Packaging New Products For Startups, Key Points To Consider
- Muhammad
- Sep 27, 2020
- 3 min read
To successfully launch a packaging line for a startup with a new product, you will have to determine which parts of the process need to be completed and when. You will have to work with your packaging manager and your operators to set goals for your packaging line.
Below are few common questions arise in mind.
1. What material should I choose for my packaging?
Packaging materials are materials that are used to package your products. Here are some examples of packaging materials:
When it comes to choosing the right materials for packaging your products, there is a whole universe of different packaging materials to choose from. Not all materials are an excellent choice for every product.
Depending on the shape, size, and weight of your product, certain materials are going to make more sense than others when it comes to providing the best type of packaging for your items.
Choosing the wrong materials for your product's packaging can result in wasted time, money, materials, and potentially cause problems for your packaging equipment.
Taking the time to analyze your products and working with an independent packaging professional is an integral part of defining your product. They will be able to advise you on which materials are and are not a good fit for your unique packaging needs.
2. What do I need for my packaging?
Another critical aspect of the design of your project includes labor. Should you use manual labor exclusively? Should you use automated machinery instead? Perhaps a combination of human and mechanical work? Depending on the volume of products you are packaging, human labor may actually cost you more than machinery.
That being said, machinery can be an expensive upfront cost. Without proper financial options, such as leasing, you may not be able to invest in all the machinery you would ideally like to have. In this case, you will have to lean on manual labor or some combination of manual labor and machinery labor.
Either way, you should track the cost of using both human and machinery for production. As time goes on, you should be able to find opportunities to help streamline your production and add or remove human labor as needed for profitability.
If you are hoping to buy machinery and run a semi or fully automated packaging line, you should be aware that most leasing companies will not approve your business for a lease until you have been in business for at least 3-5 years.
3. How much will my packaging materials cost?
What is the total cost to produce your product? You want to think about this not only from a manufacturing or sourcing standpoint but also from a total cost perspective.
How much does it cost to package your final product? How much does it cost to ship it? What is the cost to replace or fix damaged items?
Answering questions like these will give you a clear picture of what your total cost of production is for each of your products and will allow you to find areas to optimize. This is how you can identify elements such as machinery or materials that can lower your costs and improve your production.
Tracking metrics for each aspect that affects the cost of your products is a critical practice to implement. This ensures that you fully understand the cost of your product from the beginning to the end of the product's journey from production to unboxing.
4. How much will my packaging machinery cost?
When setting up a packaging line for a start-up, chances are, those who are involved are new to the process of building and running a packaging line. Packaging lines can be simple and straightforward or extensive and complex in nature.
They can be run on manual labor or fully automated machinery. Most of the time, a packaging line will have some combination of human energy and semi-automated machinery working in tandem.
When it comes to choosing machinery for your product packaging, there are multiple factors to consider. For example, how many products will you be packaging a day? How much does each of your products weigh? How big or small is your product? What is the shape of your product?
Each of these items will affect your choice of machinery (assuming you have the budget for the proper equipment, if not, you will want to consider leasing).
Depending on your answers to the questions above and the monthly volume of your products packaged, you will need to analyze your products and choose machinery based upon the answers to each question.
It would be a good idea to analyze your current packaging line and protocols by an independent packaging expert. They will be able to provide you with data that can help you to choose the right equipment for the size, shape, and weight of your products, as well as your monthly volume of products packaged.
Comments