In today’s world where internet shopping has risen to prominence, there has never been a time during which proper packaging of products has been more important. If you are the consumer, you certainly want your goods to be delivered intact. If you are the supplier, you understand that getting the product to the customer on time and in good shape is part of good customer service. So the question arises regarding how to properly package the goods you ship without going to the extreme of overkill, which would also kill your profits. There are a number of things you might consider in order to make sure your packaging is designed correctly.
Regulatory Concerns
If the nature of your product requires dangerous goods packaging, your operation may be affected by regulations that dictate how the material should be packaged. You may even need to test the packaging to ensure that it will stand up to the environment of getting from origin to destination. Companies like Ten-e can help to conduct this testing. Afterwards, you will have all the documentation you need to substantiate the fact that your packaging is robust enough to meet or exceed the regulatory requirements.
Environmental
You will want to make sure that your packaging will stand up to any environmental conditions to which it may be subjected until it is completely used. This involves not only the rigors of shipping activity, but storage of the product once it is in the customer’s hands. That is when you have the least amount of control over what happens to it. The product may be stored in areas where it is exposed to the elements, goes through temperature extremes or is handled roughly. In these situations, you want to make sure the packaging is compatible with the contents and strong enough to hold up over time.
Tests you might want to have conducted to show that it will withstand various environmental conditions include crack resistance, especially if the product is a liquid. You may also want to consider some shelf life testing, to see how your packaging stands up over time, and UV testing, to see how sunlight will impact its integrity over time.
The list of reasons for considering testing of your packaging can go on and on. However, each reason will likely fall into one of three general categories: customer service, regulatory concerns and product liability.
