In many areas, industrial packaging requires that extra care and attention. The distinguishing factors could be size, shape or weight, for items such as tiles, furnaces or window shutters. Special protection may be necessary for electronics goods, furniture or glassware. In the case of hazardous goods, such as most chemicals, paint or pharmaceuticals, it is the environment that needs protection from the package contents.

Alternatively, bulk products - resin, grains or components, for example - require safekeeping over long journeys and possibly through harsh conditions. Packages for these diverse situations often have complex features, are usually customised and produced in limited quantities.  

Electronic goods and components

A major hazard for electronic goods and components is the event of shock during distribution. This often leads to fatal malfunction, rendering the product useless. Needless to say, the risk of this happening needs to be avoided at all costs. With all the physical hassle of managing recalls and organising replacements, most damage is an expensive affair.

Durable goods

Generally speaking, unlike most consumer goods, durables often have complex supply chains. They must travel long distances, endure extensive storage time in different warehouses and be handled by numerous traders and distributors. Then after all this, they are expected to arrive in prime condition at their final destination. Sometimes heavy, oddly shaped or vulnerable, they demand special attention from a packaging supplier.    

Furniture

Oddly shaped and easily scratched or damaged, never standard, heavy and impossible to stack - furniture can be one of the most difficult items to pack. But good packaging solutions deal remarkably with these challenges. Most furniture packages are customised at point of manufacture, and consist of many components. Smurfit Kappa offers design expertise and a range of materials suited for this challenging application area, including XXL sheets, SoftcoreÒ  protective sheets, single faced corrugated and buffer materials.  

Medical products

Packaging for medical goods, hospital disposables and pharmaceuticals often calls for special attention. The nature of the product may mean the packaging is subject to special regulatory requirements. There may also be implications for storage and logistics. Because the product may have complex shipment procedures and be despatched in smaller units and quantities, the package must offer good strength and tracking-tracing capabilities. It may need to be opened and closed for control or picking purposes at several points within the chain.

Hazardous goods

There are stringent regulations for the packaging and distribution of hazardous goods. Smurfit Kappa is a leading manufacturer of transport boxes meeting the UN and DIN standards. In addition to design and manufacturing capabilities, Smurfit Kappa has fully licensed hazardous goods testing facilities. These dispense with the need for the external involvement of costly national agencies. As well as saving both customers and fellow Kappa subsidiaries time and money, the facilities provide an in-house knowledge base for further product enhancements.

Heavy Duty Packaging

Large and heavy goods are the speciality of Smurfit Kappa’s XXL division. Big sheets and heavy-duty, double- or triple-wall corrugated board are converted into speciality boxes for a wide range of applications, including wide screen televisions,  printing plates, lawn-mowers, pallet boxes and bins for bulk chemicals and intermediates, as well as automotive industry components. The successful bulk pack requires a combination of smart design, advanced manufacturing capabilities and a reliable logistics network to bring complex packaging structures of different components together, sometimes on a daily basis.