Packaging Corner: Embracing polybag pouches

More e-commerce and omni-channel retailers are transitioning from corrugated boxes to plastic pouches for shipping non-fragile items. The trend is driven by lower per-unit and shipping costs associated with the lighter weight packaging (particularly for shippers facing dimensional weight charges from parcel carriers), the reduced amount of storage space the bags require compared to cardboard, and the ability to imprint full color branding messages on the bags.

Contrary to popular perception, the polybag pouches are more sustainable than corrugated boxes, says Chris Rempe, director of global marketing at Automated Packaging Systems.

“Manufacturing the bags requires less energy while producing significantly less carbon dioxide,” Rempe explains. “Further, they can be recycled, with more curbside programs and retail stores accepting them.”

However, packaging items in a bag in a fully manual operation is not especially efficient, with operators typically opening, inserting, labeling and sealing a bag at a rate of 1.5 per minute. And, with qualified labor hard to find and retain, especially during the peak holiday shipping season, automating most of the process can boost productivity to as high as eight pouches per minute, Rempe continues.

“We offer automated machinery that essentially removes bag handling from the equation,” Rempe says. “The operator scans a packing slip, which triggers the machine to print the shipping information directly on the bag to eliminate the adhesive label. The machine then presents the bag to the operator, holds it open, and then seals it after the operator places the product, packing slip and other marketing collateral inside.”

Models range from tabletop versions for low-volume applications—such as custom T-shirt printers—up to the company’s newest product, the Autobag 850S, which runs bags up to 22 inches wide to ship larger items.

“Customers typically select the machine that handles the bag size that fits the majority of their products, say 80%, and then package the outliers offline by hand,” Rempe says. “The biggest operations might deploy three machines handling three different bag sizes to package small, medium and large shipments.”

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