It’s difficult to remember anything other than Covid-19 being in the news but back in January, Malaysia returned 152 containers of plastic waste, 42 of which went to the UK. The incident illustrated the scale of the problems of recycling and plastic packaging, showing the west that the issue can’t simply be outsourced overseas.
This article was first published in the May 15th 2020 issue of Warehouse & Logistics News, subscribe to the magazine by clicking here.
This article was first published in the May 15th 2020 issue of Warehouse & Logistics News, subscribe to the magazine by clicking here.
As businesses come under increasing pressure to reduce their environmental impact, many are discarding plastic in favour of paper-based packaging solutions. But could plastics actually hold the key to reducing our carbon footprint? Antalis’s packaging experts certainly think so. John Garner, Head of Business Development – Packaging Antalis, explains: “Plastics, used well, actually have an important role to play in tackling climate change. An example of this is the work we have been doing with some of our manufacturing clients – who routinely distribute engineering components to and from sites of manufacture – to develop packaging that can be used over and over again.”
Fanatics is a global supplier of sports fan merchandise including football shirts, shorts, socks, baseball caps, mugs and other souvenirs. From its warehouse in North Manchester an average of 7,500 items are dispatched every day to meet demand from its hugely popular fanatics-intl.com website. The deployment of four Autobag 850S machines, supplied by Automated Packaging Systems, at Fanatics’ Manchester warehouse has enabled the company to keep pace with its fast growing order book. Packing operatives were able to process between 45 and 50 orders per hour under Fanatics’ old manual system. Now that figure has increased to between 200 and 250 packages per hour.
PPS Midlands, a Returnable Equipment Solutions company that offer rental, washing and sales of a variety of returnable transit packaging, has reached out to support a local charity that is experiencing increased demand on its service during the coronavirus pandemic. Burton-on-Trent YMCA, a charitable organisation that provide housing and food for the homeless across the area, has seen a huge increase in the dependency on the food parcels they create via donations to their foodbank. To help alleviate this issue, PPS Midlands stepped forward and provided Burton-on-Trent YMCA with a large number of their plastic food trays, which will allow for better and more efficient storage of key goods donated to the charity.
The British Contract Manufacturers and Packers Association is rising to the challenges presented by Covid-19 to support its members through these difficult times. In happier times we have always considered that members of the British Contract Manufacturers and Packers Association are not only fulfilment, warehouse and logistics specialists but also ‘solution providers’ – the essential outsourcing partner providing the missing link or going the extra mile to help customers with their logistical headaches.
“COVID-19 presents a prime example of how our members can demonstrate their agility and flexibility to help clients complete their projects within pressured but acceptable timescales,” said Rodney Steel, BCMPA chief executive.
It has been great to see the positive attitude expressed by Antalis and PPS.
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