Shipping Big Weight

One thing I have been fascinated with is how things are getting shipped in 2020.  With the pandemic I am seeing the amount of shipping go through the roof.  Even in my own life we are ordering more than ever from online retailers and are receiving all kinds of items.  What amazes me the most is that some very heavy materials are being shipped in regular cardboard boxes.  But what I noticed is that they are indeed not regular boxes. These packaging supplies are made extra heavy duty and I am fascinated with the strength they provide.

As I looked further into the process I found that there were two major types of heavy duty boxes.  What separated them out was the materials they were made out of.  There are generally three different levels of heavy duty packaging supplies and they are labeled as this. The first and lowest grade heavy duty box is usually made from  275# (44 ECT) test RSC (Regular Slotted Carton) brown corrugated the ECT grade and RSC go up as you get into more weight that they can hold per inch. The thickness of the wall is what really is increased and some are double layered.  The heaviest oncs are triple layered.

The difference in cost is also greatly spread out depending on the size, thickness and weight that these are rated for.  I was amazed that some companies spend upwards to 100 dollars a box on their packaging supplies.  The heavy duty boxes average 30 dollars to 60 dollars, but can get very expensive if they reach certain sizes. The cost does go down dramatically once you start to buy the boxes in bulk.  The average cost for 1 box vs 20-50 boxes can drop by as much as 50% depending on quantity. So if you are going into the packaging business you need to make sure you are adding the cost of boxes into the cost of running your business.  Weight of the items to be shipped can have a large impact on the profit margins you are actually bringing in after shipping.

Now if you are shipping an item  that is under 20 lbs you most likely do not need to spend the extra money to get a heavy duty box.  Most cardboard boxes will do the job just fine for average weighted items.  But if you are shipping weights or appliances that get above 20lbs you may need to look into using a specialized box on shipping so it arrives safe and without any issues.