Protective Packaging That Exceeds UPS & FedEx Standards

In today’s fast-moving e-commerce and logistics landscape, the journey your product takes is as important as the product itself. When a parcel arrives damaged, your brand reputation, customer satisfaction, and bottom line all suffer.

At Sterling Houston, we solve that by engineering custom protective designs that go beyond the standard shipping tests defined by carriers such as United Parcel Service (UPS) and FedEx Corporation, ensuring your product arrives damage-free.

Why Standard Packaging Often Isn’t Enough

Even when you follow carrier guidelines, many shippers still face issues. For example:

• UPS’s packaging guidelines emphasize proper cushioning, rigid boxes, and avoiding reused or weakened packaging.
• FedEx offers distribution testing and advanced lab services, but many shippers do not fully utilize them.

In short, passing the basic test is one part of the process. Designing packaging that withstands real-world handling, drops, conveyor belt impacts, vibration, and stacking? That takes engineering. That’s where Sterling Houston’s protective design expertise comes in.

Understanding the Key Requirements: Drop, Vibration, Compression

When we speak of “exceeding” shipping standards, what are the actual benchmark requirements?

Drop test

• For FedEx's small-parcel network: packages up to ~150 lbs are subject to free-fall drop tests, compression tests, and vibration tests.
• For example, in this FedEx guide, packages weighing between 1-75 lbs may be dropped from ~30 inches as part of test sequences.

Vibration & compression

• Carriers like UPS operate internal test labs (e.g., the UPS Package Design & Test Lab) that run vibration, shock, temperature/humidity, and compression testing.
• FedEx offers “distribution testing” to simulate transit hazards like dropping, vibration, and compression.

Box strength & material selection

• For heavier shipments (over 70 lbs) for UPS, specific guidance is given: strong boxes, stitched or stapled seams, dense cushioning, reinforced tape.
• UPS guidelines for box strength (burst strength, edge crush test) are key for corrugated containers.

Engineering Protection Beyond Industry Standards

At Sterling Houston, our protective packaging design process is built around these foundational requirements, but we don’t stop there. We apply engineering, testing, and continuous improvement to deliver packaging that exceeds industry benchmarks. Here’s how:

1. Product & shipping-environment analysis

At Sterling, we start by understanding your product’s geometry, weight, fragility, shipping route (domestic/international), typical handling environments, and customer expectations. This data drives everything.

2. Material & packaging system selection

Instead of “off-the-shelf” packaging, we specify materials and configurations that offer optimal protection at minimum cost. We consider cushioning systems, over, double-boxing (particularly for fragile or valuable items), inner-container supports, printer/label placement, etc. We also specialize in packaging electronics, where it can be difficult to find protective packaging.

3. Simulation & lab-testing beyond carrier minimums

Sterling Manufacturing’s Design & Testing team engineers custom packaging tailored to your product’s needs. We identify the ideal foam material, Expandable Polystyrene (EPS), Polyethylene (PE), Polyurethane (PU), or a combination, and create a protective design that exceeds UPS and FedEx drop-test standards, ensuring your products reach customers damage-free.

4. Real-world validation & quality control

Post-design, our team of engineers follow up with our customers to ensure that all manufacturing and distribution needs are met above expectation. The goal: a packaging design that doesn’t just “pass” but consistently yields negligible damage rates.

5. Cost-efficiency

Engineering protective packaging doesn’t mean simply “put more material in.” We optimize, better cushioning, right-sized boxes, and recyclable or reusable packaging when possible. This aligns with supply-chain cost savings (echoing what UPS’s internal lab highlights about cost reduction and waste minimization). 

Why Exceeding Carrier Standards Matters for Your Brand

• Reduce damage-related costs: fewer returns, replacements, and customer service interventions.
• Improve customer experience: the moment of unboxing should be clean, intact, and brand-worthy.
• Better insurance claims: Carriers may reject claims if packaging is deemed insufficient. For example, UPS advises that improper packaging may invalidate damage claims.
• Lower shipping weight/dimensions: Smart protective design means you can often reduce box size and cushioning bulk without sacrificing protection, impacting cost.
• Brand credibility: Packaging that arrives intact reflects positively on your professionalism and quality control.

Let’s Design Your Packaging

Your products deserve packaging that does more than merely survive transit; they should arrive as intended, delighting your customer and reinforcing your brand promise. At Sterling Houston, we specialize in protective packaging designs that surpass industry standards.

Contact us today to learn how we can engineer a custom protective solution for your product and get you one step closer to damage-free delivery, every time.