How Do Paper Activated Tape and Plastic Pressure-Sensitive Tape Perform?

Because it has “paper” in its full name, people unfamiliar with Kraft paper tape may surmise that it is easily torn and not particularly strong or durable. However, paper packing tape forms a permanent bond with the carton material, effectively making it as strong as the cardboard or other material to which it is applied. Plus, reinforced packing tape has fiberglass filaments that make it even stronger. This allows gummed paper tape to seal heavy boxes with a single strip and endure a lengthy, and often rough, shipping process.

While useful for many purposes, plastic carton sealing tape is not, strip-for-strip, nearly as strong as water-activated tape. Typically, packing crews will have to use many times more strips of plastic tape to try to achieve the same effect as one strip of paper packaging tape.

 

Durability/Reliability

Here again, once applied, gummed paper tape essentially “becomes one” with the carton. As a result, it is as durable and reliable as the box itself. This includes maintaining a strong, tamper-evident seal in damp, hot, cold, dry, dusty, and other adverse conditions. Water-activated tape also resists punctures and tearing.

Pressure-sensitive tape’s durability and reliability falls well below that of water-activated tape in carton sealing applications. In fact, plastic carton sealing tape tends to fail quickly when punctured or torn, allowing a shipped package to open in transit and expose or spill its contents.

 

Theft Prevention

Because its adhesive creates a more tenuous, surface-level connection with a carton, plastic tape does very little to prevent “carton press and grab” thefts. Thieves can gain access to package contents easily with no visible sign that a carton has been breached.

Gummed paper tape’s superior seal makes it very difficult for thieves to get into a carton and commit a “crime of opportunity” when nobody is looking. They would have to go to the effort of using a knife or other sharp implement to slice the full length of the seal in order to lift the flaps and remove contents. While nothing short of a locked metal box can prevent a person from stealing if they set their mind to it, a corrugated cardboard box sealed with paper packing tape presents enough a challenge to discourage most would-be thieves.

 

Appearance

One strip of water-activated paper tape can effectively seal a package, giving it a neat, professional appearance. Especially for a customer purchasing from a company for the first time, this positive first impression can be critically important.

Plastic pressure-sensitive tape, on the other hand, tends to require multiple strips to achieve a trustworthy seal for shipped packages. This can produce a rough, unfinished look that doesn’t represent a company well.

Looking for custom packaging tape? Paper tape can also have information or images printed on it in black and white or up to four colors. This allows a company to “brand” its tape, and that capability can save money by allowing the organization to purchase generic shipping cartons rather than having them custom printed with their logo.

 

Warehouse Efficiency

The efficiency with which cartons can be sealed has a direct effect on labor costs and, consequently, profitability. This is true in any shipping operation, and especially so in high-volume environments. Efficiency starts with accessibility, and the space-conscious design of a water-activated paper tape dispenser allows it to fit into virtually any packaging station layout.

When it comes to using paper packing tape, its one-strip seal is much more efficient than applying multiple strips of plastic tape.

 

Safety

Companies have both a moral duty and a legal obligation to protect their employees from injury. There is a business benefit as well: keeping employees safe helps maintain high productivity. The physical movements required to apply plastic pressure-sensitive tape with a tape gun can lead to repetitive motion injuries that can sideline employees for extended periods as they rest the affected joints. In extreme cases, they may even have to undergo surgery.

Gummed paper tape can be moistened and dispensed with the push of a button on an electric water-activated tape dispenser. Plus, applying a strip of water-activated tape to a carton is a very natural motion that can be performed in a variety of ways, preventing dangerous repetitive movements.

In addition, water-activated paper tape dispensers from Better Packages are either UL-listed or manufactured to Underwriter Laboratory’s exacting standards, including:

• Detachable electrical cord with enough length to provide for operator safety and comfort
• Flame-retardant plastic
• Steel side frames
• Zinc-plated stainless-steel parts
• Thermal cutoff that prevents overheating of the motor when the unit is used for long periods
• Safety interlock switch that disables the cutting blade when the front cover is open

 

Eco-Friendly

Both the film and the adhesive used to manufacture plastic pressure-sensitive tape are petroleum-based materials. As a result, they are not particularly environmentally friendly. Plus, like all plastic products, pressure-sensitive tape does not readily decompose and will exist in landfills virtually unchanged for countless generations.

Paper water-activated tape is produced using paper and a non-toxic, starch-based adhesive. Neither material is harmful to the environment, making paper tape a more eco-conscious choice. It has all the strength and durability to meet a company’s needs today, but when it is no longer needed, it will decompose more effectively than plastic tape.