Busy Pepsi-Cola Distributor Saves Time and Money with New Stretch Wrap Film
Servicing thousands of accounts over the last 25 years, LinPepCo is no stranger to the soft drink and vending product distribution process. With its six facilities throughout Nebraska and Kansas, the company distributes exclusively for Pepsi-Cola as well as a variety of other beverages and snacks including teas, energy drinks, coffee and vending products. In fact, LinPepCo is one of the largest Pepsi-Cola franchisees in the Mid-West. From restaurants and bars to retail and grocery stores, LinPepCo customers depend on the company to deliver products on time and in pristine condition. Each LinPepCo facility delivers products to clients roughly twice a week- making for a very busy warehouse. The high demand creates a need for the company to operate as efficiently as possible. With product continuously coming in and out of the warehouse, monitoring costs, minimizing damage and producing timely deliveries is a top priority.
To ensure safe delivery, each customer load is hand wrapped with stretch film. Stretch film helps keep the product secure on the back of semi-trailers, en-route to the customer. However, hand wrapping can be a tricky and sometimes costly process. In fact, load failure costs due to improperly wrapped loads can run up to 3% of the annual value of the products shipped. In addition, waste due to “nicked or Barber Polling” rolls can add 10% to 30% to hand film costs. Factor in the manual process and companies like LinPepCo risk employee injuries from the heavy lifting of stretch film rolls.Traditional film also requires employees to hand stretch the film by 150% while applying it to the load. Companies can spend considerable money hiring, training and retaining employees that can effectively and consistently wrap loads. Combined with general manual error and the transient nature of the business, even more costs are applied. Higher film gauges are heavier and harder to manage while lighter films may break and tear prematurely. In the end, LinPepCo was not immune to these common trials.