Basics Of Shrink Wrapping

A very basic guide to get you shrink wrapping your products How to Shrink Wrap: Basic info for Small Businesses that need to Shrink Wrap Their Products. Shrink wrapping is, without a doubt, one of the best way to pack and protect products for both transit and display purposes. Shrink wrapping can also be used to bundle multiple products together. It is often common to see new Cd’s, Books and Small Electrical items shrink wrapped ready for sale. Before we have a look at how you can shrink wrap, it is important you have a basic understanding concerning the process and films used. There are three main types of shrink wrapping film, PVC and Polyolefin shrink wrapping film being the main ones for presentation and Polythene film being the main one for transit wrapping or heavier items. PVC shrink film has for many years been used to wrap everything from paint trays to CD's, and anything in between. In general, PVC is used on manual and semi-automatic shrink wrap machines. It is considered in general that PVC Film shrink’s easier than Polyolefin when being used by hand or with a simple shrink wrapping system. Many pvc films are not FDA approved for direct contact with food unlike the majority of Polyolefin films. The other type of film is polyolefin and this has fast become a preferred packaging option for both the edible and non-edible products, as it can provide stronger seal compared to PVC and can be stored in varying temperatures without worrying about it hardening or softening. With the basic understanding of the different types of wrap, let us get started on the wrapping process. Step One - Proper Measurement Of the Shrink Film Required To avoid wastage of film, you need to determine the shrink wrapping size, the size of shrink tunnel, and the size of sealer. If you however have both small and large products to wrap, it is best to go for the largest sealer as it will help even when you are sealing smaller products. When wrapping a wide variety of products in different sizes it is best to stock multiple rolls of centerfold film to keep costs and waste down.As a rule of thumb a method that will help you determine the best size of shrink film, measure the length and circumference of each product then allow for around 100 mm or scrap to allow easier wrapping. Step Two - Sealing the Open Ends Once you are done determining the measurements and you have the proper film size, the rest is easy. Place your product on the wrapping film, tubing or bag. Ensure you close the sealing bar approximately half an inch from the products. If you have the I-Bar sealer with the centerfold film then you can seal one side of the product and rotate it to seal the other sides. However, with an L-Bar sealer you can be able to seal two sides at a go. Step Three - Apply Heat This is the last stage of the incredibly easy to follow guide. Once you are done sealing the open ends, you now need to use a shrink tunnel or shrink gun to apply heat on the film and if it balloons when heating you should prick the film to create small vent to allow the hot air to escape. Here at Dan Packaging, we stock all types and sizes of shrink films for both commercial and personal use. All our films have undergone through testing for quality and durability. If you need films that are food grade compliant then you can be sure to find them here. If you would like professional guidance in choosing the best film for your products, give us a call or email us now and our experienced technical team will immediately get back to you. Equipment For Shrink Wrapping Assuming you have already chosen your shrink wrapping film, you need a heat sealer to help with sealing the open ends of material and a way of applying hot air to heat the film to allow it to retract or shrink tightly around the product. Here are some different types of heat sealing and shrink wrapping machines and equipment. Manual Shrink Wrapping System. This is the slowest way of shrink wrapping but the least expensive, Here you can find an example of the machinery used. Chamber Type Shrink Wrapping Machines This type of machine is possibly the most versatile and easy to use shrink wrapping machine on the market today. These machines are often single phase and on wheel making them very portable and easy to use when they are needed. Here you can find an example of this type of machine. Semi-Automatic L Sealer and Shrink Tunnel This type of machine can be the quickest way to shrink wrap products before you have to consider investing in complicated automated wrapping machine. Because the sealing and shrinking of the product is carried out in two separate operations greater speeds can be had. This is because as the product is sealed it is taken away from the operator to be shrunk thus allowing them to repeat the process with another product. Speeds of eleven packs per minute can be achieved with these machine.

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