Transporting products to market is one of the most important aspects of the supply chain. And while transportation has come a long way since the days of wooden sailing ships and horse drawn wagons, products are still susceptible to damage during transit. Anyone who has ever ordered something online can attest to the fact improperly packaged items arrive damaged or worse, unusable, which is frustrating to say the least.
With certain products, such as medical equipment, protecting them from damage during transit is more than a matter of maintaining the aesthetics of the items. Some items can be rendered unusable or even dangerous if they are improperly packaged. For that reason, it’s important for manufacturers to conduct packaging tests to determine the safest, most durable packaging for their products before they begin shipping them out. Although cost is always a factor, protecting the products and keeping transporters and customers safe must be the top priority.
Most packaging suppliers conduct tests on their products before offering them for sale, but you also need to test your options with your actual products to ensure they will work in your individual situation. Although some companies use customer analysis and/or field testing to evaluate their packaging options, the most common form of testing is lab testing, which takes multiple forms.
Lab Testing Options
Lab tests for packaging endurance come in many forms all designed to mimic the conditions of transport, but without creating unrealistic scenarios. Not all packaging goes through all of these tests, but most have at least several of them.
Vibration testing. Even securely packaged items experience vibrations during transport, which can affect the shipping container, the product packaging, and the products inside. Labs typically use a shaker or vibration table to create different scenarios that a package might experience, including individual packages and those that are stacked on pallets, or traveling unsecured in a truck. Because vibration is such a concern, some companies even use condition monitoring equipment to keep track of the vibrations during transport and identify conditions that may be detrimental to the products in real time.
Shock testing. Packages are dropped, tossed, and otherwise not handled with care during transportation. Therefore, it’s important to test the durability of a package when it’s dropped. However, because there are significant variances in how packages are dropped, lab tests using a shock test machine are often much more conclusive than simple human tests, because they reveal vulnerabilities that may not appear otherwise.
Pressure testing. Packaging undergoes variations in pressure in shipping. For instances, items shipped by air will experience reduced pressure, while items shipped by land or sea may experience increased pressure and compression due to stacking or tight packing. Therefore, packaging needs to be tested to ensure it can withstand these different conditions without being crushed or otherwise damaged. Containers that will be shipped by air will undergo reduced pressure testing, which uses a vacuum chamber to simulate the conditions in airplane cargo holds to ensure that they will not crack, crumble, or break in transit, potentially creating a hazardous situation, while boxes, drums, tubs, and the like undergo compression testing to ensure that they will not break or otherwise become damaged under pressure.
Temperature testing. Products often experience a variety of temperatures in transport, ranging from well below zero to well above 100 degrees. Lab tests can replicate these conditions to ensure that packaging holds up without damage. The products inside the packaging may require more consistent temperatures (for example, food products often need constant refrigeration) but the packaging still needs to be capable of withstand those temperatures.
Toxin testing. U.S. regulators have strict standards in place to protect consumers from toxins, in particular heavy metals common in packaging (lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, and cadmium). This means that manufacturers are responsible for testing their packaging in a lab to ensure it complies with the standards; otherwise they face hefty fines.
These are just some of the packaging tests that manufacturers conduct to ensure the integrity and safety of their products during shipping. Using ineffective or inappropriate packaging can lead to safety issues as well as lost revenues, so as you prepare to bring your product to market, don’t forget this important detail.
