Why use Stretch Film

Why do people use stretch film? Stretch film remains the most cost effective way to contain a load.

Cast Stretch Film

Cast stretch film is manufactured using the cast extrusion process. Typical characteristics of cast stretch films are: excellent optics, clear, glossy, superior tear resistance, quiet unwind, consistent cling and consistent film thickness. Cast Film is more effective in cold storage applications.

Blown Stretch Film

Manufactured using the blown film extrusion process and also referred to as blown film. Typical blown stretch film characteristics are: poorer optics and noisier unwind, but, excellent puncture resistance and capable of achieving a high force on load (load containment).

The market is 66% cast film and 34% blown film. Most of the blown film is in the hand film market.

Load Profiles:

A Loads

A Loads are typically cubed with no protrusions and unitized. These are the easiest to wrap.

B Loads

B Loads are pallets that may have an object protruding or do not have clean vertical sides but rather have irregular sides. The puncture hazard may require a better performance film.

C Loads

C Loads are very irregular loads with many corners, sharp edges, or protrusions and are difficult to wrap. A higher performance stretch film will be required to handle this type of difficult load.

Types of Stretch Film Equipment

Self Propelled
Stretch Wrapper

Turntable
Stretch Wrapper

Orbital
Stretch Wrapper

Rotary Arm
Stretch Wrapper

Have you ever asked yourself if hand stretch wrapping is the most cost effective, fast and safe way for your packaging applications?

We can give you at least 5 reasons why it is not, and show you it’s time for a stretch wrapper. •  Consistent and uniform application
•  Film Cost Savings
•  Consistent and reliable production output throughout the work day
•  Employee Safety
•  Reducing the potential of your pallet being damaged during transit

Hand Stretch Film

Why use hand fim?

You should use hand wrap when:
•  Pallets are too unstable to transport to a stretch-wrapper
•  Operational set-up does not support wrapping in limited/specified locations
•  Variability in package integrity is acceptable to the customer

One-Sided vs. Two-Sided Cling

Two-sided Cling Film

•  Lowest cost
•  Good cling performance
•  If pallets touch, sticking and tearing of the wrapping may occur

One-sided Cling Film

•  Best abrasion resistance
•  Lowest cling performance
•  May cause "tails"

There can be a lot of damage in the process of shipping pallets. This is caused by pallets bumping or rubbing together during transit, triggering the films on each skid to stick. If this is an issue for your shipping process you might want to consider one-sided cling film.

Pre-Stretch Film

Pre-Stretch film is mostly used in hand applications. The most beneficial advantage to pre-stretch film vs traditional stretch film is an equal or increase in load stability with less total film used. This can improve your total cost on packaging materials.
The other benefits to using pre-stretch film:

•  Lighter Rolls which will lead to less energy used when wrapping (Less of an injury risk lifting a lighter material)
•  More consistent wrapping tension

How to calculate the roll weight of Stretch Film

It's easy to determinine if you are getting all of the stretch film you are paying for! Take a full roll of the film that you are currently using to a shipping scale and weigh it. You may want to measure the width of the film yourself to ensure that you are getting the full width published or enter the manufacturer’s provided information for width, length and gauge into the calculator below. The result should match the result that you got when you weighed the full roll.

Roll weight of single wound film
including Stretch Film

Top Sheets

When wrapping a pallet please consider the conditions your material will shipped/stored. A top sheet might be a good solution to keep moisture or dust off your product.