Edge and Corner Protectors Help Protect Your Bottom Line

Posted on: January 26th, 2022

It has been estimated that shipping damages between the manufacturing facility and the point of sale average around half a percent of gross sales for businesses. While that doesn’t sound alarming, it equates to about $1 billion a year in total damages in just the U.S. alone. But such damages can be avoided by utilizing edge and corner protectors in your packaging and shipping operations.

One of the most important things your business should do is evaluate the types of damages your organization reports and then evaluate and test your current shipping procedures. This will allow your business to better understand the current issues and how to best correct them.

Often, the most common reason for shipping damage is not ensuring there is enough strength when stacking pallets. If your products are not packed with edge and corner protectors, when a forklift moves the pallet onto a delivery vehicle, the weight combined with the unprotected edges can often lead to unexpected dents, bends, and other related damages.

Edge and corner protectors provide many benefits by protecting the exposed edges of products and helping to stabilize the pallet from coming apart during shipping – especially when stacked on top of each other.

Edge and corner protectors or ideal for unboxed items such as cabinets, windows and doors, countertops, and frames. They also can help protect the edges of boxes when stacked together, which are often prone to damage during shipping and transporting.

Stretch film or poly strapping is often used to hold the protectors in place as they need to be secured in order to do their job effectively.

Some things to consider before ordering edge and corner protectors are:

1. The weight of the load to help determine the size
2. Quantity (large skids are a good idea if you ship consistently)
3. The benefits of choosing molded pulp over plastic protectors

Shipping pallets without the proper protection in place is a recipe for disaster. This can easily be avoided by investing in edge and corner protectors as part of your normal shipping practices.