Hi there, it’s Jake from the Plastic Enclosures team. For years, I’ve walked the line between what we build in our workshop and what our customers actually receive on their loading docks—and let me tell you, few things test my patience more than hearing, “Your enclosure arrived with a big crack in the corner.” We build these enclosures to house everything from industrial control panels to outdoor sensor systems, so a broken unit isn’t just a damaged product—it’s a delay for a customer who’s counting on it. Over a decade of shipping these boxes across the country (and sometimes across borders), I’ve learned that protection during transit isn’t just about adding more bubble wrap. It’s about matching the right packaging to the unique quirks of each enclosure, accounting for the miles of rough roads, cargo handling, and even the weather that enclosures might face in transit. This post is what I’ve picked up, no corporate fluff, just real lessons we’ve tested, tweaked, and used to cut our damage rate from 8% to less than 1% over the last five years. Plastic Enclosures
First, let’s talk about the foundation of protecting your enclosure: knowing what you’re shipping. Not all plastic enclosures are created equal, and treating a 12-inch lightweight ABS enclosure for a wall-mounted thermostat the same as a 36-inch heavy-duty polycarbonate box for outdoor telecom equipment is a recipe for disaster. Last year, we had a customer who ordered 20 large polycarbonate enclosures for a solar farm project. Their old supplier just wrapped them in bubble wrap and tossed them in a generic corrugated box. We advised them to use custom wooden crates with foam inserts, and their damage rate dropped to zero, compared to 12% with their previous setup. That’s the first rule of shipping protection: customize based on size, weight, and use case. Small, indoor enclosures can get away with rigid corrugated packaging with internal dividers, but large, heavy, outdoor enclosures need sturdier support. And don’t forget to check the enclosure’s weakest points—most plastic enclosures have molded mounting flanges, thin edges, or cutouts for cable glands that are way more fragile than the main body. Last month, we noticed a batch of 8-inch enclosures arriving with broken mounting lugs, not cracked bodies. The issue? The lugs were exposed in generic packaging, so we started adding small, die-cut foam sleeves over those lugs during the assembly process, and that problem vanished. It’s easy to focus on the big box, but the tiny, easy-to-break parts are where most damage happens.
Next, packaging materials matter—and not all foam, plastic, or cardboard is the same. I’ve seen suppliers cut corners with cheap, thin bubble wrap that pops after one jolt, or corrugated boxes that collapse at the bottom of a stack. Here’s what we’ve stuck with, after testing every option on the market for our enclosures. For most standard, medium-sized enclosures (10 to 24 inches, indoor or light outdoor use), we use double-walled corrugated boxes with a 32 ECT (Edge Crush Test) rating— that’s the industry standard for heavy-duty shipping, but don’t just grab any double-walled box. We always size the box so there’s at least 2 inches of space between the enclosure and the inside of the box on all sides. Too little space, and the enclosure rubs against the cardboard during transit, scraping or scratching the plastic. Too much, and the enclosure shifts around, which is a big no-no. For internal cushioning, we use cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) foam inserts. Unlike the cheap pink foam you can get at hardware stores, XLPE is closed-cell, water-resistant, and has consistent cushioning that compresses just enough to absorb shocks but doesn’t break down after a single use. For enclosures that have cutouts or irregular shapes, we also use die-cut foam—we custom-make inserts that fit exactly around each enclosure’s unique profile, so there’s zero movement inside the box. We avoid loose packing peanuts for large shipments, because they can shift and leave gaps, and they’re also terrible for the environment (our customers care about sustainability, too). For the really big enclosures—over 24 inches, or heavy units that weigh more than 20 pounds—we don’t use corrugated boxes at all. We build custom wooden crates, usually made from ½-inch pine or plywood, with foam pads lining the interior. We also add steel corner protectors to the outside of the crates, because forklift drivers and cargo handlers often grab boxes by the corners, and a hard impact there can crack even thick plastic. A few months back, we shipped a crate of 10 large polycarbonate enclosures to a job site in Texas that’s 1,200 miles away. The crate got stacked under 500 pounds of other cargo in a truck that hit a pothole so hard the driver said he heard everything rattle. When it arrived, every enclosure was perfect—no scratches, no cracks. That’s the difference between a standard box and a properly built crate.
Then there’s a part of shipping protection most people overlook: securing the enclosure inside the packaging, and the packaging on the pallet. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve opened a damaged box to find the enclosure turned sideways, wedged into a corner because it wasn’t secured. Once the enclosure is inside its internal foam or box, you need to make sure it doesn’t move. For smaller enclosures, we use heavy-duty strapping tape to secure the foam insert to the bottom of the box, so it doesn’t shift if the box is flipped or dropped. For larger crated enclosures, we use adjustable nylon straps to fasten the enclosure to the interior floor of the crate, so it can’t slide during transit. That’s a small step, but it prevents so much damage. Now, the pallet part—this is another area where people cut corners. We’ve all seen pallets with boxes hanging over the edges, stacked too high, or not secured to the pallet at all. For our shipments, we always use 48×40-inch standard wooden pallets, which are the industry size that fits most trucks and shipping containers, so there’s no wasted space that leads to shifting. We never stack boxes or crates higher than 6 feet—any higher, and the bottom layer of boxes can get crushed under the weight above, especially if the shipment is air freighted, where pallets are stacked even higher. Once the crates or boxes are on the pallet, we use industrial-grade stretch wrap—120-gauge, not the thin grocery store kind—to secure the load. We wrap it tight, but not so tight that it crushes the boxes. We also add corner protectors to the corners of the pallet, not just the boxes, to handle the impact of being lifted by forklifts. We did a test last year where we secured two identical pallets: one with standard stretch wrap, one with extra-heavy industrial wrap and corner protectors. The standard-wrapped pallet lost two boxes during transit, while the other had zero issues. It’s a small cost add-on, but it pays off in not having to replace damaged units.
Weather is another big factor that’s often forgotten. Plastic enclosures are durable, but extreme temperatures, rain, and humidity can make them brittle or even cause packaging to break down. We ship enclosures to places with every kind of weather: from -20 degree winters in Minnesota to 110 degree summers in Arizona, and humid coastal areas in Florida. For shipments going to hot, dry climates, we make sure the packaging is rated for high temperatures—some foams can melt or become brittle in extreme heat, so we use heat-stabilized XLPE foam for those shipments. For shipments to cold areas, we avoid using cold-sensitive plastics in packaging; the cheap bubble wrap can become brittle and pop in freezing temperatures, so we use rigid, flexible foam inserts instead. For shipments going to humid or rainy areas, we add a layer of waterproof shrink wrap over the entire pallet, so even if the truck has a leak, the boxes stay dry. We also mark every shipment with “Top Load Only” and “Keep Dry” labels in large, bold letters—we use both English and Spanish for our cross-border shipments, because cargo handlers in the U.S. and Mexico are a big part of our customer base, and clear labels make a huge difference. A few months back, we had a shipment to a job site in New Orleans that got caught in a tropical storm while on a barge. The shrink wrap worked perfectly—all the boxes inside were dry, while a competitor’s shipment next to us had water damage and 15 broken enclosures. That’s the difference between thinking about weather and not.
Now, let’s talk about the mistakes we’ve made along the way, because that’s where the real lessons come from. Early on, we thought more packaging was better, so we wrapped every enclosure in 6 inches of bubble wrap, packed them in over-sized boxes, and used way more foam than necessary. But that added cost for our customers, and it also made the shipment heavier, which increased shipping fees. We tested and found that 2 inches of foam on all sides is enough for most standard enclosures, so we cut excess packaging and passed the savings on to our customers. Another mistake we made was not training our team to properly package enclosures. We had new hires cutting die-cut foam inserts wrong, or securing enclosures loosely inside boxes. Now we have a 15-step checklist for packaging, and every new hire has to pass a test before they can package a customer’s order. That checklist covers everything: checking for fragile lugs or cutouts, measuring box size, using the right foam, securing the enclosure, labeling the pallet, and checking the stretch wrap tension. It’s basic, but it’s reduced packaging errors by 70%. We also work closely with our shipping partners—we tell them upfront that our enclosures are fragile, and we mark the pallets clearly, so their drivers and forklift operators handle them with care. A good shipping partner will respect that, but a bad one will skip the extra steps, so we only work with carriers that have experience shipping industrial equipment.
At the end of the day, protecting plastic enclosures during shipping isn’t about the most expensive packaging—it’s about attention to detail. It’s knowing your product, matching the right materials to the product’s size and use case, securing everything properly, accounting for weather, and training your team to do it right. Over the years, we’ve honed this process, and it’s helped us build a reputation for delivering enclosures that arrive exactly as they left our workshop. I know many of our customers are small businesses, electrical contractors, or construction managers who are on tight deadlines—they can’t afford to wait for a replacement enclosure that got damaged in transit, and they can’t afford the extra cost of repairs or delays. If you’re dealing with shipping your plastic enclosures, or if you just want to make sure you’re getting packaging that actually protects your investment, reach out to our team. We don’t just sell enclosures—we help you get them where they need to go, in one piece. We’re always happy to walk through your specific shipment needs, answer questions, and share more of the tricks we’ve learned over the years. Let’s work together to make sure your next order arrives on time and in perfect condition.
Metering Blocks References
- Institute of Packaging Professionals. (2022). Packaging for Industrial Equipment: Best Practices for Transit Protection.
- American Society for Testing and Materials. (2021). Standard Test Method for Edge Crush (ECT) of Corrugated Fiberboard.
- Plastics Industry Association. (2020). Material Properties of Polycarbonate and ABS for Shipping Applications.
- National Wooden Pallet & Container Association. (2023). Guidelines for Palletizing and Securing Freight for Long-Distance Transit.
Hangzhou Lingcheng Technology Co., Ltd.
We are one of the most professional plastic enclosures manufacturers and suppliers in China. With a professional production team, we are able to meet the needs of the majority of our customers. Please feel free to wholesale bulk high quality plastic enclosures from our factory. Customized orders are welcome.
Address: Room 1613, 16th Floor, Building 3, No. 99 Wangzhou Road, Liangzhu Street, Yuhang District, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province
E-mail: LCKJ0408@163.com
WebSite: https://www.lingchengelectric.com/
