Manufacturers of products of any kind have to protect them in order to ship them to their destination. They can’t do it any which way, as they need to arrive undamaged at the point of sale. In addition, they need to apply protection measures to each one individually, and to all those in a shipment as a whole. Therefore, all companies that need to send the products they manufacture or purchase to another destination need machines that allow them to automate certain preparation tasks. Like a pallet wrapping machine. Find out what it is and what it is used for.
What is a pallet stretch wrapper?
A pallet stretch wrapper is an industrial machine that is used to wrap pallets with products that are stacked on it for shipment to a distributor or to the store where they will be sold. For this purpose, a thin, elastic, transparent plastic film, also known as cling film, is used. It is used when the products to be shipped to the same destination are all stacked on a pallet, and the machine envelopes the products with this film. This keeps them all together and facilitates their transportation. In addition, it also prevents the loss of part of the load. Or that any of them suffer damage.
The pallet stretch wrapper is not, at present, a manually operated machine. It is a machine that automates the process of wrapping pallets with products to make the final result more efficient and safe. It also allows the operators in charge of preparing product shipments to focus on other tasks that require less effort and more skilled handling.
How does it work?
Each pallet stretch wrapper is equipped with an automated shaft that distributes the transparent film so that it is evenly distributed around the products on the pallet. But this is not the only important element of the machine. It also includes a platform on which the pallet with the products ready to be wrapped is placed on top. This platform rotates, which means that as it rotates, the products on the pallet are covered with film. The shaft, meanwhile, stretches the film that is placed on the load. When the stretch wrapper finishes its work, the load with the products on the pallet ends up covered with transparent plastic on all four sides.
The load will rotate several times on its axis, which makes it possible for it to be covered by several layers of transparent film. It will rotate as many times as the programmer decides to program and operate the machine. There is no set number of rotations for a load to be well protected. This is decided by those in charge of protecting it in each case. This means that a pallet wrapper has to surround and cover the load with transparent film until all the products on the pallet are well secured.
The weight and dimensions of the products on the pallets have nothing to do with the number of wraps a pallet stretch wrapper has to make in order to protect them properly. They will only be ready when the products cannot be moved individually. The load will then be properly secured. Only then can the plastic wrap be sealed and the pallet removed so that the machine can continue the protection process with other pallets.
When a pallet of products has passed through the stretch wrapper and its load is compact and secured, it is ready for transport. Generally, however, not just one pallet will be shipped, but several pallets will be shipped to the same destination. Therefore, they are stored until all the pallets going to the same destination are ready and the truck picks them up. Because they are secured, each pallet is moved with all the products at once, which facilitates their movement and storage.
What is a pallet stretch wrapper used for?
As we have seen, a pallet stretch wrapper is used to wrap the load on a pallet with plastic so that it can be moved in one shipment. But not only that. Because they are grouped and protected, the products on a pallet will not be damaged when stored, moved or shipped. They will be fixed in place, stuck to each other. This is due to the fact that the transparent film that covers them is wrapped tightly. However, just enough for the load to be secured. Not to damage the products it is covering.
This is precisely another purpose of a pallet stretch wrapper. Preventing damage to the entire load on a pallet, not just serious damage to the products themselves. Nor their packaging. In other words, a pallet stretch wrapper protects both the product and its packaging. The reason is simple: if a product’s packaging is damaged during transport to its destination, it is less likely to sell. People will perceive it as defective even if it is fine, and it will be difficult to get it out of the store.
But this machine not only has an impact on the safety and integrity of the products being protected. It also serves to facilitate the work of a company’s operators, who will not have to make the effort of wrapping the products on a pallet by hand. In addition, protection work will be completed sooner and shipments of goods will be able to leave for their destination sooner. The machine is also capable of adapting progressively to the needs of the company using it. Therefore, it speeds up the packaging process, saving time and costs.
This makes a pallet stretch wrapper not only useful for all types of companies and sectors where products are manufactured and transported. For example, in the food sector or in the construction sector. It is also an investment in the future and an element that facilitates everything related to logistics and transportation. So if your company needs to move pallets of products safely while protecting them, get a pallet wrapper!
