Skip to Content
Exit

Daniel

Author Archives: Daniel

  1. Recycled and Recyclable Products

    Leave a Comment
    Click to ExpandRecycled and Recyclable Products” data-lazy-src=

    Packaging materials like plastic are prominently used in many industries to wrap and protect products for distribution, storage, and shipping. However, these materials make up a significant portion of municipal solid waste, equalling 82.2 million tons of generation in 2018.

    Because of consumer pressure to address the danger that packaging materials cause the environment, the demand for eco-friendly materials has boomed. This pursuit of sustainability paved the way for using recycled and recyclable packaging materials.

    Cougar Packaging Solutions is your one-stop shop for environmentally-friendly packaging needs. We deliver a broad scope of products, from corrugated boxes to compostable fillers, created from post-consumer and post-industrial recycled materials.

    PCR Resins and Its Advantages

    A substance from recycled plastic, such as beverage bottles, is called post-consumer recycled (PCR) resin. It offers a more environmentally friendly alternative to the virgin plastic resin typically used to create packaging materials, including sheets, containers, and packaging films.

    PCR resins are excellent for almost every packaging purpose since they adhere to standards and regulations for food, pharmaceutical, medical, electronic, and general retail packaging. Its advantages include the following:

    • Reduces the quantity of plastic dumped in landfills (4,800 16-ounce plastic bottles equal about a cubic yard of landfill space)
    • Decreases carbon footprint (traditional plastics production produces nearly 900 million tons of carbon dioxide each year)
    • Decreases the need for non-renewable petroleum products to make new polymers
    • Reduces the energy required to create new plastics (recycling a pound of PET plastic instead of creating new can save up to 12,000 BTUs)
    • Promotes a company’s sustainability goals and visions

    Importance of Using Recycled and Recyclable Products

    Plastics are the most common packaging materials used in many industries. Because of their durability and flexibility, they can store food, cover clothes, and carry other products in the market.

    Although mostly recyclable, much plastic packaging is put to waste and poses many environmental problems — waste, soil, and air pollution, negative impact on human health, and threats to oceans and wildlife. Because of this, many businesses have been switching to recycled and recyclable materials for their packaging needs to contribute less to the growing packaging waste problem worldwide.

    Storopack has devised a system to reclaim post-consumer material from the US consumer and create plastic products, including air pillows and bubble wrap, utilizing a minimum of 50% post-consumer plastic. The other 50% of these products are made from post-industrial waste, making this the first 100% recycled plastic packaging line that includes a minimum of 50% post-consumer material.

    Recycled and recyclable materials also benefit business operations, providing several advantages to their users. For instance, eco-friendly packaging helps save the environment, is cost-efficient, and improves brand image.

    Benefits of Recycled and Recyclable Products in Businesses

    While recycled and recyclable products are mainly favored for their environmental benefits — such as increased sustainability and less carbon footprint, harmful toxins, and landfill waste — they can also positively impact businesses. Below are some benefits of eco-friendly packaging for your business:

    Offers Versatility

    Recycled and recyclable packaging can be used in various applications. Aside from serving as a wrap, they are also used as fillers to protect products inside their packaging.

    Improves Brand Image

    When a business presents itself as an environmentally-responsible company, it creates trust within the customer base. Through this, the company achieves an enhanced brand image, which leads to more consumers patronizing its products. Taking consumer waste out of landfills and making it useful again in packaging products is our company’s way of giving back to the environment.

    Expands Customer Base

    Customers often choose companies who adhere to sustainable practices and goals. Using recycled and recyclable packaging would attract more consumers with the same advocacy.

    Recycled and Recyclable Products at Cougar Packaging Solutions

    At Cougar Packaging Solutions, we understand how crucial it is to promote sustainability, as environmental degradation is a global problem. Due to this, we developed products made of post-consumer and post-industrial materials to help reduce businesses’ environmental impact.

    Our recycled and recyclable products include the following:

    Fun Pak Loose Fill

    These are compostable, plant-based fillers that are shock-resistant and used to block and brace products inside packaging boxes.

    PAPERbubble

    This product is an eco-friendly alternative to bubble cushions that provide exceptional, robust, and long-lasting protective features.

    STARCHwrap

    This plant-based wrap is an alternative to bubble wrapping. It protects products from scratches, shock, and damage during shipment and transport, and it is compostable as well.

    PAD LOC RENATURE

    This fully compostable cushion delivers optimal blocking and bracing with superior shock and vibration absorption.

    Eco-Crates

    These corrugated containers incorporate plastic from recycled water bottles. Eco-Crates can meet International Safe Transit Association (ISTA) or American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) shipping standards.

    Paper Void Fill

    Paper void fills are a more practical choice for shipping sharp and heavy objects. These are additional protective padding placed between the item and the shipping box and comes in different varieties — Storopack’s PAPERplus® Cushioning Systems, PAPERplus® Classic, PAPERplus® Shooter, PAPERplus® Papillon.

    Air Pillows

    This eco-friendly alternative to paper wrapping and styrofoam peanuts offers excellent protection from shock for fragile and lightweight products. It comes in two variants — AIRplus® and AIRmove². All air pillow equipment can be configured to meet your needs with tabletop and overhead options.

    Get Your Recycled and Recyclable Packaging Materials From Cougar!

    We at Cougar Packaging Solutions have committed to providing exceptional products and services to our clients. With our 50 years of industrial packaging experience, we acquired deep and broad problem-solving expertise to deliver excellent but cost-effective packaging solutions to our customers.

    Contact us today to learn more about our developments!

  2. PAPERbubble: A Natural Wrapping for Perfect Protection

    Leave a Comment

    Products are vulnerable to damage and deformation during the shipping process. Because of this, manufacturers use protective wraps like bubble cushions to keep items in perfect condition while in transit. Bubble cushions are clean, flexible, lightweight air cushioning materials typically made from plastics. Their primary purpose is to minimize damage when storing, packing, or shipping goods.

    Drawbacks of Using Bubble Cushions

    Although widely used in the packing industry, using bubble cushions has some disadvantages, including the following:

    • Contains Toxins: The plastic polymer used to create bubble cushions is extremely toxic to the environment.
    • Clogs Up Landfills: Bubble cushions take up a significant volume of landfill space and take hundreds of years to decompose.
    • Takes Up Big Storage Space: For manufacturers, storing bubble cushions is a practical and ecological nightmare. Since most of their component is air, bubble cushions are challenging to keep as they consume considerable storage space.
    • Flammable: When a fire occurs, bubble cushions can act as an accelerant that throws bursts of oxygen into the fire.

     

    Due to these disadvantages, many companies switched to alternative packaging solutions that are safe for the environment.

    Cougar Packaging Solutions offers various sustainable packaging materials that can be applied for different purposes! One is Storopack’s PAPERbubble, an environmentally friendly option that delivers optimum performance and quality.

    PAPERbubble Applications

    PAPERbubble is a protective packaging solution made of natural materials like paper and air. Unlike bubble cushions, this natural packaging is 100% recyclable and eco-friendly, as it lessens the need for primary raw materials and fossil resources.

    Manufacturers can utilize PAPERbubble to wrap products and fill voids inside crates and boxes to safely ship and deliver goods to their consumers. This packaging option offers the same exceptional, powerful, and long-lasting protective properties as traditional bubble cushioning without the environmental risks posed by plastic packaging. This makes PAPERbubble ideal for companies that practice sustainability measures in their operations.

    With its 23″ width x 15″ length perforated paper sheets, PAPERbubble is the perfect choice to wrap and cushion delicate materials like cosmetics, electronic components, and other online mail-order goods.

    Why Use PAPERbubble for Your Packaging Needs?

    PAPERbubble comes in a specialized box with 300 paper sheets that are easily dispensible and ready to use. Thus, manufacturers no longer need complex machinery to dispense packaging wraps, making the process user-friendly and cost-efficient. PAPERbubble is also perfect as a packing void fill that protects items from shock and vibrations during shipment.

    Moreover, this packaging solution adds a sleek and impressive appearance to products in the shipping carton. This gives customers a positive and memorable unpacking experience.

    Packaging Solutions From Cougar

    At Cougar Packaging Solutions, sustainability is not a hindrance but a driver of success! We are committed to bringing superior-quality eco-friendly products to positively contribute to protecting and conserving our planet and natural resources. Cougar also ensures that we partner with brands with the same sustainability goal.

    With this advocacy in mind, we have meticulously curated a kaleidoscope of custom packaging solutions, products, supplies, and services for the past 50 years! Our capabilities and the team’s problem-solving expertise allowed us to provide the best packaging solutions to exceed customer expectations.

    Contact us to learn more about our innovative solutions. Our competent team would be delighted to assist you in creating the perfect custom packaging solutions for your business needs!

  3. Paper Void Fill

    Leave a Comment
    Click to ExpandPaper-Void-Fill

    When packaged items are in transit, the shifting and moving increase the likelihood of damage. To prevent this from happening and keep the integrity of products, packages are kept intact with different types of paddings; one of these is called paper void fill. Paper void fill, also referred to as void fill, is a type of filler material used to secure products by filling empty spaces in shipping boxes or containers.

    In this article, we will discuss the applications and benefits of paper void fill and the various paper filling systems available in Cougar Packaging Solutions.

    When Do You Need Paper Void Fill?

    Like other packaging paddings, paper void fill has many applications, from heavy to light products. This packaging paper is well suited for e-commerce applications, especially for eco-conscious businesses and consumers looking for a recyclable and more sustainable alternative to other fillings.

    Here are a few other applications of paper void fill:

    • Addition of protective padding between the item and the cardboard box when shipping goods
    • Prevention of movement and sliding of goods during the shipping process
    • Wrapping of glasses, ceramics, and other fragile items when storing or transporting goods
    • Enhancement of unboxing experience for consumers
    • Improvement of aesthetic purposes when assembling a package or a gift box

    What Are the Benefits of Paper Void Fill Packaging?

    Void fill provides several advantages for packaging companies. First, its semi-course surface reduces movement within the package, preventing valuables from being damaged or broken. It is also ideal for long-distance deliveries where the package is likely to be managed by multiple people and organizations.

    Compared to air pillows, paper void fill is also a more practical option when shipping heavy or sharp objects. The paper packaging alternative is more versatile and less fragile, making it suitable for a wide range of products. Pointed tips can pierce air pillows, releasing the air and rendering the padding useless, and heavier items could flatten air pillows and cause them to burst.

    Paper void fill is one of the most recyclable materials available compared to plastic packaging. Although plastic may be recycled a limited number of times, air pillows are almost exclusively used for packaging, while void fill can be reused for purposes other than basic filling. Some other advantages of using paper packaging are that it is lightweight, easy to store, and inexpensive.

    Storopack’s PAPERplus® Cushioning Systems

    Cougar Packaging Solutions use Storopack’s PAPERplus® paper cushioning, which provides all-around perfect protection for your packaged goods. Storopack offers a diverse range of systems that produce the proper packaging padding for every application. Their solutions can be used alone or in combination with existing packaging systems.

    PAPERplus® Classic

    The PAPERplus® Classic paper cushioning system is an excellent choice for heavy-weight products. Heavy items can be safely restricted, braced in cartons, and cushioned with paper pads and two-ply paper.

    PAPERplus® Shooter

    The PAPERplus® Shooter converts single-layer kraft paper into multi-layer paper cushioning, which you can use to fill cartons and block and brace products. It can produce up to 3.7 m. of paper cushioning in a second. In addition, customers can seamlessly integrate the PAPERplus® Shooter into their existing packing processes, creating piece cushioning directly at the packing station.

    PAPERplus® Papillon

    The unique, patented shape of PAPERplus® Papillon system’s paper cushioning offers superior protection for small to medium-sized shipping goods. It is also ideal for filling spaces and wrapping products due to its high volume at a low weight.

    Having Trouble With Your Packaging Needs?

    What’s beneficial to the environment is also helpful to businesses. Paper void fill is a simple, sustainable, and effective method of filling empty spaces in a shipping box to ensure the safety of your goods.

    Cougar Packaging Solutions has carefully curated a diverse range of industrial packaging solutions, products, services, and supplies over the last 50 years. Our industrial packaging expertise has allowed us to foster many successful partnerships by demonstrating our ability to reduce our customers’ costs and improve their performance. With our team’s deep and broad problem-solving expertise, we create the best and most innovative packaging solutions!

    Our experts can assist your company in creating a functional and efficient packaging facility in your warehouses. Contact us today to learn more about our void fill solutions.

  4. What You Don’t Know About Shrink Wrap

    Leave a Comment

     

    Click to ExpandAbout Shrink Wrap

    Consumers expect products and their packaging to be intact and protected from tampering, contamination, weather, dust, and other hazards. Shrink wrapping is one of the easiest, fastest, and most cost-effective ways to achieve these goals. Whether it’s protecting individual products, bundling multiple products together, or both, heat shrink wrap can maintain product and packaging integrity while improving customer satisfaction and simplifying tasks for retailers.

    There are two main types of shrink wrapping: shrink bundling with polyethylene film and shrink wrapping with polyolefin film. Shrink bundling creates bullseyes on the ends of the product(s) for easy handling, while shrink wrapping creates a complete seal around the product(s). Here we’ll talk about both types generally as shrink wrapping, explaining the process, advantages, and applications of this simple but effective packaging method.

    What Is Shrink Wrap?

    The shrink wrapping process involves briefly applying heat to one or more products wrapped in polyolefin or polyethylene film to form a close-fitting, protective layer of plastic that conforms even to oddly-shaped items (but not sharp objects). Versatile and FDA-approved for food-safe use, polyolefin shrink wrap film is clear and strong, even in very thin layers. Polyethylene shrink wrap film is a type of polyolefin available in different densities: high-density, low-density, and linear low-density. As a shrink film, polyethylene is flexible, strong, and resistant to moisture, impact, and chemicals.

    With just a shrink wrap film and heat source, packagers can make nearly any product of any size weatherproof, waterproof, and tamperproof.

    Shrink Wrapping Process

    The shrink wrapping process is usually automated, allowing for varying speed and quality of the resulting shrink wrap. Here are the basic steps of the process:

    1. Group products: Products are placed in the desired formation (for example, 2 x 3 to form a 6-pack) along the packaging line. Slower machines group products within the machine, while faster machines group together pre-collated products.
    2. Form bundles: A bundle is formed when shrink wrap film conforms around the products. Two rolls can be used at once, with a hot knife cutting and sealing in a single step, or one roll can be overlapped and cut, leaving the sealing for the heat tunnel.
    3. Heat shrink wrap: Heat must be applied to the wrapped products for the shrink wrap to conform to product contours. In the heat tunnel, hot air is circulated briefly to shrink the film, followed by setting it in cooler air.

    Advantages of Shrink Wrapping

    Shrink wrapping offers benefits to manufacturers, retailers, transportation providers, and consumers.

    Protection

    Shrink wrapping offers a protective barrier between products and the environment, dramatically reducing the risk of product damage by moisture, air, dirt, dust, or abrasion. Some shrink wrapping materials also provide UV protection to prevent degradation when exposed to the sun.

    Improved Durability

    Shrink wrap adds resilience and strength to packaging, ensuring bundled products stay together and remain visually appealing and shelf-ready. Shrink wrap resists tears, punctures, and sagging in hot and cold ambient conditions.

    Tamper-Evident Protection

    Since shrink wrap can completely enclose a product without gaps or changing shape, any attempts at tampering are obvious. This is why most companies in the pharmaceutical, food, and financial industries rely on shrink wrapping to safeguard product integrity.

    Affordability

    Since they are lightweight and conform to products without extra bulk, shrink wrapping keeps transportation costs low. Shrink wrapping materials and processes are also fast and cost-effective, easily paying for themselves with the protection and safety they provide.

    Branding

    Because shrink wrap can be custom colored and printed, it offers a larger, more visible canvas to share your brand identity.

    Convenience and Ease of Handling

    From individual parts to large bundles of multiple products, shrink wrapping can make it easier to handle products and keep components together. Shrink bundling with polyethylene film can be done with openings—called bullseyes—on the ends, which makes bulky or oddly-shaped products like cases of bottles much easier for retailers and consumers to manage.

    Shrink Wrapping Applications

    While shrink wrapping can accommodate virtually any object size and shape—from tiny pieces of hardware to entire boats—most shrink wrapping applications include the following:

    • Bottles, cans, jars, boxes, or cartons containing food, beverages, or other consumer goods
    • Products and materials for the printing and paper converting industries
    • Medical and pharmaceutical uses where safety and tamper-evident packaging are critical
    • Third-party logistics and contract packaging providers
    • Home improvement and construction products

    Shrink Wrapping With Cougar Packaging Solutions

    At Cougar Packaging Solutions, our shrink bundling and multipacking machines are designed to help you take advantage of the many benefits of shrink wrapping, saving you time, labor, and money. Backed by over 50 years of packaging experience, we are dedicated to providing efficient packaging products and services to our customers. Contact us today to learn how we can help you with your packaging needs.

  5. What Are the Benefits of Air Pillows?

    Leave a Comment

     

    Click to ExpandBenefits of Air Pillows

    Consumers and businesses alike are increasingly interested in sustainability. Air pillows are a cost-effective way to reduce the growing amount of packaging waste inherent to e-commerce without sacrificing packaging reliability. Compared to alternatives like paper wrapping and styrofoam peanuts, versatile packing air pillows result in far less waste generation, reduce packing material storage needs for business owners, and have a lesser impact on the environment. Read on to learn more about the advantages of air pillows as a high-performance packaging method.

    Minimal Waste and Energy Consumption

    Paper is a common packaging option because it is cheap and plentiful, but this material tends to have a one-time-use life cycle, meaning that, at best, it makes its way to a recycling center after one packing application. More often, it ends up in a landfill. Compared to paper, packing air pillows generate 99% less waste, which, in addition to being environmentally friendly, equates to cost savings. Also, in bulk, paper is not a light material. Its use has the unpleasant side effect of increasing freight costs and energy expenditures for its transportation. In addressing these issues, air pillows have become an increasingly popular packing solution.

    Reduced Material Usage and Storage Needs

    When you consider their construction, air cushions are almost entirely air, yet they still offer supreme protection for packaged goods. They are ideal for bracing, blocking, interleaving, protecting corners, and more to eliminate any dead space in a box, all while requiring little material. Alternately, styrofoam packing peanuts utilize 99% more material in comparison, and they are more expensive. As manufacturers store thin-film packaging on rolls and then inflate the pillows on demand, air pillows also require significantly less storage space. Once again, this has a positive impact on your budget in regard to warehousing costs.

    Sustainability

    When it comes to environmental-friendliness concerns, air pillows are the clear choice. They are highly recyclable and certain varieties can be compostable, as well. A responsible consumer can easily deflate and recycle the small pieces of film that remain once the pillow has served its purpose, or they can reuse them for another packaging application. Either way, air pillows reduce the burden on landfills. As for shipping costs, air pillows do not add any significant weight to a package, reducing energy consumption for their transportation.

    Ideal Alternative to Styrofoam

    Using little more than air itself, air pillows enable you to package your products more efficiently and affordably while minimizing waste for consumers and reducing harmful environmental effects. Styrofoam peanuts are messy, bulky, and can break up into bits or degrade, making it bothersome for consumers to use and dispose of them. Also, if they shift during transit, their effectiveness decreases. Air pillows are a highly versatile and efficient packaging method that conforms to the product, an advantage not offered by packing peanuts.

    Air Pillows From Cougar Packaging Solutions

    Reducing waste and costs by leveraging inventive ways to package products helps businesses stay competitive and strengthen their brand in the eyes of consumers. At Cougar Packaging Solutions, we have 50 years of expertise as a distributor of high-quality packing supplies and equipment. Our team is committed to innovation, and we offer a variety of industrial packing options to our customers with a focus on accountability and efficiency. The air pillow packing solutions we provide for securing your product during transit include:

    • AIRplus®. Reliable AIRplus® technology from Storopack provides optimal protection and shock resistance for fragile products, with four film types available. Easy to incorporate into existing packaging operations, AIRplus® reduces storage needs, allowing you to produce pillows in various shapes right at the packing station. We offer a range of AIRplus® products, such as AIRplus Void, AIRplus Cushion, AIRplus Bubble, AIRplus Wrap, and AIRplus CX or ESD film.
    • AIRmove². For small- to medium-sized packaging operations, AIRmove² features quick-start functionality for fast filling, providing a film output of 10 meters per minute at the push of a button or foot pedal. Its roll angle enables you to quickly and easily insert and extract the film, and its heat-sealing unit and cutting system further enable fast packaging. You can choose from void, cushion, or bubble formats to ensure that your packaging conforms exactly to each product.

     

    Our goal is to be a single-source provider for your industrial packaging needs, working with you to enhance your operations and reduce costs. Contact us today to learn more about how air pillows from Cougar Packaging can support your business.

The first step to lower costs and better business performance.

We have built many lasting relationships over the years by proving our ability to reduce our customers’ costs and improve their performance with our industrial packaging expertise and range of offerings.

Contact Us Today