Packaging such as pouches, plastic containers, corrugated boxes, and shipping crates have the natural ability to offer protection from the outside elements.
However, when it comes to ensuring the safety of the contents inside, you have to ask yourself—is your current packaging good enough?
A lot can happen during the many steps in the shipping crate lifecycle. Consider if the package is being;
- Shipped or Stored
- Shipped via plane, train, truck, or ship
- Handled at the final destination
- Impacted by being dropped, pushed, jostled, tossed, or stacked
Fortunately, there are dozens of ways to improve shipping crate handling capabilities, and it all starts with knowing all there is to know about your shipment—starting with what’s inside!
The Four Questions
We've identified four specific questions you should ask yourself well before purchasing your very first wooden crate.
These questions will help you better prepare your shipment for transit, handling, and/or storage and ensure that the shipment survives this demanding process.
- Does my shipment contain fragile items?
- How heavy is my shipment?
- Does my shipment contain multiple, separate parts and pieces?
- Is my shipment oddly shaped?
Knowing the answers to these questions will help you and/or your Packaging vendor choose the right packaging for your items.
Q1: Does my shipment contain fragile items?
If the items inside the shipping crate are fragile, a number of extras can help cushion and secure them. Just a few include
- bubble
- foam
- loose fill.
Valley Box custom builds wooden crates with built-in layers of foam.
Q2: How heavy is my shipment?
Knowing the weight of your shipment is important.
If your shipping crates are small and lightweight, consider adding custom handles to make handling easier for you, the shipper, the receiver, the customer, and the end-user.
Adding casters can also help to improve the handling of the crate. When a crate is easily accessible the possibility of damage decreases.
Q3: Does my shipment contain multiple, separate parts and pieces?
Shipments that contain multiple parts can be tricky. If packaged poorly, the parts may bounce and shift in the box, which can cause damage to the parts themselves and the other components inside.
In some cases, multiple parts may be shipped separately (which will cost more) or they can be secured with special inserts, custom pouches, smaller boxes that fit snugly inside the larger box, bags, plastic containers, and more.
Q4: Is my shipment oddly shaped?
Finally, not everything can fit perfectly inside a standard box, crate, or container. Many items are just too oddly shaped for the “one size fits all” model.
In these cases, customization may be the best option in order to make shipping safer and improve package handling at every stop en route and once the shipment reaches its final destination.
Ready to hire a shipping crate company? Follow Valley Box's guide 10 Q's to ask before hiring a shipping crate manufacturer.
At Valley Box, we understand how important packaging handling can be.
That’s why we have dozens of solutions to help improve packaging handling capabilities, from heavy-duty designs and custom corrugated boxes to cushioning, inserts, and more.
Contact a Valley Box representative today to find out how we can help improve your packaging handling capabilities and protect your bottom line!
