Over-specifying can hurt the bottom line

Environmental impact is a key concern for companies with regards to their social responsibility as well as their accreditations, and is a hot topic particularly for those who require packaging within their business or as part of their order fulfilment.

Plastic v paper

With the pressure of adhering to UK regulations, as well as managing individual business’ carbon footprints and CSR policy, many companies have steered away from plastic, which they perceive to be environmentally unfriendly and with a higher carbon impact.

After detailed life cycle assessments, research from the University of Oregon showed that when comparing grocery bags, plastic bags produced less greenhouse gas, used less water and used fewer chemicals compared to the production of paper bags or even cotton tote bags.

The report concluded that if a company’s priority was to alleviate global warming it should, in fact, select plastic bags as these had the lowest carbon footprint. The production of plastics has been perfected over the last 70 years to ensure virtually no waste within petrochemical production, whereas the cotton and paper industry processes cause substantial wastage.

Plastic packaging is increasingly becoming the low carbon solution for businesses requiring a high volume of packaging. Its environmental performance is further improved by the reprocessed and recycled packaging options available.

Recycling in UK

Over the past 40 years, waste management and recycling has transformed, bringing the UK recycling rate from just 10 per cent up to 40 per cent. However, a recent industry panel has called for a post-Brexit recycling debate to ensure that this progress doesn’t slip as the UK exits the European Union.

Developments in relation to the amount of plastic that is recyclable, coupled with the development of reprocessed product, means that plastic packaging is becoming a primary option for businesses. Automated Packaging Systems has seen the impact of the increased focus on greener products, with 40% of their protective packaging customers choosing reprocessed material.

Performance

For those specifying packaging materials, another consideration is what the material is needed for. Often a virgin plastic material is selected by the marketing department or the logistics manager, based on the perceived quality of the material.

Additionally, thick gauge material is often chosen, which is useful for products that will sit for a prolonged period in a warehouse to ensure its long-term integrity, but is unnecessary for short-term or purely buffering packing material.

Businesses will often select virgin material with a view that it is of higher quality or performs better than reprocessed product, however this is not necessarily the case. For straightforward packing needs, reprocessed plastic performs in exactly the same way as virgin product and is fit-for-purpose. To over-specify simply means the customer will be wasting packing product and money.

Cost

In addition to the performance benefits, cost is often a key consideration. Using reprocessed plastic product, compared to paper, could provide cost savings not only from the amount of material required, as up to 40-70% less packaging is used, but the reduced storage and shipping costs in comparison to paper.

Automated Packaging Systems’ GeoTech Reprocessed packaging material made from reclaimed and scrap material, has been manufactured to perform in the same way as virgin material, and now comprises nearly half of the company’s protective packaging.

An educated choice

In fact, one business switched from paper to Automated Packaging Systems’ GeoTech Reprocessed plastic packaging, which was not only comparable, but was found to provide higher customer satisfaction as well as cost, space and time savings.

Cengage is a leading global supplier of specialist educational resources to universities and learning institutions. Originally using a paper packing system, Cengage found that high value books would arrive damaged and with bent corners due to the paper packaging compressing after multiple handlings in transit.

“We were drawn by the option of the GeoTech Reprocessed material Automated Packaging Systems offered,” said shipping manager, Rob Lawrence. “There was initially some reluctance to switch from paper, an option which was perceived to have good green credentials, to plastic.

“However, as GeoTech material is reprocessed, it addressed those concerns and we’re no longer paying for extra PRNs when we fill out our annual waste packaging reports. In fact, we knew our customers didn’t like paper. They find that it dries out the skin and is unpleasant to work with. The green GeoTech tubes have gone down very well.”

Benefits include a 46% reduction on packaging material costs and a 5-10% reduction in international shipping costs as the plastic airbags are lighter than paper packaging.