KEY PACKAGING IS
Investing in the overall packaging process
By Philip McAndrew
W
hen it comes to e-commerce retailers, one of the most overlooked operational investments is the packaging process for outbound parcel shipments. Many of today’s retailers are pushing their orders out the door as quickly as possible and in doing so are often plagued by inefficiencies and costly processes. Let’s explore three aspects of investing in the overall packaging process, including insight into possible investment indicators, the most common reasons for improving the packaging process, and lastly, at some possible starting points and areas of caution.
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INDICATORS THAT INVESTMENT MAY BE WORTHWHILE Perhaps investing in your packaging process is so far off of your capital expenditure radar that you are not sure if an investment is worthwhile. Some of the most common symptoms that indicate time for investment are: } Missed ship dates } Pack line falling behind } Volumes over 600/day } Inconsistency in packaging } Damaged products } Labor attraction, retention, training costs too high
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2015 | www.PARCELindustry.com
} Material waste } Human error/packages sent to wrong recipient } Limited warehouse/floor space The other side of whether or not an investment is cost-effective depends on the investment’s payback. By drilling down to a per unit cost, you can determine the average cost of getting a package out of your building. By estimating the time, labor, material, and shipping savings that your new process uses you can quickly determine if the purchase will meet your investment requirements. Should you need assistance with this process, there are many