Case Study

Case Study - Returnables
Expendable Packaging is widely used in the distribution of all kinds of goods. The purchase and disposal costs of Expendable Packaging are reasonable and certain. However, other factors such as handling cost, product damage, and environmental impact have allowed Returnable Packaging to make substantial inroads in some industries.
Returnable Packaging is usually much more expensive to purchase than Expendable Packaging, costing 5 to 10 times as much. But the cost difference is often justified by:

	re-use of the packaging again and again,
	improved handling,
	improved marketing,
	reduced product damage.

Re-use of packaging is vital to the success of all Returnable Packaging initiatives. In logistics circuits in which control and/or responsibility shifts between companies or departments as the packaging moves (“open loop”), it can be a challenging task to recapture and reuse the packaging and realize the utilization rates needed to cost-justify the investment.
The key to managing returnable packaging in an open loop is the tracking system. Many companies try to use spreadsheets or accounting systems to track returnable packaging and, after about a year or so, most find these tools to be inadequate. Qualsoft designed and produced RCS - Returnables Control System to fill this need.