Automated, Right‑sized Packaging

Boosting E‑Commerce Operations’ Sustainability and Efficiency

PHOTO PROVIDED BY STAPLES

Driven by continued growth in e‑commerce, U.S. parcel shipping volumes grew to 21.7 billion in 2023, according to Pitney Bowes’ most recent annual Parcel Shipping Index. The report, issued in April 2024, predicted continued growth reaching 28.3 billion by 2028. Its authors cite resilient spending by consumers across all categories—including business‑to‑consumer and business‑to‑business online retailers—and high demand for smaller, lightweight, affordable goods that match buyers’ desires to keep up with fast‑moving trends.

The upshot? More packaging will also be making its way to e‑commerce shoppers’ doorsteps. Not all of that packaging is environmentally friendly, however.

Sometimes the packaging—particularly pre‑sized corrugated boxes—is too big for the contents. That creates empty spaces within the carton that require void fill, such as kraft paper or plastic air pillows, to prevent items inside from shifting in transit. Without the fill, contents could be damaged, resulting in both product waste and a second round of carbon dioxide emissions from return transit.

Although most major carriers switched to charging shipping fees based on dimensional (DIM) weight (the amount of space a parcel takes up relative to its actual weight) a decade ago, even today not every parcel matches the sizes of its contents—as anyone who has received a huge box with a tiny item inside knows. That’s not just annoying; it’s also on track to become illegal in some parts of the world. First, the European Union passed regulations that limit the amount of empty space in packaging to 50% the total volume. Then, New Jersey passed a bill prohibiting large e‑commerce retailers from shipping items in boxes more than two times larger than the volume of the contents.

Frequently used as an alternative to cardboard cartons are plastic bags. Although they require no fill and minimize DIM weight charges, they neither protect the contents inside, nor are they a green solution. Further, regardless of the packaging material used, virtually all outbound parcel packing is applied in labor‑intensive, manual processes. With many e‑commerce operations facing a continuing struggle with adequate staffing, packaging area bottlenecks have become a serious impediment to meeting both speed and customer service goals.

All those issues—coupled with growing consumer interest in environmental protection and major e‑commerce and omnichannel retailers’ increasing commitments to sustainability initiatives—are prompting more operations to take a closer look at automated, right‑sized packaging technologies.

What is Automated, Right‑sized Packaging?

There are a variety of different automated, right‑sized packaging technologies available. While each manufacturer puts their own spin on it, the equipment uses a combination of software and sensors to first determine the dimensions of the item. It then cuts and folds paper‑based, cardboard material to create a package sized to minimize any empty space around the contents.

Depending on the system, the cardboard stock could be a thick, single‑phase paper roll used to create a mailer, or it could be pre‑cut, double‑walled corrugated blanks cut and folded into a three‑dimensional box. Some systems create separate trays and lids, cut them down to the appropriate height, then glue them together once the product is inside to form the box. Others fold and wrap the item with corrugated cardboard, then seal it.

Although automated, right‑sized packaging solutions have been available for more than 10 years, interest in their adoption has only recently reached an “inflection point,” said Bryan Boatner, global managing director of automation at MHI member Ranpak. The company manufactures cut‑to‑size box closing automation, as well as machinery that automatically wraps corrugated packaging around small, flat products.

“E‑commerce and direct‑to‑consumer companies initially focused on implementing picking automation, whether that’s automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) or autonomous mobile robots (AMRs),” he explained. “When up to 35% of warehouse labor is focused on picking, that’s the right process to automate first.”

Now, continued Boatner, with more operations turning to automation as a means to address hiring shortfalls, packaging is often the second most labor‑intensive fulfillment process.

“It’s a natural progression. Particularly as we’ve reached a confluence where companies like Amazon and Walmart are making very public decisions to move from single‑use plastics to more sustainable protective packaging solutions,” he said.

As the term “automated” implies, right‑sized packaging technologies rarely need manual intervention, except perhaps to ensure the machines remain stocked with cardboard. Further, many operations employ more than one type of automated, right‑sized packaging technology to best optimize the process. Considered complementary, different solutions are frequently deployed side‑by‑side, with specific products diverted to different lines depending on their dimensions. Some systems can even create boxes for unusually shaped or long items, like brooms, rakes or hockey sticks.

The Sustainability Benefits of Automated, Right‑sized Packaging

There are a variety of ways that automated, right‑sized packaging is environmentally advantageous, said Fadi Haddad, director of product marketing automation and shrink at MHI member Sealed Air Corp. The manufacturer offers an automated void reduction system that forms a right‑sized double‑wall corrugated tray around items, then seals the package with a lid.

“Automated right‑sized packaging plays a crucial role in helping e‑commerce retailers meet their sustainability targets by reducing material waste, optimizing energy use and cutting down on the environmental footprint of transportation,” he said. “Packaging materials are minimized by automatically adjusting the box size to the product’s dimensions, eliminating unnecessary void fill and oversized boxes. This reduces both total resource consumption and the amount of waste generated during shipping.”

Indeed, utilizing automated right‑sized packaging can cut the amount of material used in a shipping carton by 20% to 30%, agreed Steve Larsen, senior vice president, global partners, solutions & customer success at MHI member Packsize International. Packsize manufactures technologies that produce right‑sized, custom, double‑wall corrugated boxes on demand.

Larsen also noted that manual packing operations stock up to 30 different sizes of pre‑cut cardboard boxes for associates stationed at manual workstations to select among when packing orders.

“As a function of using right‑sized packaging, an operation can hold less box inventory and also reduce the amount of waste those boxes will generate,” he said. “A lot of companies will overbuy boxes for a discounted bulk rate. They’ll store a bunch of extra boxes in the warehouse, which takes up a lot of space. Plus, corrugated is a natural substrate with a finite life. Within six months it will degrade to the point of being unusable and wind up getting thrown away.”

Replacing those different packaging stock keeping units (SKUs) with right‑sized packaging automation potentially gives an operation thousands of different box patterns to select among, Larsen added.

Automated right‑sized packaging also eliminates waste associated with packers selecting too big a box for the contents, said Boatner.

“The warehouse management software (WMS) will direct them to select a specific box based on the dimensions of the items to be packed into it. But that leaves a lot of potential for errors and unoptimized packing to occur,” he explained. “Order packers might choose a bigger box because it’s easier and faster to put everything in; they’re not necessarily thinking about shipping cost or the end customer’s negative experience when receiving an oversized box.”

With automated right‑sized packaging systems, guesswork associated with picking the appropriate box size—as well as the time spent erecting it—is eliminated, Boatner continued.

“Most of our customers have three or four different box footprints they utilize, which can range in size from 5.9 by 9.1 inches to 26 by 39.9 inches,” he said, noting that Ranpak’s technology senses the height of the items within a box, then cuts it down to reduce the height before folding in the flaps to seal the package. “Each line is dedicated to one of those sizes, guaranteeing that the maximum cube reduction possible is achieved.”

Another sustainable benefit of automated, right‑sized packaging is its ability to fill a trailer with more shipments, as there’s less empty space within each parcel, said Haddad.

“By maximizing the efficiency of the space used, cube optimization from automated packaging systems helps reduce the number of trucks needed for transportation,” he noted. “This leads to lower carbon emissions and supports the sustainability goals of minimizing environmental pollution and reducing climate change impact.”

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