How to get the most from your paper void fill

There are several types of void fill options available to choose from when considering product protection in transit. Many packaging companies are now moving away from the well-known polystyrene chips, to more innovative and protective solutions such as paper void fill. Paper void fill doesn’t only provide great protection for your products but also provides a great customer unboxing experience. Paper void fill is environmentally friendly, recyclable and reusable. What’s not to love?

What is void fill?

Void fill is packaging material that fills space within a package to keep products from rattling around and being damaged during the full delivery process.

When should you use void fill?

Void fill is a very common part of most companies packaging solution, especially when using cardboard boxes. Void fill fills the empty space, protecting valuable products from damage. Here are a few points that should indicate void fill is needed to optimise the safety of your products.

• Your products are fragile
• You care about the experience a customer has when opening their package
• Your product(s) have a vast amount of space to move around, perhaps getting bent or damaged during delivery

When shouldn’t you use void fill?

Void fill isn’t needed for every packaging circumstance. Mailing bags for example don’t typically have a lot of excess space and products that don’t easily break such as clothing have little use for void fill too.

Feeling creative?

Void fill is typically used for protection but add in some bright colours and it’s suddenly a multi-purpose solution. Using coloured void fill that matches your brand is becoming popular and we’ve even started seeing red and green paper used during Christmas time. Think creatively and void fill is one of the most cost-effective packaging materials to enhance your customer unboxing experience.

Void fill can be used wherever you see fit, whether that be on the protection of your products or for the visuals in presentation. Paper void fill is usually a great choice due to its versatility, eco-friendliness, cost-effectiveness and protection. Paper is stronger than you might think too!

The different choices with paper void fill

Wondering what types of paper void fill are available and which style will suit your packaging needs the most? Take a look.

TRACK STYLE

An ultra-high speed solution for the protection of your products. The sturdy padding that the PAPERPlus track machine produces along with how quickly the paper cushion can be created and delivered to your packaging station, is the perfect void fill for a high-speed environment.

Papillon Style

The optimal protection for small to medium sized goods. Due to the patterned shape the PAPERPlus Papillon system produces, the paper cushioning offers great protection. Not only can you fill voids in your packaging, the flexibility allows you to wrap your shipping goods for an all-round protection.

CHEVRON STYLE

Need to maximise the fill of your boxes whilst using the least amount of material? The Chevron style is the one to go for. The unique PAPERTECH Chevron system produces crinkled paper tubes that offer outstanding shock absorption. Very little paper is used to fill the void in your package and so production costs are cut down to a minimum.

How to use paper void fill properly

A mistake that we’ve noticed before when people are using paper void fill, is that the void fill will be collected from the machine, and then stretched out to wrap a product. The idea of wrapping a product with paper void fill is great, and as discussed above, you should look at the Papillon style for this. But stretching out the paper and changing the shape that the machine has created means that a lot of protection has been lost. Keep the shape of the void fill and you’ll see great results.

Decided that you need to introduce paper void fill to your packaging production? Get in touch today or call 0118 916 7320 to speak to one of our specialists.