Understanding Irregular Pallet Loads and the Best Stretch Wrapper Solutions
When it comes to shipping products safely and efficiently, not every pallet looks the same. Some loads are neat and uniform, stacking up like perfect cubes. Others are bulkier, uneven, or fragile, requiring extra attention to make sure they arrive at their destination intact.
In the packaging world, these differences are categorized as A, B, or C loads. Depending up on the “widgets” or commodified items your facility packages, your company may benefit from using a stretch wrapping machine.
Last time, we discussed the specifics of B loads and the type of stretch wrapper that would work best in those packaging scenarios. In this article, we’ll focus on C loads.
If your facility handles C loads regularly, you already know the frustration: wasted stretch film, damaged products, unstable pallets, and lost time. The good news is that the right stretch wrapping machine can dramatically improve how C loads are secured, shipped, and received.
We’ll break down:
- What defines a C load
- Which industries often deal with them
- The risks of handling them improperly
- Which types of stretch wrappers (rotary arm, orbital, robotic, automatic) are best suited for these loads
- Why investing in the right machine can save time, reduce waste, and protect products
- Bonus: Frequently Asked Questions about C Loads
We’ll also highlight leading manufacturers like Robopac, Cousins, Handle It, and Highlight Industries, who provide proven solutions for challenging load profiles.
Understanding Load Types: A, B, and C
Before diving into C loads, let’s recap the general framework of load stability from the previous two articles. In stretch wrapping, pallet loads are grouped into three categories based on stability:
- A Loads: Perfectly uniform. Boxes are identical in size and stack evenly. These pallets are cube-shaped, stable, and easy to wrap with almost any stretch wrapper.
- B Loads: Semi-uniform. There’s some inconsistency in size or stacking, but they’re still relatively stable. Think of pallets with mixed product cases or slight overhang.
- C Loads: The most difficult. These are irregular, unstable, or fragile loads. Items may stick out over the pallet edge, shift easily, or be stacked unevenly.
Where A and B loads can be stabilized with simple turntable wrappers or even hand-wrapping in low-volume operations, C loads require specialized wrapping solutions to ensure safety and stability.
What Makes a Load a “C Load”?
C loads are defined by their instability and are the most difficult to wrap. They are easy to spot because the stacked items are often unstable, irregular, or fragile. They might have heavy overhang, uneven surfaces, or items that shift easily during transit.
Key characteristics include:
- Irregular shapes: Products that don’t stack into a neat cube (e.g., furniture, appliances, or bulk bags).
- Mixed sizes: Different carton dimensions combined on the same pallet.
- Shifting contents: Items that can move inside their packaging, like bags of flour, sugar, or pet food.
- Overhang: Boxes or products extend beyond pallet edges.
- Fragile products: High risk of damage during transit if not properly stabilized.
Because of these factors, C loads are challenging to stabilize with hand stretch film alone, which often results in excessive film usage, labor inefficiency, and risk of product damage.
Industries That Commonly See C Loads
C loads appear across many industries, but here are some of the most frequent:
- Food & Beverage: Bags of rice, flour, or snack foods; bottles that don’t stack evenly; multipacks of drinks.
- Agriculture: Fertilizer bags, seed bags, or irregular produce packaging.
- Manufacturing: Large machinery components, odd-sized parts, or mixed-material pallets.
- Furniture & Appliances: Bulky items such as refrigerators, couches, or office chairs.
- Building Materials: Buckets of paint, rolls of insulation, pipes, or drywall supplies.
- E-commerce & 3PL: Mixed, uneven product loads destined for multiple customers.
In short: if your pallets look less like a cube and more like a game of Tetris, you’re wrapping C loads.
Why Wrapping C Loads Is Difficult
Wrapping a C load with hand stretch film is labor-intensive and inconsistent. Employees may struggle to keep proper tension on the film, leading to wasted material or an unstable wrap. The load itself might shift or tip while being wrapped, putting both the worker and the product at risk.
Common issues with hand-wrapping or using the wrong type of wrapper on C loads include:
- Excessive film usage (workers overcompensate by adding extra layers).
- Damaged or broken products during transit.
- Loads tipping over on turntable wrappers.
- Increased labor costs from time-consuming manual wrapping.
- Safety hazards for employees handling unstable pallets
How Stretch Wrappers Solve C Load Challenges
A properly matched stretch wrapper can transform how a facility manages C loads.
Benefits include:
- Consistent Tension and Containment: Machines apply film evenly and securely, ensuring loads are stabilized without crushing fragile products.
- Film Efficiency: Pre-stretch technology maximizes film yield and can reduce material waste and thus additional costs by 30–50%.
- Labor Savings: Automating the wrap process frees employees for higher-value tasks.
- Improved Safety: Workers avoid repetitive strain injuries from bending, twisting, and pulling film manually.
- Higher Throughput: Facilities can wrap more pallets per shift, meeting higher shipping demands.
Which Stretch Wrappers Are Best for C Loads?
Not every wrapper is built to handle unstable or irregular pallets. Here’s a breakdown:
1. Rotary Arm Stretch Wrappers – Best Overall for C Loads
- The pallet stays still while the wrapping arm rotates around it.
- Prevents tipping or shifting — a critical factor for fragile or top-heavy loads.
- Available in semi-automatic or fully automatic configurations for scalable operations.
- Ideal for facilities wrapping a high volume of unstable loads daily.
Example: Robopac’s rotary arm systems are designed specifically for irregular load profiles, ensuring consistent containment without risk of tipping.
2. Orbital Stretch Wrappers – Best for Long, Bulky Products
- The film carriage moves horizontally around the load, instead of rotating the load or an arm piece.
- Perfect for windows, doors, pipes, and other products that don’t stack neatly on pallets.
- Often used in building materials and furniture industries.
Example: Highlight Industries offers customizable orbital systems to handle long, oversized and awkward C loads.
3. Robotic Stretch Wrappers – Best for Flexibility, but Not for C Loads
- A mobile robot drives around the load, applying stretch film without needing the load to move.
- Great for facilities with multiple wrapping areas or limited floor space.
- Excellent for mixed-load environments where flexibility is key. As AI continues to advance, however, it may not be long before they adapt to handle uneven C loads.
Example: Handle It’s robotic wrappers offer portability and adaptability for operations that wrap different load types daily.
4. Standard Turntable Wrappers – Not Recommended for Most C Loads
- Is often the type of machine people think of when they hear stretch wrapper
- Operates by spinning a pallet on a rotating turntable.
- Much better suited for A or B loads, with less risk of toppling over.
While not the best option to secure C loads, standard turntable stretch wrappers are commonly found in most packaging operations.
If you haven’t already, read more about A loads or B loads and how turntable wrappers literally turn tables to increase productivity.
5. Fully Automatic Systems – For High-Volume Operations
- Integration into production lines ensures rapid, consistent wrapping.
- Fully automatic rotary arm or orbital systems handle dozens of C loads per hour.
- Ideal for high-throughput facilities needing consistency and efficiency.
Example: Cousins Packaging provides rugged, fully automatic rotary arm solutions for demanding operations.
Putting It All Together: Matching C Loads to the Right Wrapper
To recap:
- Rotary arm wrappers: Best all-around solution for C loads; stable, efficient, and scalable.
- Orbital wrappers: Perfect for long, irregular items that don’t fit a standard pallet.
- Robotic wrappers: Flexible option for facilities needing mobility and adaptability.
- Turntable wrappers: Not recommended, unless the C load is stable enough for slower, careful wrapping.
- Fully automatic systems: Best for high-volume operations wrapping hundreds of C loads daily.
Cost Considerations for C Load Wrappers
When evaluating investment in a stretch wrapper for C loads, consider:
- Initial Equipment Cost: Semi-automatic rotary arm machines start in the $15,000–$25,000 range, while fully automatic systems can exceed $60,000.
- Film Savings: Pre-stretch technology often pays for itself within 12–18 months through reduced film usage.
- Labor Savings: Automation eliminates manual wrapping, cutting labor hours significantly.
- Reduced Damage Costs: Preventing even a few damaged pallets per month can justify the investment.
Film Recommendations for C Loads
Choosing the right stretch film is just as important as choosing the right machine. For C loads:
- High-performance machine film is recommended for optimal pre-stretching.
- Blown film offers superior puncture resistance, ideal for loads with sharp edges or protrusions.
- Thicker gauges (70–90+) may be necessary for heavy or sharp loads.
- Specialty films (reinforced or one-sided cling) can add containment without crushing fragile products.
Real-World Example: From Manual to Automated Wrapping
A Midwest food manufacturer shipping bagged flour on pallets struggled with load shifting and product damage. Their team spent 6–8 minutes hand wrapping each load, often using double the necessary film.
After investing in a semi-automatic rotary arm wrapper from Robopac, the company:
- Reduced wrapping time to 1.5 minutes per pallet
- Cut film usage by 40%
- Virtually eliminated damage claims from shifting pallets
The ROI was achieved in under one year, and throughput increased dramatically.
Trusted Manufacturers for C Load Wrapping Solutions
At Nassco, we partner with industry leaders offering trusted equipment solutions:
- Robopac – Advanced rotary arm, orbital, and robotic wrappers with film-saving features.
- Cousins Packaging – Heavy-duty, high-performance rotary arm and automatic systems.
- Handle It – Cost-effective, flexible robotic and semi-automatic options.
- Highlight Industries – Customizable orbital and rotary systems for oversized or irregular loads.
Nassco packaging technicians partner with these manufacturers to deliver innovation, reliability, and service support to every installation. And our team is ready to support you for the long run with our dedicated equipment service and repairs team.
Final Thoughts: Wrapping C Loads the Right Way
C loads are the most challenging pallet profiles to secure — but they don’t have to be a headache. By matching your load profile to the right stretch wrapper, you can:
- Improve load stability
- Reduce damage in transit
- Save on film and labor costs
- Increase throughput and shipping efficiency
- Protect your workers from injury
For most facilities handling C loads daily, rotary arm or orbital wrappers provide the stability and flexibility needed to keep operations running smoothly.
With trusted solutions from Robopac, Cousins, Handle It, and Highlight Industries, Nassco helps companies tackle their toughest packaging challenges.
Ready to secure your C Loads more effectively?
Schedule a consultation or demo with Nassco packaging automation experts.
Bonus: Frequently Asked Questions About C Loads
What is a C load in stretch wrapping?
A C load is an irregular or unstable pallet profile that needs careful containment to prevent tipping, shifting, or product damage.
Which stretch wrappers are best for C loads?
Rotary arm wrappers are the best all-around choice; orbital systems are ideal for long or bulky items, and fully automatic lines fit high-volume operations.
Are turntable wrappers recommended for C loads?
Generally no—turntables suit A or B loads; use them for C loads only when the pallet is stable enough and you can wrap slowly and carefully.
Are robotic wrappers a good option for C loads?
They offer flexibility across multiple areas, but they’re not the preferred choice for uneven C loads compared to rotary arm or orbital systems.
What film is recommended for C loads?
Use high-performance machine film; blown film with higher puncture resistance and thicker gauges (often 70–90+) helps with sharp or heavy loads.
How much do C load wrapper solutions cost?
Semi-automatic rotary arm machines often range $15,000–$25,000, while fully automatic systems can exceed $60,000 depending on configuration.
What ROI benefits can I expect with C load automation?
Pre-stretch and automation reduce film and labor, cut damage rates, and typically deliver payback in about 12–18 months.
