If you’re lucky, you’ve never had to experience opening a package you’d long-waited for, only to feel the wave of disappointment as bits and pieces tumble out that definitely shouldn’t have.

Obviously you’re paying for a product, but until it gets to you, the materials used to keep it safe are just as important, if not more so, than the product itself. What good is the $500.00 thing-a-majig, if the $0.50 crumpled newspaper didn’t get it to you safely?

When there is a chance for damage, packaging materials are important. The good news is that strong, shock-absorbing packaging material is not only easy to find, it’s affordable, and you probably have it around your home! Of course, I’m talking about foam.

The same reason we enjoy our couch cushions and memory foam toppers is the reason spongy foam makes for a great packaging solution.

Firstly, it reduces movement in a package by being easily compressed. The foam can be squeezed between the box and the item, and as it “expands” against both, it helps hold things in place. But by being soft, it still has yield, allowing the item to gently move against the foam, in a sort of protected suspension. This impact absorption is important when packages get loaded, unloaded, and tossed on the parcel belt at processing locations.

Lastly, and possibly the best part, is that foam packaging is reusable as long as it still has resilience. You can use foam over and over, squeezing it into packages, and saving money while you’re making the most of materials on hand!

Article submitted by The Foam Factory, a manufacturer of packaging foam products, with standard and custom-cut charcoal foam, Anti-Static foam, and many other styles for keeping your shipments safe.