Making square cases is not just something you do for people with OCD or people who hate to see pallet loads or boxes not stacked at perfect right angles. Non-square cases can actually contribute to shipping damage, which cuts into profits and leads to unhappy customers.
A square case is one that has corners with 90 degree angles. This means its sides are vertical and its top and bottom are horizontal.
Here are four reasons why square cases are important:
1. Square cases support more weight
When the sides of stacked cases aren’t aligned they lose 30 percent of their stacking strength. In an era that’s focusing on reducing primary and secondary packaging materials, a 30 percent loss of stacking strength is a recipe for disaster.
2. Square cases stack better
Vertical sides and horizontal tops and bottoms make it easy to stack cases in tight, compact pallet loads that have plumb sides. Pallets like these are easier to stretch wrap and less prone to damage as they make their way through the supply chain.
3. Square cases pack better
It’s just easier to put things in a square box, particularly if automatic case packing equipment is being used. Also, a good fit of its contents enhances the protective capabilities of the case.
4. Square cases prevent downstream jams
Recovering from machine jams is time consuming, expensive and just plain irritating. The machines processing the erected cases – case packers and case sealers – work best when they’re fed by uniform, square cases.
It’s hard to consistently make square cases by hand. And all case erecting machines are not equally proficient at making square cases. The best case erectors, however, precisely control the case as it moves through the erecting process and ensure that every case erected is a square one.
For more information on how a case erectors reduce shipping damages, you can contact us on our website or call us at (502) 815-9109.
Click here to read related blog: 5 Ways Case Erectors Can Benefit Your Company
This post was published on July 17, 2014 and updated on November 14, 2018.
July 17, 2014