Standardizing Packaging for Global Customers

At MES, our team of supply chain engineering experts frequently review ways to streamline processes, packaging, systems, and the list goes on. One of their most significant initiatives for 2020, 2021 is standardizing our packaging at the manufacturing level. Creating greater flexibility and cost savings from the pallet crates to the individual component cartons. Our team of packaging experts has developed preliminary methods to reduce the individual component shipping cost and provide better structural integrity for our goods during ocean and domestic transit. If we could fit more products in a container, drive down part costs, reduce the number of custom-designed cartons, and provide better product protection for our customers, why not?

MES Standardizing Packaging Initiative

At the manufacturing level, we use several custom-designed cartons, pallets, and wooden crates. We manufacturer hundreds of product types that range in size and weight. High volume components utilize custom-designed packaging that becomes costly due to low volume purchasing. Our team of engineers began a new project known as the MES standardizing packaging initiative. These packaging experts began exploring how to reduce the number of custom-designed cartons and more towards standardizing our packaging sizes to be used across multiple products. They first studied each of our product sizes to find standard packaging that could be utilized across several SKUs. This significantly reduced the number of custom-designed cartons and led our team to discover optimum pallet configurations. See Exhibit A. While in the discovery phase of this project, engineers also learned that they needed better product support in the pallet during transit and a pallet that would maximize container loads. This discovery led our packaging experts to begin designing an MES specific pallet.

Pallet designs and strength range from manufacturing facility to facility, country to country, all the way down to the operator level. Exhibit B photo shows what can happen to pallets when not designed correctly or when used with too much load. Unfortunately, these circumstances can occur during ocean transit, domestic transit, or stored at a warehouse. After seeing several pallet failures, our team of engineering experts began investigating and designing an MES specific pallet for better product stabilization and maximizing container loads. See Exhibit C After months of studying multiple pallet sizes, our packaging experts designed a structurally sound pallet that could endure an enormous amount of load, sized for optimum pallet configurations, and would maximize container loads.

Designing New Shipping Crates

After the MES engineers found standard packaging sizes and sturdy pallet solutions, they began designing robust shipping crates. They were challenged to design crates that would offer better support during transit, cost-effective, and easy to assemble at the manufacturing level. Exhibit D & E photos display two of our latest prototypes. One is a wooden structure that provides durable stabilizing walls around the entire crate, plywood on top and bottom, and ring nails for better grab and strength. All of which can easily be moved and stacked at any manufacturing and warehouse facility. The premium-grade, MES-designed pallet will also provide even more strength and support during transit.

The second prototype features the same MES designed pallet as the first concept but is made up of a triple-walled corrugated material with an opening door for loading products. This nail-free, collapsible, export packaging system provides packaging cost savings due to its design, flexibility, and projected purchase volumes. This concept offers superior structural strength and is made up of cost-effective material. There are two upper and lower lids that easily placed on and off when loading products. If the crate height needs adjusted, operators can easily cut to their exact height specification without compromising the structural integrity of the crate and continue using the same top and bottom lids. These concepts also come equipped with a plywood top layer for additional support and strength.

Cost Reduction
Standardizing packaging can significantly reduce costs and provide cost-saving opportunities for our customers. By reducing the number of custom-designed cartons and utilizing standard packaging sizes, our sourcing teams can begin procuring larger volumes and creating purchasing leverage through our suppliers. By designing our own pallet sizes, our team of supply chain engineers is computing the ideal pallet packaging configuration that would maximize container loads, reduce unit shipping costs, and provide superior support during transit. Maximizing container loads is key to delivering customer cost savings. In one specific case, our team improved the density in a container from 45 cubic meters to 58, reducing our customer’s shipping cost by 23%.

Conclusion
By supplying cost-effective packaging solutions, we’ll help offer our customers the ability to be cost leaders in their competitive markets. Giving them the trust they demand on keeping their product safe during transits. Our engineer professionals are working diligently to pass these savings onto our customers by leveraging better purchasing power, shipping more goods in containers, and keeping their product safe during transit. For more information, please contact our sales team at 740.201.8112 or sales@mesinc.net.