The word “sustainable” is one that nearly every business owner will come across in this day and age. If you work in warehousing, storage and manufacturing, it’ll pop up even more. There is more pressure to “go green” find more eco-friendly methods of packaging, production and distribution. As a result, warehouses are trying to find any suitable path to increase their sustainability and reduce their impact on the environment.

Ways to Make your Packaging more Sustainable

There are many opportunities to reduce the environmental impact in the warehouse. However, one area that tends to go overlooked is the packaging you use. By creating a more sustainable packaging strategy for your outgoing products, you can minimise your environmental footprint. What’s more, you can simplify many operations throughout your entire warehouse. Here, we have some ways in which you can make your warehouse packaging more sustainable.

Sourcing Sustainable Materials

This should be an obvious step, but it’s the best place to start. Whoever your vendors may be for packaging material, you should work with them to find more eco-friendly materials and/or packaging designs. Use as little plastic as possible, opt for corrugated cardboard if you can and aim to avoid hazardous substances. This includes PVC, lead and other forms of coatings and adhesives.

Organise and Manage the Weight of your Packaging

For this step, you will need quite a deep understanding of your entire inventory. However, it will certainly pay off later on. Put together a rough estimate of the average weight of your inventory per type of packaging. Then, plan your packaging needs accordingly. This will help reduce wasted material and cut down unnecessary unused space and raw materials needed in the design.

Focus on Reusable Packaging Designs

The majority of packaging designs in warehouses are made for single-use. After this, they will be disposed of. However, much like the wooden pallets lining your pallet racking, many warehouses could benefit from reusable packaging options. Modular, repairable packaging solutions can be used throughout your warehouse shelves, instead of being thrown out. For the items that cannot be immediately re-used due to damage, you can find ways to encourage the consumer to recycle the packaging you provided last time. For example, you could create a discount program for customers who return their packaging!

Use the right Materials for Packaging

Even if your boxes and packaging of choice are great options, the cushioning material you place inside can affect your ecological impact. It may be a good idea to avoid the more “traditional” materials, such as polystyrene. These often have damaging chemicals that are much harder to dispose of safely. Instead, try and use loose fill peanuts that can be recycled. These can protect your products and are much easier to safely dispose of.

Perform Sustainability Audits

While packaging suggestions can get you started on the right foot, there is more you can do. You could, and probably should perform frequent evaluations of your entire packaging process to identify flaws and locate areas of improvement. This will help you to maintain your sustainability in the future. Look for areas where you could be using better materials and find examples of wasted packaging space. You can also frequently examine the overall cost of your packaging to continue to further areas of development.

Talk to Monarch Shelving Ltd

Efficiency can do wonders to improve your need for warehouse packaging. With the right storage solutions and operations in place, you can become eco-friendlier. Our selection of new and used pallet racking and shelving solutions have helped many businesses with their efficiency in the past. Why not see for yourself? Get in touch with Monarch Shelving Ltd today to find out more.