Sources: Mordor Intelligence, GlobeNewswire, Marketwatch, West Marine
Shrink wrap is widely used in industrial and commercial circles. From storage and logistics, to food and beverage, construction and infrastructure, shrink wrap is almost always an important component to any project.
If 2021 was an indicator, the shrink-wrap industry is set to take off within the next 6 years. Experts across the board are predicting a major spike between now and 2028.
The shrink-wrap equipment sector, alone, is expected to grow 9 percent by 2026.
While there isn’t a wide variety of published information on marine/RV-specific market forecasts, there are valuable bits of information available when it comes to general cost. For example, the consensus average cost of covering a boat is $15-$25 per square foot. Gudgear.com provides an excellent average cost analysis for RVs.
The following graphs are from its report.
Seasonal
Shrink wrap can be used during any season, offering protection from the elements. Depending on the region, the use of shrink wrap varies – and so does peak seasons. In areas such as Michigan, winter brings about harsh challenges, causing the need for winterization. The same goes for the rest of the cold-weather states.
Shrink wrap isn’t just for the winter, though; it’s perfect for any off-season storage – even in warm-weather states. When not in use, boats and RVs can be protected by the sun and moisture.
Industry is always using shrink wrap, so there isn’t a specific “down time” or seasonal peak to identify. However, when there is a rise in shipping/logistics, there is certainly an increase in the need for shrink wrap. For example: heavy construction season (regional) and holiday shipping would increase the need for shrink wrap.
The following information is from Mordor Intelligence, covering usage and highlighting related cost-saving measures; it also covers technical specifications, such as mil thickness, etc.
Specs/markets
Shrink-wrap is widely used throughout just about every industry. Those uses will be covered in the next section of this report.
Sources: Mordor Intelligence, Marketwatch
There are two main types of materials used for shrink wrapping: polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyolefin. PVC is less expensive, but it is not widely used, owing to the health dangers it poses during creation and disposal. Polyolefin (POF) is by far the more commonly used and preferred shrink film. POF is extremely durable, clear, and is FDA-approved for various food material. POF shrink wrap is available in thicknesses that range from 35 to 100 gauge, and it is made from 100% recyclable materials and is more resistant to temperature changes.
Shrinkwrapped products in trays, on pads, or bundled in polyethylene film are a cost-effective and sustainable way to transport palletized consumer products through the distribution network. Shrinkwrapping offers significantly lower material costs by reducing or eliminating the need for a higher-priced corrugated board.
Owing to such reasons, the demand for shrink wrap equipment is significantly gaining traction in various industries. Besides this, shrink wrapping equipment offers a faster return on investments and consumes less energy than other packaging methods. According to MSK Covertech Group, shrink packaging equipment provides 40% energy savings depending on the film's thickness.
Shrinkwrapping helps reduce production output time, faster payback period, and reduces cost by safely packaging equipment in less packaging material. Thus, this is driving the demand for shrink packaging equipment. For instance, Ply Gem, a leading manufacturer of exterior building products, adopted shrink wrapping packaging solutions from Texwrap, increasing production output by 150% with a payback period of under a year.
The demand for semiautomatic shrinkwrapping tunnels is expected to command significant demand in the market. This is due to the growing demand from various SMEs adopting packaging solutions, e-commerce logistics, and food and beverage packaging solutions. However, automatic equipment demand is significantly high from the massive industries that use pallet wrapping solutions.
Shrinkwrapping helps save packaging time in palletizing and reduces cost and waste compared to corrugated boxes. For instance, a client of Murphy Packaging Inc. was able to eliminate packaging waste and reduce labor hours spent on packaging the pallets. Thus, the new shrinkwrapping process saved 20- 24 hours per week.
With the outbreak of COVID-19, the demand for shrink wrap packaging saw a surge in demand. Moreover, it offers easy cleaning and disinfecting options for packaged goods, without water leaking into the product offering.
According to Mordor Intelligence, North America is the largest shrink-wrap market. However, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and Middle East/Africa are also major consumers of shrink wrap, serving as some of the largest markets in the world. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing market through 2025.
Per the report, there are a handful of companies who stand to be “major players” in the industry for the next few years.
U.S. Packaging & Wrapping
Texwrap Packaging Systems (Pro Mach)
MSK Verpackungs-Systeme GmbH
ARPAC LLC (Duravant)
Standard-Knapp
Top industries
The food industry is the largest consumer of shrink wrap. In 2012, the food packaging segment was worth approximately $24 billion USD. By 2022, the industry is expected to be worth upwards of $32 billion USD.
Food/Beverage
Pharmaceuticals
Logistics
Construction
Storage
Personal use
Numbers/trends
According to GlobeNewswire, the CAGR of the shrink-wrap industry is set to increase by 5.45 percent by 2028.
Due to population growth, food will be in higher demand. The United Nations predicts the world population to balloon to 9.3 billion by 2050, prompting a need for agriculture to grow by 70 percent. As a result, the meat packing industry, cold packing and processed foods sectors will experience massive growth.
Thickness
When it comes to thickness, particularly for marine use, the following from WestMarine.com provides a sturdy set of guidelines.
6 mil: Good for general marine use. Can be used inside or outside in areas with milder winters
7 mil: Great for general marine use, smaller temporary structures and covering mid-sized equipment. Able to handle harsher winters with moderate snow
8 mil/8.5 mil: For applications that require a heavy duty material. Great for wrapping commercial vessels during construction or repair or for boats exposed to high snow loads. Used frequently for temporary structures, covering scaffolding and as a general purpose construction applications.
10 mil: Ideal for heavy duty use. Excellent for temporary structures, covering larger commercial vessels for refit or repair.
Color
WestMarine.com recommends using colors in the following ways. Each color has different properties.
White: Great for most applications and stands up to the elements a little better. White offers Minimal heat transference and produces less condensation. Ventilation is still recommended.
Blue: Ideal for snowy climates, the darker color heats up and helps to shed snow to prevent unwanted snow loads. Users will want to use additional ventilation to control condensation.
Clear: Primarily used for greenhouses, this material can be used for brokerage boats to allow in light for showing the boat. Liveaboards who spend their winters “on the hard” also prefer clear shrink wrap. Since clear shrink wrap allows the most heat transference it requires additional ventilation for condensation and mildew control.
