Wednesday, August 15, 2018
Shipping Supplies and Plastic Wrap For Your Move
Monday, May 21, 2018
Bubble accident
Many of us know what bubble wrap is and how great of a material it is when compared to other kinds of shipping supplies. I am a firm believer that bubble wrap is one of if not the best kind of material. We have spoken about bubble wrap and its unique features it has that allow for it to be considered one of the best materials. I was surprised to hear that this amazing material being bubble wrap was an accident. Believe it or not, it’s the truth. In this short article, we are going to look at how this accident changed the shipping industry for the better and produced one of the best shipping materials.
One day two English men who worked in a wallpaper manufacturing factory were interested in making a new kind of wallpaper. They wanted to make a wallpaper that intrigued the young adults growing up and moving into their own homes. They took two shower curtains and laid them on top of each other. They then placed these sheets in a heat press and began the process of making the wallpaper. When the process was finished, and they lifted the press to see the end result, they were quite devastated. What laid in front of them was a plastic sheet that had many, many air pockets in it, the shape of bubbles. They took that sheet and threw it away and kept trying to make their new wallpaper and forget about the bubbled sheet.
A man came along who was in the shipping industry and saw this sheet, and he got very excited. He barged into the factory and asked the two men what that plastic sheet was as it would be perfect for shipping items and keeping them protected. They confessed that it was nothing more than a failed experiment at making a new kind of wallpaper. The shipping man said nonsense and told them how he believed it could be the next greatest kind for shipping material. The men scoffed at him and said that if he wanted it so bad then, he could take it with him. He did just that and sold some to a partner of his. From there, the desire to have bubble wrap exploded, and the two English men got busy mankind some as it brought in great business and money for them.
Today the use of bubble wrap is all around us. So many different shipping companies use it. As the technology evolved, so did bubble wrap and its manufacturing. Less negative space and more bubbles were added to improve its protective abilities. Better materials were used to allow bubble wrap to be very durable and reusable. Eventually, we as humans found out a way to make bubble wrap with recycled materials, thus reducing the carbon footprint that is produced.
The discovery of bubble wrap was an accident, but the need for it is astounding in today’s shipping industry. As I have mentioned before, I believe bubble wrap to be one of the best shipping supplies when it comes to packing the items in and keeping them safe. I loved bubble wrap when I was a child. Playing with it was a lot of fun as a kid. I am a firm believer that bubble wrap is the best kind of shipping material, and the fact that it was an accident is amazing.
Friday, March 23, 2018
Moving again? You need the right box
Moving locations is simply a part of life. I know this year we moved a ton. I went from one home to another and even my work changed locations thanks to covid. The changes we went through were a bit complicated but lots of things were learned on both ends. I found out that there was a whole world of moving and the shipping supplies needed in order to do it well. What I learned ended up saving me and my company not only money but probably saved some injuries as well. By finding a nice new place to get boxes at the source we saved a ton.
It is true that not all boxes are the same. Cardboard is not even what we consider to be a box. I always called boxes cardboard boxes and it turns out that what I thought was a cardboard box was actually a corrugated box. The differences were rather vast and what was actually a cardboard box was thin and similar to a cereal box. They could easily be destroyed with moister and would not hold much weight. What we think of as cardboard moving boxes is actually called a corrugated box. These are because of the slits and folds that are in-between the shell of the box. That is what makes it strong and less flexible and moister resistant. So after I learned this I found out that boxes had different weights and strength ratings. Most people use junk boxes.
Shipping supplies companies exist and that was key to us really saving money. What was great was that I found out how thick of a box we would need. It turns out that I could use these heavy-duty corrugated boxes instead of plastic containers and they turned out to be fantastic. They were so strong and held lots of weight that we needed to moving work items. Think of how heavy print paper is and how much of that we would need to move. We needed a great box to hold it and not flex when picking it up. That kept us from getting injured from flexing boxes and shifting weights. It is a small thing that goes a whole long way. I also found when talking to the store that there were moving packages meant for people moving homes. I decided to get some items for our own use too. It was really fun to save big money.
I found that they had moving packages that included heavy-duty boxes, tape, and markers set up to move home in all different sizes. This was much better than going around asking for free used boxes that would not work nearly as well. This was what I did and I found some cool hanger boxes set up for your closet. I was able to order a box that literally allowed us to hang out the closet in a closed box that was ready to go. We ended up having no damage to our nicest clothing and it was super easy to move efficiently. Now I know this is not the most exciting thing to learn about, but it can really be useful. If you spend 10 minutes and save a bunch of money then I think it is worth it and I hope you did too!