How to Choose the Right Packaging Materials

The packaging material you choose often becomes the line between product loss and product profit, so making the wrong choice can be detrimental to your bottom line. Not using the right material for your products can also cause underpackaging or over-packaging which leads to product damages or material waste. Important factors to consider when deciding on a material and design are your budget, your product's traits, and how your packaged product will be stored and transported.

Your Product

Is your product perishable? High-value? Susceptible to stress such as vibrations? The unique traits of your products will help to determine which materials are an option. No matter how appealing or innovative your packaging design may be, it's only effective if it preserves the quality of your product. Deciding on the relative size, shape, and design is just the start as you need to analyze the whole supply chain that your product will pass through.

Know Your Options

Just as not all products are created equal, neither are packaging materials. Never cut corners with your packaging as this can have a negative effect on the integrity of your products during shipment. Just because you’ve always used a certain material doesn’t mean that there isn’t a more efficient way. Get to know all your options and look to a packaging partner for assistance. We’ll work with you based on your budget to find the best, most efficient packaging material that matches your product from flexible solutions to custom engineered options.

Your Package's Journey - Storage and Transportation

To properly choose the right packaging materials, you need to fully understand your product’s entire lifecycle from production to end consumer. Factors that need to be considered are how far the package will travel, what elements will be faced among transportation, the type of transportation used, and in what kind of conditions the product will be stored. If your product will be put on a shelf and eventually go to a consumer’s home, you also need to consider the longevity and branding of the packaging.

Packaging Material and Performance Testing

Testing and evaluating the performance of your packaging materials will assure your packages remain intact during shipment. Environmental and shock tests simulate real-life situations your package or pallet will encounter. Our lab can test how one material compares against another and determine areas to cut costs while keeping your products safe.

Contactless testing now available with our Pallet Pit Stop! Get a full analysis of your pallet and protective packaging without anyone ever needing to step foot in your facility.

A properly optimized packaging design will be a balanced solution between damage costs and packaging costs. High damage rates are a big problem and show that your packaging is not functional, but low damage rates can be just as much of a problem since you may be wasting large amounts of material. Consider using our packaging lab to put your packaging to the test.

Optimize Your Packaging

Rocket Industrial offers a wide variety of packaging supplies as well as custom packaging design. We get to know you, your company, and your products to assure that we select the best packaging materials that fit your needs and goals. With a mission to help customers Package With Less, we will help you not only save money but become more sustainable with your packaging. Contact us today to find out more about us and our vast range of capabilities.