When it comes to wrapping machines, there are lots of opportunities to be confused about what makes an overwrap machine more cost effective and therefore more sustainable than a shrink wrapper or flowwrapper. In this day and age of reduce, reuse and recycle, it is hard to know which factor is more important and which has perceived value. Package Machinery has been able to demonstrate that a servo overwrap machine reduces the cost to wrap consumer products while enhancing the perceived value of the product.

The reality is the the cost of operating any wrapping machine, including material, energy and labor costs, far outweighs the upfront cost to purchase.

Factors to consider:

• cost to buy wrapping machine
• expected downtime for maintenance, product changeover, etc
• material cost per package
• energy cost to operate wrapping machine

All of these factors sum up  to the total cost of ownership. Some are factual and others can be  estimated to get to an expected total cost of ownership, which include up front costs plus ongoing operating costs and cost avoidance.

These calculations are done  as part of the buy decision and we have seen a growing number of companies use sophisticated techniques to estimate their expected costs. A recent example showed us that these iare not the only considerations.

neat gift wrap style is more attractive

One customer found that their buyer, the retailer was looking for differentiation on a key variable.

• perceived quality of wrapped product appearance

This ambiguous factor was the eye of the beholder. It echoes previous conversations we have had that demonstrate that a tuck and fold wrap, sometimes know as cigarette wrap, overwrap or cello wrap, is perceived to be associates with a higher quality product than shrink wrap or flow wrap.

In summary this allows our customers to have their cake and eat it too. They get

• reduced material consumption over the life of the overwrap machine compared to shrink wrap or flow wrap
• reduced energy consumption compared to shrink wrappers
• 65% fewer moving parts than mechanical overwrappers made by other packaging machinery providers
• perceived higher value of their product, enabling them to have an advantage against their competitors.

This is a tradeoff against the higher initial cost to buy a servo overwrap machine. We are seeing short payback periods that still justify the higher upfront cost.

We are very pleased to be able to offer our customers machines that not only reduce their material and energy costs, but offer flexibility in changeover and a higher perceived value to their customer in the product appearance.