Applied Design of Corrugated Board Properties to Mitigate Puncturing in Parcel Handling Distribution Chains

Abstract

Corrugated board boxes are used for the majority of parcel shipments. These boxes, particularly in e-commerce shipments, often suffer damages such as crushing and puncturing. Puncture-related damage can lead to product damage, customer dissatisfaction, and costly returns. While holes in boxes due to rough handling in the distribution chain are common, there is no standardized method for designing corrugated board properties to resist puncturing, particularly by selecting appropriate paper materials without extensive laboratory testing. This study demonstrates how commonly measured properties can be leveraged to optimize corrugated board paper combinations, tailoring them to minimize the occurrence of holes, as well as general damage, during distribution.