When you’re shipping fragile items through a courier service, it makes sense to want to protect your most breakable items from destruction. After all, broken items translate to unhappy customers, lost money, and an overall negative reputation for your business. Plain and simple, you need to carefully pack fragile goods. If you’re looking for the best packing material for fragile items, keep reading for more info.
Packing Material
When it comes to answering questions like “What is the most durable packing material?”, there are a few tried and true solutions. As moving.com points out, packing paper is one of the most affordable choices out there for those shipping fragile items. This cost-effective option will not only save you money, but it can also save your items from getting broken. When your items make their way to their destination in one piece, this, too, saves your business money because it means fewer returns or lost revenue on replacing damaged sales.
When using packing paper, tightly wrap the breakable item in one or several layers of packing paper. Additionally, you can stuff objects with openings such as cups or vases with balled-up packing paper for extra protection. Then, place the item in a box that is only slightly larger than the item itself. This way, the item will not get tossed around and risk breakage on its journey.
Alternatively, you can use the classic bubble cushioning, also known as “bubble wrap.” Beyond the fun bubbles that pop for a pleasant, satisfying sound, bubble cushioning cradles your fragile items on their journey and adds some shock absorption to the inside of the package. Bubble cushioning is great for use on most fragile items — the only real downside to bubble cushioning is that it gets used quickly. Since you will go through a lot of bubble cushioning, it can add up quickly. You can use a combination of bubble cushioning and a cheaper alternative such as packing paper to save money. You could also only use bubble cushioning for the most delicate items and less expensive packing materials for less fragile items.
Other Tips
If you have small, fragile items and are trying to figure out what to use for containing them, a firm material such as HDPE/PET/Rigid Packaging or a sturdy material can be used, as packagingblog.org points out. If you are packing an item that has been contained in a fragile container such as glass, consider using packing paper, bubble cushioning, or both to package the item for the final shipment.
When you have extra space in your box, it is important to cushion the item. As shipbob.com shares, you can do this using the classic packing peanuts or using a more modern solution such as air pillows. When your item is snuggly secured in between some packing peanuts or air pillows, it will give you peace of mind as it sets off for its journey.