Product packaging has many different specs and measurements to tell whether it is actually effective or not. When it comes to measuring product packaging, an important number is the cushion curves of the internal packaging. Different products being shipped require different cushion curves. One question that arises is, “how is cushion quality measured?”

How to Measure Cushion Quality.

If someone were to drop a wood block, there would be very little shock absorption, compared to something made from extruded polystyrene foam. This “cushion curve” is measured in the amount of g-force applied to the object being protected. This is why things packed in wooden boxes require additional packing materials, but things packed in the polystyrene foam are more protected. The lower the g-force applied to the product, the more shock is absorbed by the packaging.

Therefore, anyone who wants have products survive their shipping process needs to use product packaging with a cushion blend more similar to polystyrene. Product packaging that not only has a high amount of absorption, but is flexible enough to fit the shape of the product, can provide the best cushion quality available.

Cushion Curves

The design of certain types of flexible product packaging allows it to wrap itself around any oddly shaped product. The foam blend and design of the packaging can be described as a “cushion curve.” Compared to single design/single use pre-formed foam packaging that only fits one particular product and model, flexible product packaging can be wrapped around nearly any shape and size of product, which eliminates the need for expensive single use packaging products.

Just like it sounds, the product packaging is designed to form a tight fit around the product. The benefit is that it does not allow any movement of the product, preventing it from coming in contact with the box’s internal walls. It is this contact with the box’s walls that often causes the damage whenever the product is dropped. But packaging that has the right cushion curve can prevent that contact and will keep the product safe.

Total Protection

Obviously, the more valuable and expensive the product is, the better the protection needs to be. The packaging for shipping a hard drive needs to have a higher cushion quality than the packaging for a book, or even a porcelain toilet.

Product packaging for the toilet may not have as stringent cushion quality, but it is a great benefit when the product packaging forms around the product to hold it in place tightly. It helps prevent breakage because the product cannot move at all.

A Safe Arrival is The Ultimate Goal

When all is said and done, the product needs to arrive safely to the customer. Using the correct packaging cuts down on damages incurred during shipping, which keeps returns and replacements down. That is why it is important for valuable and fragile packages to maintain the correct cushion quality so that it does not become prone to damage.