Yorkshire Packaging Systems (YPS) are the leading UK supplier of shrink and stretch wrapping solutions. Established in 1977, we have a reputation for high quality products combined with exceptional after-sales support and service. BRC accredited, SafeContractor approved and multi-award winning, we have the expertise to provide tailored, intelligent packaging solutions to a wide range of industries.

Glyn Johnson, Managing Director of Yorkshire Packaging Systems, speaks to Warehouse & Logistics News.

What are your best-known products/solutions/services?

YPS are renowned for our shrink wrapping solutions, including L sealers, side sealers, sleeve wrappers, shrink tunnels and shrink films. We can deliver a wrapping system for almost any product, collation, speed, warehouse footprint and operator capacity. Machines dedicated to dairy environments, specialist aerosol compliant lines and wide sleeve wrappers for large and heavy products are amongst our specialties. YPS also offer stretch wrapping systems including semi and fully automatic models, turntables, rotary ring wrappers and rotating arm pallet wrappers, as well as stretch films.

Which industry sectors are your customers in and which ones are growing fastest?

Wrapping is a versatile packaging method and so our customer base stretches across an almost endless array of sectors. Food companies make up the lion’s share but we also supply equipment for applications wrapping toys and games, doors and windows, flat packed furniture, DIY products, printed materials, personal care, pharmaceutical and automotive parts to name but a few. The most rapidly expanding sector in our experience is e-commerce and we have a number of specialist machines to accommodate this demanding industry’s needs.

What are your most recent product innovations?

The Paper X is a revolutionary high speed hybrid wrapping line that offers the flexibility to run a choice of materials on one single unit, including paper and plastic films. The Paper X accepts coated and uncoated papers with thicknesses up to 120 g/m2 and YPS can supply these in brown or white. PO, PE, PP, Ultra-thin, biofilms and recycled content films up to 70% can also be run, all of which are available from YPS. This solution is ideal for contract packing businesses who have to fulfil many contracts under one roof. Co-packers can meet client’s differing demands without investing in additional machinery, sacrificing warehouse space and increasing running and maintenance costs. The changeover process between each consumable is incredibly simple and fast.

The Paper X is also perfect for e-commerce applications that demand very high speeds such as magazines or apparel. Printing can be incorporated onto either material to increase branding or to display mailing information. With remote diagnostic support and a comprehensive service contract, the Paper X serves these rigorous industries with ease.

What are the major trends and developments affecting your category and your customers, and how are you responding?

The major trend in packaging right now is of course ‘going green’. As a leading UK supplier of plastic shrink and stretch films we have adapted well to this trend and enhanced our offering to include ‘greener’ films as well as the paper packaging discussed above. Our entire range is fully recyclable and we have also worked with OPRL to deliver consistent and clear recycling messages for our products.

Our B-NAT film from Bollore is plant-based and consists of more than 46% renewable and ethically sourced sugarcane ethylene. B-NAT matches the properties of conventional polyolefins and boasts outstanding optics. We have also introduced post-consumer waste (PCW) polythene films which are comprised of 30%, 50% and 70% recycled content. Finally, we have for several years transitioned great numbers of our customers to ultra-thin films as low as 9mu. Downgauging film thicknesses reduces the overall volumes of plastic consumption without any detriment to performance or pack quality. As a consequence, ultra-thin films also result in lower energy requirements from the machinery as they shrink and seal at lower temperatures.

Can you tell us about any recent customer contracts and how you helped the customer meet their challenges?

In December we installed a shrink wrapping line at Premdor, a leading manufacturer of internal and exterior doors and doorset systems with a reputation for excellence and quality. Premdor’s existing shrink wrapping equipment was coming to the end of its useful life and they were without reliable service and support. They required a new machine with the capacity to wrap doors of varying sizes at speeds of 5-6 per minute and health and safety was a huge priority for them. YPS met their needs with a wide inline sleeve sealer and wide shrink tunnel, capable of wrapping their entire range and which was fully guarded to exceed CE regulations. A comprehensive six visit service contract and generous warranty was included for enhanced peace of mind. So happy were Premdor that they are now considering further equipment from YPS.

What’s the latest news from your company?

The period at the end of 2020 is a very significant time for YPS as we are due to move premises into a brand-new HQ conveniently located along the M62 corridor. This new state-of-the-art warehouse, workshop and office development is 50% larger in size than our current site which we have outgrown due to considerable expansion.

Can you tell us about any areas where you’re currently making technical advances?

The issues of environment and sustainability are highest on our agenda. We are ahead of the curve when it comes to environmental developments, currently rolling out films with more than 30%+ recycled content that will be exempt from the upcoming Plastic Tax. We are contributing to R&D with our supplier Bollore into the bio-based films category and we have also recently launched a baling machinery service where we supply, install and maintain baling equipment at customer’s sites in order to collect waste plastic. This compacted waste is channelled back into UK recycling streams to be regranulated back into new films.

Are you investing in staff training and skills development?

We are a family business who take pride in our people and their career paths. In testament to this, in February we celebrated our chief engineer Andrew Sutcliffe spending 25 years with us! To retain high quality staff we always invest in their development and challenge them to upskill where possible, offering courses and qualifications. We have a successful apprenticeship programme for service engineers and one of our graduates Jake Martin received the prestigious PPMA Apprentice Of The Year award in 2017.

Are you taking part in any major trade shows? Can you tell us what you’ll be exhibiting there?

As a stalwart PPMA show exhibitor we will be present this September on stand A22. We plan to display our latest wrapping machinery and samples of our film range for live demonstrations with visitor’s products. At Intralogistex we are exhibiting our innovative FLEXO E-COM, a bagging system that incorporates print and apply labelling technology, designed specifically for the e-commerce market. Finally, at Foodex next April we are exhibiting our extensive range of food contact approved shrink films including R-OXBTEC, the only fully recyclable dedicated barrier poultry film on the market.

Yorkshire Packaging Systems

w: www.yps.co.uk

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