Are you thinking about buying stretch wrappers for your business? Before you do there are various things you will need to do before you make a purchase.
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First and foremost, you need to figure out which type of stretch wrapper you need for your business. There are several different types of stretch wrappers.
Each type of stretch wrapper is designed for specific applications.
If you were to just go to the internet and choose a random wrapper that you wanted based on your assumptions, you might end up buying the wrong piece of equipment.
That is why it is essential to educate yourself on the different types of stretch wrappers currently available and the applications for which those machines are best suited.
Failure to do proper research before your stretch wrapper purchase could result in you buying the wrong type of stretch wrapper for your company.
This article will introduce you to the various types of stretch wrappers currently available and help you choose the appropriate stretch wrapper for your business.
What Are The Different Types Of Stretch Wrappers?
When it comes to stretch wrappers, one size definitely does not fit all.
Various elements of your products and stretch wrapping dynamics will affect your journey to finding the suitable stretch wrapper for your company.
These dynamics include items such as the size, width, height, length, depth, and weight of your products.
Depending on the metrics above for the products you are producing, one type of stretch wrapper may be appropriate for your needs while another device may not.
In the section below, we will be reviewing the different types of stretch wrappers and the applications that they are most appropriate for.
1. Turntable Stretch Wrapper
Turntable stretch wrappers are one of the market's most common stretch-wrapping machines. You can find these machines in countless companies across the globe.
Available as manual, semi-automatic, and fully automatic devices, turntable stretch wrappers are popular with both operators and owners.
With a turntable stretch wrapper, a pallet of products is placed on a circular disk called a turntable. After the pallet has been placed on the disk, the turntable spins while a stretch wrap delivery system dispenses stretch film to wrap the spinning pallet.
With a manual turntable wrapper, an operator will first use a forklift to acquire and dispense the pallet of products to be wrapped onto the turntable.
They will then tuck the stretch film under a product at the corner of the pallet. Next, they will activate the stretch wrap delivery system.
From here, the turntable spins while the film is continually dispensed. This results in the stretch film wrapping from the bottom of the pallet to the top and back again. This process continues based on the settings the operator has put into the machine.
When finished, the turntable stops spinning, and the delivery system stops dispensing. The operator will then tear the film just outside of the delivery system and tuck it into a corner of the pallet.
With partially or fully automated turntable wrappers, actions related to the loading and unloading of the turntable and the dispensing of the delivery system can be partially or fully automated.
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2. Straddle Stretch Wrapper
Straddle wrappers offer an inverted process for wrapping your palleted products, which means that the pallet of products does not spin during wrapping.
Instead, the palleted products stay stationary while the stretch film delivery unit spins around the static pallet via a mechanical arm or similar module.
With manual straddle wrappers, the operator will acquire and place the pallet of products into the wrap zone. Next, the machine will be programmed with the proper settings for the desired amount of wrap to be dispensed based on the load's metrics.
After that, the operator tucks the film under the corner of the pallet and activates the delivery system which spins around the product until the desired amount of film has been wrapped around the pallet.
Once the delivery system stops spinning around the pallet, the operator will tear the film and tuck the remainder of it into a corner of the pallet.
Some or all of the actions above may be automated with partial or fully automated variations of straddle wrappers.
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3. Orbital Stretch Wrapper
Orbital stretch wrappers (also known as ringers) are a specialty type of stretch wrapping machine used primarily for wrapping flattened and elongated products such carpets, pipes, lumber, and other similar items.
With an orbital stretch wrapper, the stretch wrap delivery system dispenses and wraps the pallet with stretch film going over and under the pallet rather than around all four sides, as seen with the turntable wrapper mentioned above.
For example, with a Lantech Lan-Ringer orbital wrapper, the pallet of products or the product itself will move into the load zone via a conveyor belt.
Next, the stretch film delivery system will dispense the film while spinning under and over the pallet or product. Once the pallet or product has been wrapped adequately per the operator's settings, the wrapped item will move out of the load zone, once again, by the conveyor.
4. Ring Straddle Stretch Wrapper
Finally, we have ring straddle stretch wrappers. These stretch wrappers are often used for packaging bathroom tissue and other toiletry products, such as paper towels.
Often able to wrap up to 200 loads per hour, ring straddle wrappers are considered specialty stretch wrappers primarily used for packaging the items above but are also popular in the beverage packaging industry.
These machines feature hybrid functionality in which elements of both orbital and straddle wrappers are present in the way that the machines handle their loads.
For example, we have the ultra-high speed Lantech ring straddle stretch wrapper in the video above.
While the pallets move to and from the load zone via a conveyor belt (in a way similar to the orbital wrapper), the stretch film delivery system wraps the pallet in a motion more similar to a straddle wrapper.
Which Type Of Stretch Wrapper Is Right For You?
After reading this article, you should have a basic understanding of the different types of stretch wrappers that are currently available today.
You may even have an idea of which type of stretch wrapper you want. But, before you do anything else, you need to answer one question.
And that question is, which type of stretch wrapper is right for your warehouse, company, packaging line, and products?
The answer to that question involves many elements including your physical space requirements, your product size, weight, length, width, height, and depth as well as other items including your budget, monthly volume of products to be wrapped, and other important dynamics.
And while you could certainly figure all of this out on your own by spending hours reading content on our website, there is a much faster and easier way to get this done.
Suppose you want to know which type of stretch wrapper is best for your products, budget, space, company, and related dynamics. In that case, you will want to talk to one of our in-house packaging experts today.
They will be able to help you choose the proper stretch wrapper for your needs in a fraction of the time and effort that would be required if you try to figure this out on your own.
In the absence of strict wrap standards and regular testing, stretch wrapping can seem more like an art than a science. The items need to be stacked correctly and the pallet needs to be wrapped to contain the items, preventing damage while keeping the continuity of the pallet during shipping.
Hand Wrapping
Still today, a very common, but least efficient and effective pallet wrapping method is hand wrapping. Generally 1 or 2 people with a wrapping gun simply walk around a stacked pallet, or rotate it on a carousel, and dispense the film over the packed goods.
It is a labor intensive activity with the chance of injury greater than with any type of machine wrapping, and, depending on volume, it could require more time, effort, and cost than using a machine wrapping method.
Additionally, hand wrapping is one of the worst ways for ensuring adequate containment force. Containment force, the hugging pressure of the stretch film that holds the load together, needs to be adequate everywhere on the load. When hand wrapping, it is difficult to wrap to a set containment force standard. Overall, hand wrapping is inconsistent and hard and tedious work.
Below is a list of the 4 most common pallet wrapping options explained to give an insight in how they work, what to expect and the specific reasons for using these methods.
Automatic vs Semi-Automatic Stretch Wrappers
To understand the common types of stretch wrappers, it is important to first discuss the difference between automatic and semi-automatic machines.
An automatic stretch wrapper takes a pallet from the beginning of the line, and automatically feeds it into the wrap zone where it is wrapped according the settings on the control system. When finished, the pallet is conveyed to the end of the line, while a new pallet is automatically being conveyed into the wrap zone.
A semi-automatic stretch wrapper, by contrast, requires an operator to load and unload the machine, start the wrap cycle, and make the appropriate adjustments to ensure the load is wrapped effectively.
1. Turntable Wrapping
In its simplest form, the pallet is placed on a turntable that rotates while a film delivery system dispenses the stretch film around the load. The film delivery system usually starts at the bottom of the load, wraps to its top, and then wraps back down to the bottom.
Turntable wrappers are the most prevalent type of stretch wrapper and can be configured to work effectively with a wide variety of applications.
2. Straddle Wrapper
Unlike turntable machines where the load itself is rotated, in straddle stretch wrappers the load remains stationary while film delivery system rotates around the load. These types of wrappers can handle unstable, light, and heavy load and can wrap from low to high volume.
3. Ringer or Orbital Wrapper
A ringer or orbital wrapper wraps a pallet over and under, typically as the load moves on a conveyor through the machine. They are generally used for, flattened, or unwieldy loads like doors, pipes, carpet rolls, coffins, etc.
4. Ring Straddle Wrapper
These are high speed wrappers that can handle up to 200 loads per hour. They're often found in the tissue, paper towel, and beverage industries. Ring Straddles are highly specialized machines and are only a small proportion the stretch wrappers in use today.
The Right Wrapper for your Needs
These are four basic, common stretch wrapping options. Each of these types of stretch wrappers has optional features and add-ons that expand their capabilities and flexibility. If you are unsure where to begin the process of choosing a stretch wrapper our Automatic and Semi-Automatic buying guides are great places to start.
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This post was published on February 2, and updated on October 31, .
Stretch wrapping is a common practice for ensuring safe shipment and stacking of pallets. We explore the four types of stretch wrappers here.
For more information, please visit Online Pallet Wrapper Packing Line.