October 2022

A shipping company is a business that delivers goods from one place to another. This can be done by land, air, or sea. The goods may be delivered to businesses or consumers. A shipping company may also distribute products to retailers. There are many types of packaging that a shipping company will use to protect and deliver their products.

If that is your business, then you will find something such as pallet and shrink wrap an invaluable material to use. Anyone in distribution will likely feel the same. We all want our goods to arrive safely.

Some types of packaging that a shipping company will use include:

Boxes

Boxes are the most common type of packaging used by shipping companies. They come in all different sizes and can be made out of different materials such as cardboard, plastic, or metal.

Corrugated cardboard is used for its extra strength. Extra layers of cardboard provide extra protection for the items inside the box and the structure of corrugated cardboard is designed to offer extra protection.

Additionally pallet boxes are also commonly used for their ability to accommodate different loads and logistics requirements, from lightweight collapsible options to heavy-duty stackable models. They are typically made from durable materials like plastic, wood, or metal, offering superior strength and protection for items during transportation and storage.

The advantage of boxes is that they will come in a variety of sizes so that they can effectively house the products they are required to. They can also be easily individually labeled. In terms of shape, you can, for instance, have a deep, square box or a long, rectangular one. We can measure how products will fit perfectly inside a box to avoid movement. Bear in mind that certain products will need internal packaging to stop items from rubbing together and have that cushion around the inside of the box closest to the edge.

Bubble wrap

Bubble wrap is often used to protect fragile items from breaking during shipping.

Where there are just a few layers of bubble wrap around the item, or large bubbles are opted for, an object will practically bounce off the floor when dropped. We do not suggest you try it, but that is the kind of protection we are talking about. It is a great form of protection that is used a lot for sending items through the mail.

Foam

Foam can be used to cushion items and prevent them from moving around too much during shipping. It is a material that can be cut to the shape required.

Polystyrene

Bubble chips, which are made from polystyrene, are a great way to bulk up a box and stop its contents from moving around. They come in different shapes and sizes but perform the same function.

Electronics are often packaged using polystyrene inserts inside boxes.

Pallet Wrap (Stretch or Shrink Wrap)

Pallet wrap is used to secure items to a pallet so that they can be easily moved and stored during shipping.

There are two main types of pallet wrap. The choice for shipping and transportation is to either use a stretch wrap or a shrink wrap. The differences are:

• Stretch wrap does not require heat to shrink but instead relies on its elasticity to conform around the product.
• Shrink wrap is a plastic that is heated so that it shrinks around the product.

The advantages of the stretch wrap are that it is less expensive and can be applied faster. The disadvantage is that it does not provide as tight of a seal as shrink wrap. Shrink wrap provides a stronger hold and tamper-evident seal.

Both materials are, of course, weatherproof in that they will protect the product from rainwater and dust.

An advantage of a product that is usually clear is that you can potentially identify through it what is inside a pallet without so much labeling. We can feel assured that our product is okay as we look at it through the clear pallet wrap. This can be at different stages throughout its journey to know at the earliest opportunity if any damage has been sustained.

Plastic Bags

Plastic bags are used to protect items from moisture and dust. They are often used for food items or products that are sensitive to the environment. There are different types of plastic bags. Mylar Bags, for instance, are used by marijuana businesses to store edibles, concentrates, and so on. Similarly, anti-static poly bags are designed to protect electronic components and other static-sensitive items from electrostatic discharge. You want to avoid contamination with certain products, which is why these bags mainly exist.

Wrapping paper

Wrapping paper is often used to dress up packages for special occasions such as birthdays, holidays, or weddings. It is frequently used to protect items from scratches or other damage.

Envelopes

Envelopes are often used to ship smaller items such as documents or cards. They are a good way of keeping things together in the same place.

Shipping companies, distributors, and even individuals moving home or marking special occasions by posting gifts use different types of packaging. What is used will depend on the items they are shipping or sending and the destination of the shipment. It is important to choose the right type of packaging to ensure that products arrive safely at their destination.

What is the best way to measure the supply chain performance of an organization? The answer depends on where you are starting from, which type of supply chain you are dealing with, and of course, what you are trying to do to improve.

Benchmarking is something that’s been happening since the beginning of time. It’s a process in which someone takes a group of information sources and compares them to determine whether there is any performance improvement. If you run a company, it’s often a way to gauge your performance and where you should focus your efforts. In the supply chain world, benchmarking is a way to determine how efficient your organization is.

Conducting this process can be hugely beneficial as you can find the operations that are not functioning at the required level. In these cases, it could also be a good option to outsource these processes. For instance, if your trucking or transportation processes are not functioning efficiently, it might be a good idea to hire a company that offers General Freight services to ease the process. That said, let’s look into benchmarking a little further.

Here’s how to benchmark your supply chain performance:

Look for possible data sources – where you get the necessary information.

It is a common problem for supply chain managers to experience supply chain problems, and as a result, they do not fully understand the causes of these problems. For example, they may not know the reasons why their suppliers sometimes deliver late, or they may not know why the production floor at their manufacturing facility is sometimes idle. Most companies rely on their internal systems to monitor and evaluate their supply chain performance. This usually starts with some sort of data collection or measurement process but results in a lot of inaccurate data. If you want to find out how your supply chain stacks up with other companies in your industry, you can use the information from your internal systems. Still, you’ll have to dig deeper to find out how the data was collected and how it can be used to benchmark your performance.

Select an area to improve.

If you’re doing the same things over and over without making improvements, you’ll quickly get bored and start looking for new ways to do things. That’s why it’s important to benchmark your performance and identify opportunities for improvement regularly. One of the best ways you could do that is through Strategy Map Visualization, which could enable you to identify what drives business performance by showing you the cause-and-effect relationship between the objectives and outcomes. Once you have assessed and identified areas that require improvement, you should benchmark your business’ supply chain performance. This allows you to understand where your business stands in terms of improving your supply chain performance.

Acquire the data needed.

Benchmarking is the process of capturing and comparing data from a system against a standard. It allows organizations to compare how they are doing compared to how they should be doing, which is often much better. By understanding how they stack up against their competitors, they can make real improvements to their performance.

Set apart potential partners for comparison.

When delving into the intricate process of benchmarking your supply chain performance, a crucial step is discerning the factors that set apart potential partners for an effective comparison. It’s not merely about evaluating suppliers based on cost but also considering their reliability, responsiveness, and overall contribution to your supply chain efficiency. To streamline this selection process, companies can turn to professionals with a proven track record in sourcing and supply chain management such as Uniway Sourcing and similar agents. Leveraging their expertise could aid businesses in identifying and assessing potential partners based on criteria like efficiency, reliability, and cost-effectiveness.

Explain the benchmarking process/range that will be undertaken.

When planning a project, it is important to know where you are starting. We need to know where we are now and where we want to go to benchmark our performance. For example, we want to know where we are when it comes to our performance in several areas, and we want to be at the top or at least close to the top in the performance of these areas. We also want to know what we expect to happen in these areas over time. Benchmarking is a process that measures an organization’s performance against its goals. The purpose is to assess what performance is required for the achievement of intended goals and to define how to improve performance in the future.

A supply chain is an essential part of modern business. With the ever-growing competition among firms, the supply chain has become an area of concern for many companies. Companies must be able to optimize their supply chains to deliver competitive products and services. To improve supply chain performance and increase profits, there is a need to benchmark supply chain performance against industry benchmarks. Supply chain executives are always looking for ways to improve their supply chain performance. By identifying the key drivers of supply chain performance and by benchmarking your own company’s supply chain against your industry peers, you can identify where your performance is lacking and improve your competitive position.