Bubble Wrap – An Efficient Packaging Material

Bubble wraps are some of the most widely used inexpensive packagings material, especially to protect fragile products, breakable goods during transportation as well as storage. The bubble wrap occupies the void spaces in between two or more objects so as to protect products from drops, bumps, vibrations, and so on during transit.

Brief History of Bubble Wrap:

In 1957, two engineers Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes were trying to create a 3-dimensional plastic wallpaper. In doing so, they accidentally discovered bubble wrap and this has revolutionized the packaging industry.

What is bubble wrap made of?

A bubble wrap is a transparent plastic film with evenly distributed air bubbles trapped between two plastic films. These air bubbles offer shock and vibration during transit. So, on one side you have these air bubbles protruding from the surface while on the other side you have smooth plastic film. The smooth surface faces the object being packed. Bubble wraps are available as sheets, rolls, or bags that can be easily used to wrap any shaped object. The size of the air bubbles varies depending on the size and the type of object being wrapped.  Different types of bubble wraps available in Melbourne are large bubbles or small bubble wraps, anti-static bubble wraps, self-adhesive bubble wraps, and so on.

Advantages of Bubble Wraps:

• Excellent performance – Bubble wraps are excellent in their primary function of protecting objects. The air bubbles from a flexible yet durable cushion that acts as a sturdy barrier against impacts and vibration. During storage, bubble wraps offer excellent protection for a longer time.

• Reusable – The biggest advantage of bubble wraps is the reusability feature. As long as the wraps are not significantly damaged, the same bubble wraps can be used to wrap other objects.

• Light-weighted – Since bubble wrap is basically air and light plastic film, the total weight of bubble wraps is very low. This makes the bubble wrap one of the lightest weight packaging materials which significantly saves transport costs and fuel savings.

• Inexpensive – Bubble wraps are easy to manufacture and can be made easily at low costs. In fact, bubble wraps are one of the most inexpensive packaging materials available. This has led to large scale adoption of bubble wraps as a preferred packaging material.

• Highly flexible and versatile – Bubble wraps are highly flexible and can be wound to any kind of object in any manner. Also, removing bubble wraps is easy. All you have to do is to cut the bubble wrap with a pair of scissors adding to the flexibility in terms of operations. Bubble wraps are so flexible that now bubble wraps are used creatively to insulate windows during summers.

Disadvantages of bubble wraps:

• Toxic Waste – Since plastic polymers are used to make bubble wraps, it takes years to degrade. Hence, one must look at using eco-friendly bubble wraps that could be expensive compared to simple bubble wraps.

• Flammable hazards – The product could catch fire easily on exposure to heat, oxygen, and flame, liberating toxic flames. Hence, one must be careful while handling bubble wraps.

Due to their versatile nature, one cannot ignore bubble wraps. Kids love playing with bubble wraps and enjoy popping air bubbles. In fact, bubble wraps are known to be a great stress reliever. Bubble wraps available in Melbourne are some of the most commonly used packaging materials.