Tag Archives: centerfold shrink wrap

Shrink Wrapping Magazines and Brochures

Posted on by Standard Respond

Our best-selling shrink wrap materials are centerfold polyolefin and PVC shrink wrap rolls. The centerfold rolls are versatile and allow users to wrap multiple sized objects efficiently. In this post we are going to demonstrate with pictures and a video how to wrap brochures, catalogs, or books with centerfold heat shrink wrap. In this post we will be using a centerfold PVC shrink wrap. Click on previous post to view PVC and polyolefin shrink wrap differences.

Starting Snapshot We are using an I-Bar sealer with a 500 ft. roll of centerfold shrink wrap. We will be wrapping a Pampered Chef catalog. Our I-Bar seal temperature is set to the middle heat setting.

Snapshot 2 (5-16-2013 7-36 PM) First, seal the open end of the shrink wrap roll. This makes two closed sides on the roll. The side you have just sealed and the creased side. Once the seal is complete, remove excess film.

Magazine Into Shrink Wrap Insert the magazine into the corner of the sealed side and the fold crease. Once inserted, seal the other side of the magazine and remove excess film. This seal will make three closed sides around the magazine. This seal will also be the beginning seal for your next product.

Seal Last Open Shrink Wrap SideUse the sealer to seal the last open side around the magazine. and remove excess film.

Shrink Wrapped MagazineMagazine with all open sides sealed. Notice the excess film around the magazine. This offers room around the magazine for the film to shrink.

Heat Gun UseApply heat with a heat gun on low settings. Always keep the gun moving and at least 6 inches away from the film.

Watch the video below to see the finished product and all of these steps in action. If you have any questions call us at 1-800-441-5090.

What is a Shrink Wrap Machine?

Posted on by Standard Respond

Most people interested in shrink wrapping know you must have a shrink wrap machine to shrink wrap products. What is a shrink wrap machine? Some people are unsure, some people think of the sealer and others think of the shrink tunnel as the shrink wrap machine. Both machines, the tunnel and the sealer should be considered a shrink wrap machine. They both work together to produce professional looking packaging that will protect products from dust, moisture, and tampering. As well as provide a see-through packaging to display the product.

Most shrink wrap operations require two shrink wrap machines to function. Below is a brief description of each element needed to properly shrink products for retail packaging.

Heat Sealer- Most all shrink wrap operations use a heat sealer to seal the open ends of the shrink wrap material. There are some exceptions when a sealer is not required or used, but most applications use a heat sealer. Shrink wrap sealers can come in a variety of sizes and forms depending on production needs. The two most common heat sealers are I-Bar sealers and L-Bar sealers. Below are pictures and descriptions of each sealer type.

I-Bar Sealers- These sealers are named I-Bar because of the single sealing bar they have. I-Bar sealers areI-Bar Shrink Wrap Machine found in many low output operations. There are high speed shrink wrap applications that use I-Bar sealers with shrink tubing and shrink bags. The single sealing bar works great for shrink bags and shrink tubing in high speed operations.

Shrink-Tubing-required-sealsea-here-shrink-bags

As you can see with the pictures, the single sealing bar works great with the tubing and the bags because they require a seal or two running in the same direction. The L-Bar sealer works great with the more common centerfold shrink wrap. See the description and pictures below for a better explanation.

L-Bar Sealers- These sealers cost more, but are often more efficient for higher speed production. The L-Bar sealer hasSealing-Bar L-B Shrink Wrap Machine two sealing bars in the shape of a backwards L. They are designed to seal centerfold shrink film rolls. The centerfold shrink film rolls are folded in half length ways. The product is placed in the crease of the fold and the other three sides need to be sealed. After the first seal, only two sides need to be sealed. The ending seal on the first product is the beginning seal for the next product.L-Sealer-Combo-Arrows

Product Placed in Centerfold Crease

Product Placed in Centerfold Crease

Heating Element- Once the shrink film is sealed, heat needs to be applied to the film to shrink it down to conform toShrink Wrap Heat Gun the product. Different shrink wrap materials require different heat temperatures. Most lower output operations use a heat gun to apply heat to their products. They are inexpensive, but not efficient when producing a high to moderate number of shrink wrapped products. For medium to higher output products, a shrink tunnel is recommended. The box on the left side of the picture above is the shrink tunnel. Shrink tunnels have a conveyor belt running through them to feed the products through. Adjusting the speed of the conveyor belt and the temperature of the tunnel is important to finding the proper shrink settings.

This post is only a bare bones article to explain and demonstrate what most shrink wrap operations need. As mentioned above, some products do not require a sealer. An example would be a candle maker using a shrink tubing. The candle is slid into the tubing, the tubing is heated and the ends are left open and not sealed. There are a large amount of variables when preparing a shrink wrap operation. Call us (1-800-441-5090) we would be happy to help you set up an efficient and cost effective shrink wrap operation.

Protect Car Parts and Accesories From Shipping and Storage Damage

Posted on by Standard Respond

Protecting car parts from storage and shipping damage is important for businesses who resale car parts or individuals who want to preserve a variety of car parts and accessories. Many resellers find it important to use a packaging for car parts that will contain all of the screws, nuts, bolts, etc. Individuals and collectors like to use something to preserve car parts and accessories from exterior elements that may cause the parts to lose value. Along with the ability to preserve these parts, something that allows display of the parts is important as well.

Shrink wrap is a great option for both resellers and individuals looking for a way to preserve, contain, and display a variety of parts and accessories. Shrink wrap protects form exterior elements such as: moisture, dirt, and grease. It also offers an ability to display a variety of products.

Users can use centerfold shrink film rolls, shrink bags, or shrink tubing depending on the need. Shrink bags are great for products that include a variety of parts that need to be contained. All parts can simply be put into the shrink bag, the bag can be sealed, then heat applied to contain the parts and prevent them from shifting during transport.  Tubing works great for cylindrical shaped car parts and centerfold rolls work with most any parts or accessories.

Shrink wrap is easy to use and great for many car enthusiasts and resellers. It is a product that should be considered when preservation and display are important.

How To Shrink Wrap Your Products

Posted on by Standard Respond

Previously we wrote posts on this subject and offered some videos about getting started shrink wrapping. Even though we commonly work with large companies, we also enjoy working with start-up companies in trial stages and individual people wanting to shrink wrap a few items for storage protection. At U.S. Packaging & Wrapping LLC. we want to grow with our customers, so we welcome smaller start-ups and want to assist them with getting started on the right foot.

Almost everyone has heard of shrink wrap, but the process is not generally common knowledge. We have several products we offer that are referred to shrink wrap all the time. Most all of our stretch film products are called shrink wrap by our customers. In fact, we almost have as many people call for stretch film when they ask for shrink wrap as we do people who are actually looking for heat shrink wrap.

We will go down the steps for how to shrink wrap your products. Even though we will detail the steps to get started you may still have some questions. Feel free to call us and we will try our best to assist you.

1. Determine The Shrink Wrap You Need- There are three main questions you should ask to determine the type of shrink wrap you need. The questions all start with the products you are wrapping.

Question 1= How much does your product weigh? This will help determine the film type you need and the thickness you need. Polyolefin shrink film has a stronger seal and can be better for heavier products. We currently offer up to a 100 gauge polyolefin shrink wrap online. This shrink wrap should be strong enough to package products weighing up 35 and possibly even 40 pounds depending on edges of the product being wrapped and other factors. A 75 gauge is the most common film thickness and we recommend it for anything from 5 or 7 pounds up to 30 or 35 pounds. Our light 60 gauge shrink film is great for small light objects weighing up to 5 or 7 pounds.

PVC shrink film is a cost-effective film for multiple product weights. Currently, we only offer 75 gauge PVC shrink wrap online because of its versatility. It should be good for products weighing up to 30 pounds. Don’t be surprised by how thin the film is before heat is applied. Once heat is applied it becomes much stronger.

Question 2= What is the size of the object being wrapped? Length, height, and width are important measurements, but circumference of the object at its widest point can also be important. The measurement is important to help determine if a centerfold shrink wrap, a shrink tubing, or a shrink bag would be a better option for you.

Shrink bags are great and cost-effective for smaller products. The larger shrink bags can become more expensive than a centerfold shrink film of the same size. Shrink tubing is a great option for a variety of products that have similar circumferences.

Question 3= Are all objects being wrapped the same dimensions or do they vary in size? If all of the objects being wrapped are the same size, it is easier to determine the type of shrink wrap you need. Probably a shrink bag or a centerfold shrink film would be an ideal option.

If the products being wrapped slightly vary in dimensions, all three options may work. If the products being wrapped largely vary in dimensions, you may be able to choose a centerfold shrink film to fit the largest object being wrapped. By having a centerfold film to fit the largest object, it can also fit the smaller products being wrapped. Be aware that if the products dimensions are largely different there will be a lot of waste when packaging the smaller objects. The best option would be to figure the cost of buying two different sized centerfold rolls versus the amount of waste when buying only one larger roll.

We almost always recommend shrink tubing if you are wrapping objects of the same circumference, but different lengths. We also recommend shrink tubing when people need the shrink wrap to be used as a protective sleeve, but not seal the ends. People often use shrink tubing for wrapping products like candles and jars.

2. Find the Right Equipment-Once the type of shrink wrap type is determined, the type of equipment needed should be the next consideration. Below are a few questions to ask to help determine the right equipment.

Question 1= What type of shrink wrap did you choose? The sealer we recommend largely depends on the type of shrink wrap you choose. For shrink bags and shrink tubing we would recommend an I-Bar sealer, for centerfold shrink wrap we recommend an L-Bar Sealer.

Question 2= How much quantity will you be going through? If this is a one time deal for protecting products for storage, you can probably get away with no sealer or shrink gun and use a hair dryer. We don’t recommend this, but if price is a concern and overall aesthetics is not you could probably do it.

If you are a start-up and want to see if shrink wrap is the right option for wrapping your products for retail, we would recommend an impulse sealer and a heat gun. Be aware that if you have chosen to use a  centerfold shrink film, a impulse sealer will not be very efficient. It will give you an idea of how your fully packaged product will look with a proper seal though. The cost of an impulse sealer and shrink gun are very affordable to get things up and going.

If you already know you want to package your products with shrink film and will be doing a decent amount of output, you may need to consider a semi-automatic or fully automatic machine. We do not offer them online because of how much they cost and the amount of variables there are for determining the right machine. Please call so we can help you with the right option. Another possible option is a shrink tunnel for applying the heat. Shrink tunnels are far more efficient for applying heat than heat guns.

3.Package the Product-Now the hard stuff is out of the way, it is easy to package the product.

1. Place the product into the crease of the centerfold film, the shrink bag, or shrink tubing.

2. Seal the open ends of the centerfold, bag, or tubing. Some people do not choose to seal all open ends, that is individual preference. Depending on the sealing machine you choose, some trim excess film and seal all at once and others you will have to manually trim excess film.

3. Apply heat. Whether using a heat gun or tunnel, adjust heat properly and apply to the centerfold, shrink bag, or shrink tubing to shrink the film and allow it to conform to the product.

Of course there are several variables to shrink wrapping products and this article does not highlight a lot of the minor adjustments and tweaks needed when shrink wrapping. The higher output your operation becomes, the more technical questions and tweaks become.

This article is only a brief overview of how to shrink wrap, intended to inform people who are not familiar with the basics of the shrink wrap process.

How to Measure For Shrink Wrap Bags and Shrink Wrap Tubing (With Illustrations)

Posted on by Standard Respond

A couple of months ago we wrote a blog post about how to measure for shrink wrap. The post is a detailed post about how to measure for each one of our shrink wrap products. There are different methods for measuring for shrink wrap bags,  shrink wrap tubing, and centerfold shrink wrap.

The problem with our post was we did not offer any illustrations to help explain the methods we were describing. This post we want to illustrate measuring a circumference. We can help determine the size of shrink wrap film you need by having length and width dimensions, but we prefer a circumference measurement when sizing for shrink wrap bags and shrink wrap tubing.

Measuring the circumference of an object is commonly associated with round objects.

It is much easier when measuring for shrink wrap bags and shrink wrap tubing to measure the circumference for all objects. As stated above, it is possible to fit proper shrink wrap with length and width dimensions, but circumference measurements are much easier. Below are a couple of illustrations of measuring circumference for non-round objects.

The illustration for the book is not completely accurate. The tape measure should not be at an angle, it should be straight across. Once the circumference for the object is measured, add 10% to the measurement and divide by two and that is the width of shrink bag or shrink tubing you need. Then for shrink wrap bags, measure the length and that will be the length of bag you will need.

How to measure for shrink wrap

Posted on by Standard Respond

How do I know what size of shrink wrap I need? That is a common question from many of our customers. We are happy to help them out when they call, but we have come to the conclusion that an educational blog post would be helpful as well.

One of the main things to remember when deciding shrink wrap size is, shrink wrap shrinks! It’s true, the shrink film you place on your products will shrink down to 40% of its original size. That means that a larger size is always better than a smaller size.

Measuring the circumference of the object being shrink wrapped is the common trait all of these recommendations have. Circumference is defined as: the distance around a closed curve or the distance around an object.  Below are the common types of shrink wrap products we sell and the recommended way to measure for them.

Centerfold Shrink Wrap- The easiest way to measure for centerfold shrink wrap is to add the height and width, then add 2-3 inches. If a product is 10 inches wide and 4 inches tall, you would add 10+4+2=16. A 16 inch wide film would be ideal for wrapping the product. If a 16 inch film is not available, go up to the next size of film, never go down in size.

Shrink Wrap Tubing- To measure for shrink wrap tubing, measure the circumference of the objects widest point, then add 10-15 percent, then divide by two. If an object had a circumference of 10, the equation would be: 10×10%=1 then add 1 to the circumference 10+1=11 then divide by 2   11/2=5.5 inches.  A 6 inch wide shrink wrap tubing would be ideal for the object. If there are no 6 inch sizes available, feel free to increase the width of tubing to the next size.

Shrink Wrap Bags- Measuring for shrink wrap bags is very similar to measuring for shrink wrap tubing. Measure the circumference of the widest point of the object being wrapped. Then measure the length of the product being wrapped. Add 10-15% to the circumference of the width then divide by 2. If you had a product that had a width circumference of 14 inches and a length of 20 inches, the equation would be: To find width 14×10%=1.4 then add 1.4 to circumference 14+1.4=15.4 then divide by two 15.4/2= 7.7. An 8 inch wide bag. The length would be 20 inches. You would need a 8×20 inch bag to wrap the product, up-sizing is an option if that size of bag is not available.

Remember when measuring for shrink wrap bags to always consider if products will be extending out of the container being wrapped. Often times gift bags and other items being wrapped have products extending out of the basket or container, be sure to place them in the basket or container before measuring for the length.

Hopefully this will be helpful for anyone looking to shrink wrap products. If you need any assistance, feel free to dial our toll-free number at 1-800-441-5090. If you feel confident about your calculations, we offer shrink wrap bags,  shrink wrap tubing, and centerfold shrink wrap,  just click on the links.