Whether you are looking to deliver a parcel to a friend, wrap a present, or dispatch products to customers, protective packaging is essential to ensure the safety of the items in question.
But is shredded paper packaging better than all manner of other popular materials for protecting your items when they are ‘in transit’? We decided to take a closer look.
Loose fill
The term ‘loose fill’ refers to packaging materials that are specifically designed to fill large spaces in a package, in situations where such large spaces would be left behind (for example, when the goods in the box are significantly smaller than the box itself). Examples of loose fill packaging materials include the likes of polystyrene or EPS chips, or ‘peanuts’.
However, as the name suggests, these materials only loosely fill the space, which means that they tend to allow movement, and thus are not ideal for fragile items. They are also only typically available in one colour, unlike shredded paper packaging, and are not as environmentally friendly.
Air cushioning
As you can imagine, air cushioning packaging materials use air to absorb shock and protect the items inside. Bubble wrap is an obvious example of such packaging material.
Bubble wrap is a highly popular packaging material, due to its ability to absorb a high level of shock. This can make it very effective at protecting fragile items, and it also helps that it can be easily wrapped around items of various shapes and sizes.
However, air cushioning needs to be used in the correct way if you are to get the maximum usefulness out of it. This makes it fiddlier and more time consuming than using shredded paper packaging.
Block and brace
Block and brace packaging uses precisely cut shapes to hold the given item in place in the package. This can be made from polystyrene, polyethylene, or moulded card. Air bags can also be used for a similar effect, but this will not be as secure as bespoke block and brace solutions.
As this form of protective packaging needs to be made exactly to size, block and brace can be an expensive option, and thus is only typically used with particularly high-value items such as tech devices.
Paper void fill
Of course, the most lightweight and versatile packaging material of them all is paper! Paper void fill incorporates all the key benefits of air cushioning and loose fill packing solutions, while also being cost-effective and environmentally friendly.
Shredded paper packaging can be used on its own, or in conjunction with a variety of other packaging solutions to help provide optimum protection with aesthetically pleasing presentation.
Just browse our store today to see the huge range of colourful and well-priced options available to you – and don’t forget the free shipping we can also provide to most mainland UK postcodes!
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