself.

In Part two we learned about chemical additives that enhance the tape’s physical characteristics, allowing the tape to be used for specific applications. We discussed clean line technology, UV inhibitors and operating temperatures. Clean line technology is an additive applied to the edge of the roll, forming a barrier or blocking agent so paint cannot seep under the tape. UV inhibitors are additives necessary for a tape to properly perform outside or directly on windows exposed to sunlight. Generally speaking, your painter’s masking tape will work at its optimum around +70°F but will do the job properly between +50°F - +100°F.

Paint and all related accessories go hand-in-hand

Next Generation
New technologies will continue to be a priority for tape companies. In recent years you have probably noticed more specialized products designed for very specific applications. Some of these new masking tapes are made for delicate surfaces, textured walls and outdoor use among other things. Some tape has been developed with different kinds of adhesive and non-traditional backings.

The paint industry is constantly evolving and more and more new products will be introduced in the coming years. Paint and all related accessories go hand-in-hand and need to work in conjunction with each other. As Low VOC paints are gaining popularity and more legislation in certain states are requiring their use, painter’s tape needs to be compatible.

The tape aisle at your local big box or hardware store will continue to add new and different masking tapes to their shelves. But don’t stress - in the past few months you’ve learned about masking tape and should be more comfortable walking through the daunting tape aisle and making your purchase decision.