Wrapping that passes goods-in has three properties: the film is anchored to the pallet itself, layers overlap by roughly half their width, and the top edge of the load is covered. Everything else follows from those three. The operative checks them by eye before a forklift touches the unit.
Why must the film take in the pallet, not just the load?
Because otherwise you have wrapped a separate stack of cartons that slides off its carrier at the first hard braking. Anchoring means two or three bottom revolutions take in the top boards of the pallet together with the lowest layer of cargo. Load and carrier become one body, and a forklift lifting the pallet lifts the whole thing. This is the most commonly caught defect at goods-in, because it shows instantly: the film starts above the pallet and a gap is visible between boards and cartons.
The exception is a load deliberately meant to come off its carrier in one piece — for instance when transferring to a slip-sheet. That is rare and always agreed with the consignee in advance.
How many wraps, and where do they go?
The number of revolutions means nothing on its own — where they sit is what matters. A sensible pattern: start at the base, two to three anchoring turns taking in the pallet, climb with an overlap of roughly half the film width, reinforce at the height of the centre of gravity, one turn over the top edge, descend and close at the base. A tall, wobbly load gets more layers in its upper third; a heavy, low one gets them at the base.
The specific layer count a given chain demands is in its supplier specification and nowhere else [[TO BE CONFIRMED — the specific chain's requirements]]. There is no single number for the whole British market and anyone quoting one is guessing. A practical test without a gauge: grip the wrapped unit at the top and pull sideways. If the top layer shifts against the bottom, the wrap is too weak whatever the revolution count.
Stretch or shrink for a Channel crossing?
Stretch film is drawn mechanically and holds the load by tension. It is cheap, needs no energy, and it handles the overwhelming majority of road movements to the United Kingdom. A shrink hood is a sleeve pulled over the unit and shrunk with heat: it gives even pressure over the full height and far better water resistance, but it needs heating equipment and energy, and it is out for heat-sensitive goods.
The split we work to: stretch for anything travelling under a curtain and not standing outside; a shrink hood, or stretch plus a waterproof cap, for loads that will be transhipped on an open yard, wait in an outdoor buffer, or travel in wet weather on a ferry route. Stretch film alone is not a water barrier — water enters between overlaps and stays inside, which with cardboard means a softened bottom layer and lost stability.
What goods-in actually catches
A list worth running yourself before the trailer closes. Film not anchored to the pallet. A loose wrap you can shift by hand. Film torn or cut through by a sharp carton edge. A leaning load — a unit off vertical gets refused even when well wrapped, because it will topple in racking. A logistic label covered by film so the code will not scan through it: either apply the label over the film or leave a window in it. Cartons overhanging the footprint, covered in our article on overhang and refused deliveries. Protruding nails and split boards on the carrier.
Colour is a separate matter. Some distribution centres require clear film so contents and labels can be inspected without unwrapping; black film is sometimes allowed only for high-value goods and by prior agreement [[TO BE CONFIRMED — the consignee's specification]]. If you pack in tinted film, ask before you build the first pallet.
When film alone is not enough
Film gives containment force but almost no vertical strength. If the unit is to be double stacked, the weight of the upper pallet rides on the cartons and any corner boards, not on the film — see the article on pallet stacking in the UK. Tall, narrow, sharp-edged loads, or ones with voids inside, need corner protection, strapping and interlayers; the selection is covered in the piece on edge protectors, corner boards and straps. And remember that wrapping secures the unit, not the load inside the vehicle — two different things with different people answerable for them, which the article on cargo securing to EN 12195 sorts out.
Sources
- DVSA / GOV.UK: securing loads on HGVs and goods vehicles
- GS1: logistic label guideline, including placement on the unit
- EPAL: safe working load and stacking limits for euro pallets
Want us to check the wrap before despatch, or correct it at the hub? Write through the quote form. The scope of warehouse work is on our Milton Keynes warehouse page, and the whole lane on transport to the United Kingdom.
