Stretch Wrapper Selection: Machine Types, RFP and Acceptance Tests for Thai Factories

Stretch wrapper selection usually comes onto the agenda with a concern like this: “We wrap pallets by hand in the shipping area. It is hard on the operators, everyone wraps differently, loads collapse in transit and we get complaints, and film costs keep adding up.” We often hear this from production engineering managers and logistics/shipping managers at Japanese food and consumer-goods plants in Thailand, as well as electronic-component, auto-parts and plastic-molding plants.

Here is the conclusion up front. What determines the payback of a stretch wrapper is not “how many people it lets you cut.” It is “whether it can deliver the same film amount per pallet and the required containment force, every single time.” That is why, before choosing a model, you measure how much film your current hand wrapping uses and which load types are collapsing. Selection comes down to five decisions: (1) take inventory of your load types, (2) decide the machine type, (3) set targets for containment force and film amount, (4) design for safety, and (5) confirm in acceptance testing. If you decide in this order, your choice of machine type, your RFP and your acceptance tests are much less likely to drift.

Note that all shipping volumes, work times, film amounts, unit prices, investment amounts and payback periods in this article are this article’s own estimates and assumed values (placeholder values) based on the model factory described later. They are neither industry averages nor survey data. No primary vendor pricing information has been used either. Please read them as a “calculation template” to be replaced with your own measured values and quotations.

Why stretch wrapper selection matters now for factories in Thailand

Hand wrapping is “different every time”

Hand wrapping pallets requires no equipment and can be started right away. But over time, three problems surface.

The first is the burden on operators. They carry a roll of film and walk around the pallet many times, crouching to wrap the bottom tiers and stretching up to wrap the top. Keep this up for dozens of pallets a day, and the strain on backs and shoulders is not small. Many shipping areas likely run it with two people taking turns.

The second is variability. Even for the same load type, the number of wraps and how hard the film is pulled change depending on who is wrapping, the time of day and how busy it is. Veterans wrap tightly; newcomers, being cautious, wrap loosely. On busy days the number of wraps drops, and the week after a complaint it goes up “just to be safe.” This fluctuation shows up directly in both the risk of load collapse and film costs.

The third is that film consumption is not visible. Lantech, a stretch wrapper manufacturer, points out that many plants track OEE (overall equipment effectiveness), production counts and downtime, but do not track consumables such as stretch film, and tend to overwrap out of caution or underwrap because of inconsistent settings. This is a vendor’s claim, but how many plants could immediately answer “How many grams of film do we use per pallet?” in their shipping area?

In 2026, Lantech launched AMR-integrated machines

There is movement on the machine side as well. On February 2, 2026, Lantech launched two models, the SL400 and SL400LT, in North and South America. The SL400 is a type in which the load stays on the floor while the wrap arm rotates around it (the load does not rotate), and it is positioned for plants moving from hand wrapping to machine wrapping. The SL400LT is a model for manufacturing sites and more automated environments.

Then on September 30, 2026, the company announced the global launch of the SL400AMR, which can work with AMRs (autonomous mobile robots). It is said to feature “TurboTak,” which secures the film tail with a jet of air rather than heat or moving parts, and a “Load Seeking Clamp” that grips the film’s leading end to reduce film breaks, as well as an interface that clearly reports machine status back to the AMR. A working machine is scheduled to be demonstrated at PACK EXPO International 2026, held in Chicago on October 18–21, 2026. The description “no conveyors or ramps required, and no weight limit” is a vendor-published claim and comes with conditions. The announcement does not state pricing, lead times or support arrangements in Thailand.

What is interesting here is that the company’s CEO, in the February announcement, said in effect that “AMR compatibility is neither necessary nor practical for every application.” This overlaps with the approach of this article: rather than jumping on a new machine because it has come out, choose the type that fits your load types, volumes, and upstream and downstream material flow.

EU packaging rules and labor cost assumptions

Another background factor is regulation of packaging materials. The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) began to apply on August 12, 2026. For pallet wrapping, a decision was issued in 2026 exempting it from the 100% reuse requirement, but it remains included in the calculation of the 40% reuse target. We sort this out in a later section, but plants shipping to Europe may receive questions from customers or importers about film usage and material.

Labor cost assumptions are also gradually shifting. Thailand’s minimum wage, as of the revision effective July 1, 2025, is THB 337–400 per day, varying by province. The wage ceiling for social security was also raised from January 1, 2026. There is little prospect that the burden of hand wrapping will become lighter in the future, and the reasons to consider labor saving in the shipping area are growing.

However, as the model estimate later shows, what drives payback is film amount more than labor cost. With that in mind, let us look at the machine types.

What is a stretch wrapper: four machine types, and semi-automatic vs fully automatic

Stretch wrapper basics

A stretch wrapper is a machine that wraps stretch film around a load stacked on a pallet, binding it into a single unit so it does not collapse during transport. The difference from hand wrapping is that the film stretching force (tension), number of wraps and wrapping height can be reproduced identically every time through settings. Many machines have a “pre-stretch” mechanism that stretches the film with rollers before it is applied to the load, and are designed to produce the necessary tightening with less film.

Machine types fall broadly into four, depending on whether the load is rotated or the film is moved around the load, and how it is moved.

Turntable vs rotary arm stretch wrapper: the differences

Lantech lists four criteria for choosing between turntable and straddle (rotary arm) types: (1) product type, weight and variety, (2) floor space, (3) budget and cost, and (4) required production speed. According to the company’s explanation, straddle is suited to heavy or fragile loads and turntable to standard loads; turntable suits tight spaces, while straddle requires a large installation space. On cost, the company says turntables have lower initial cost, while straddle machines deliver efficiency over the long term in high-volume applications.

Examples of ring and self-propelled types

As an example of the rotary ring type used on high-speed lines, Robopac’s “Genesis Thunder/2” is stated to handle up to 160 pallets/hour. This is a vendor-published value and varies with load size and conditions.

As an example of the self-propelled type, there is Robopac’s “Robot S7,” which according to values listed by a distributor handles up to 30 loads/hour, with film stretch variable from 0 to 500% (the maximum of 30 loads/hour is for standard pallet dimensions; the stretch range differs depending on the carriage configuration). Both are cited as examples to illustrate the differences between types, not as recommendations or comparisons. Nor do they mean that the same values will be achieved with your loads.

Semi-automatic and fully automatic

Separate from machine type, there is the axis of “how far to automate.” In Lantech’s product category description, semi-automatic machines are stand-alone machines with capacity of up to around 40 loads per hour, suited to low-volume applications or large warehouses lining up multiple units. Fully automatic machines are controlled by a PLC with loads conveyed in and out, and are usually integrated into the production line. This “up to 40 loads per hour” is a general description of the company’s category as a whole and is not a value that applies as-is to other companies or other models.

With semi-automatic, people are still left with the tasks of loading with a forklift, attaching the film’s leading end to the load, starting the machine, and then cutting the film and finishing the tail. With fully automatic, loads flow in from the upstream conveyor, and wrapped loads come out at the conveyor exit. If there is a palletizer upstream, considering it together with robotic palletizer selection aligns capacity and staging space across the whole line.

Decide the machine type starting from a load-type inventory

Build a “load-type list” before choosing a type

The first thing to do in stretch wrapper selection is not to collect catalogs but to take inventory of your own load types. List the load types you ship and fill in the following items.

• Pallet dimensions and height after stacking (minimum and maximum)
• Weight per pallet (minimum and maximum)
• Stacking pattern (interlocked, column-stacked or mixed)
• Load stability (does it stay intact when rotated; are the upper tiers light and unstable?)
• Number of product/load-type variants and changeover frequency
• Daily shipping volume and volume during peak hours
• Destination (domestic or export, transport mode, whether any goes to the EU)

This list can be used as-is for the type decision, for the RFP you will write later, and for the acceptance-test evaluation set. In plants with many variants, rather than listing everything, selecting three representatives, “the heaviest load,” “the tallest load” and “the most unstable load,” makes the later steps easier.

Unstable loads and weight guidelines

It is a somewhat old source, but a 2012 article in Logistics Management gives several guidelines for choosing a type. One is that unstable loads, such as mixed pallets or column-stacked cases that are not interlocked, are not stable enough to be rotated on a turntable. Rotary arm types can handle both stable and unstable loads, but cost more.

On weight, the article says turntables handle loads of up to around 3,000–5,000 pounds, and beyond that wear on the drive system increases. Conversely, it says light loads under 500 pounds require special measures to hold the load in place during rotation. As this is general guidance as of 2012, confirm specific limits in each vendor’s specifications. Even so, the idea that turntables have caveats for both “too heavy” and “too light” loads is still useful today.

Floor space and traffic flow

Because the arm rotates around the load, rotary arm types need a larger installation space. Draw the column positions in the shipping area, forklift aisles and the flow to the truck loading point onto the floor plan, and decide even the direction in which loads go in and out before narrowing down the type. If you go fully automatic, you also need conveyor length and a place to temporarily stage wrapped loads. We cover conveyor layout in conveyor design basics, and equipment selection for the shipping area as a whole in material handling equipment selection.

Decision guidelines

Here is the discussion so far summarized as a decision flow.

• Loads are stable, weight is moderate, volume is low → start by considering a semi-automatic turntable type
• There are unstable, heavy or fragile loads → consider a rotary arm type
• Volume is high and you want to connect to an upstream palletizer or downstream conveyance → consider fully automatic (rotary arm, and on high-speed lines also ring type)
• The installation location is hard to fix, or load sizes vary → include the self-propelled type as a candidate (confirm capacity and charging operations in the model’s specifications)

Whatever the type, what matters in the end is “whether it can deliver the required containment force with less film, the same way every time.” The next section looks at how to decide this.

Film and containment force: pre-stretch film reduction and how to decide on load collapse prevention

How much does pre-stretch reduce?

Pre-stretch is a mechanism that stretches film using the speed difference between rollers before it is wrapped onto the load. Because you can draw a longer length of film from a roll of the same weight, it is said to reduce usage.

Here is an example from vendor material. A Handle-It document states “film usage reduced by up to 60%” for machines equipped with a powered pre-stretch carriage. However, this is a conditional value based on the assumption that “about 105 feet of film is used per load without pre-stretch, and 30 feet with powered pre-stretch.” Many of the models listed in the same document have a 250% pre-stretch mechanism.

The important thing is not to apply this reduction rate directly to your own plant. How much your current hand wrapping uses differs completely from plant to plant. A plant that overwraps by hand will see a large reduction; a plant that already wraps with a small amount will see a small one. That is precisely why, before looking at machines, you need to weigh your current rolls and work out the actual usage per pallet.

Cast and blown

Stretch film comes in cast and blown varieties, depending on the manufacturing method. According to Lantech, about 70–80% of stretch film production is cast and about 20–30% is blown. Blown film is made by extruding through a circular die and blowing in air to form a large bubble, while cast film is made by extruding through a straight die and casting it onto a large chill roll.

According to the company, blown film tends to have strong puncture resistance and high cling, and is somewhat louder when unwound. Cast film tends to be clear and glossy and quieter when unwound. Choose according to your circumstances, such as whether many of your loads have sharp corners or protrusions, or whether you want to see the contents of the load from outside. Since film properties differ from product to product, the reliable approach is to test candidate films on your actual loads and machines.

What is containment force?

Alongside film amount, the other thing to decide in advance is “containment force.” Lantech defines containment force as “the total force applied at one point on the load.” Put another way, it is how much force the film exerts to hold the load tight.

If containment force is insufficient, loads are more likely to collapse due to vibration or sudden braking in transit. Conversely, if it is too strong, boxes may be crushed or extra film may be used. Containment force is determined by the combination of film amount (number of wraps and thickness), the pre-stretch rate and the tension during wrapping.

Set the containment force target from “loads that are working now”

So how much containment force should you aim for? Lantech’s approach is simple. The company cites “Use what works” as the “golden rule” of containment force, and says it should be determined by testing in actual shipments while running an improvement cycle.

As for measurement, for tall loads containment force is measured at three points: top, middle and bottom. The company’s chief engineer says the minimum containment force measured on loads that shipped in good condition should be made the target “standard.” In other words, you measure several pallets that are currently arriving without collapse under hand wrapping, and take the lowest value among them as the benchmark meaning “at or above this, it is fine.”

This article does not give a recommended containment force as a number. The required value varies greatly with load weight, box strength, stacking pattern, transport distance and road conditions. Measuring with your own loads and creating your own standard is the most reliable way to prevent load collapse.

Even with a machine, overwrapping wipes out the benefit

Something that often happens after installing a machine is increasing the number of wraps “just to be safe.” When a single load-collapse complaint comes in, the setting is turned up a notch and never goes back. In this way, film amount creeps up and the reduction expected at installation disappears.

To prevent this, set target values for containment force and film amount, confirm them in acceptance testing, and keep measuring and recording them periodically after start-up. Lantech claims that stretch film optimization is “the fastest and lowest-risk way to reduce plastic today.” This is a vendor’s claim, but the idea of treating film as a managed metric is worth adopting.

Stretch wrapper cost and ROI: model estimate

From here, we estimate costs and benefits for a fictional model factory. To repeat, all of the following figures are this article’s own estimates and assumed values (placeholder values). They are neither industry averages nor survey data, and no primary vendor pricing information has been used.

Common assumptions (Model Factory P)

• A Japanese packaging-materials plant in eastern Thailand serving consumer goods and food
• Shipments of 120 pallets per day, 300 operating days per year, for 36,000 pallets per year
• Currently hand wrapped. Operator time per pallet is 4 minutes (two people taking turns); film is 0.60 kg/pallet (assumed)
• Film unit price THB 70/kg (assumed); operator labor cost THB 80/hour including social security etc. (assumed)
• Film amount for machine wrapping (assuming a 250% pre-stretch machine) is 0.30 kg/pallet (assumed)

The 0.30 kg for machine wrapping is not the result of directly applying the reduction rate in the Handle-It document introduced earlier. It is a placeholder value for the purpose of the estimate.

Option A: one semi-automatic turntable machine

• Initial cost THB 900,000 (machine, installation and training, assumed); annual maintenance THB 50,000 (assumed)
• Operator time of 1.5 minutes per pallet (loading, attaching film, starting, cutting)
• Labor-hour benefit: 120 × (4 − 1.5) = 300 minutes = 5 hours per day. × 300 days = 1,500 hours. × THB 80 = THB 120,000 per year
• Film benefit: 36,000 × (0.60 − 0.30) = 10,800 kg. × THB 70 = THB 756,000 per year
• Annual benefit is 876,000; subtracting maintenance of 50,000 gives an annual net of THB 826,000
• Payback is 900,000 ÷ 826,000 = approx. 1.1 years

Option B: fully automatic in-line (rotary arm + conveyor)

• Initial cost THB 4,500,000 (machine, conveyor, controls and installation, assumed); annual maintenance THB 150,000 (assumed)
• Operator time for wrapping is zero. The forklift only picks up loads at the conveyor exit, and forklift time is assumed to be unchanged
• Labor-hour benefit: 120 × 4 = 480 minutes = 8 hours per day. × 300 days = 2,400 hours. × THB 80 = THB 192,000 per year
• Film benefit: same as Option A, THB 756,000 per year
• Annual benefit is 948,000; subtracting maintenance of 150,000 gives an annual net of THB 798,000
• Payback is 4,500,000 ÷ 798,000 = approx. 5.6 years

Sensitivity: what if current hand wrapping is actually 0.40 kg/pallet?

Of the assumptions, the most uncertain is “how many kg your current hand wrapping uses.” Suppose that when measured it turned out to be 0.40 kg/pallet (with machine wrapping still at 0.30 kg).

• Film benefit: 36,000 × 0.10 = 3,600 kg. × THB 70 = THB 252,000 per year
• Option A: 120,000 + 252,000 = 372,000. Subtracting maintenance of 50,000 gives a net of 322,000. Payback approx. 2.8 years
• Option B: 192,000 + 252,000 = 444,000. Subtracting maintenance of 150,000 gives a net of 294,000. Payback approx. 15.3 years

Summary of the estimate

Takeaway 1: film amount, not labor cost, drives payback

In both Option A and Option B, most of the annual benefit comes from film. The labor-hour benefit is THB 120,000 per year in Option A and THB 192,000 per year in Option B, whereas the film benefit is THB 756,000 per year. And simply changing the hand-wrapping film amount from 0.60 kg to 0.40 kg extends the payback of Option A from approx. 1.1 years to approx. 2.8 years, and of Option B from approx. 5.6 years to approx. 15.3 years.

That is why weighing your current rolls before you buy and working out the actual usage per pallet is the first task of selection. All it takes is weighing a roll before wrapping and again after wrapping a number of pallets, then dividing the difference by the number of pallets wrapped. If you keep a few days of records by load type and by operator, both the average and the variation become visible.

Takeaway 2: at 120 pallets a day, the extra cost of full automation cannot be recovered through labor cost

Option B costs about THB 3,600,000 more upfront than Option A. Meanwhile, the difference in labor-hour benefit is only THB 72,000 per year. Moreover, because the difference in maintenance cost is THB 100,000 per year, on an annual-net basis Option B comes out THB 28,000 per year lower than Option A. At a shipping volume of around 120 pallets a day, the extra cost of full automation cannot be recovered through the difference in labor cost.

Full automation is chosen when there are other reasons. For example, when shipping volume is much higher, when you want to connect to an upstream palletizer and run it as a line, or when you want to run shipment preparation unattended at night. We discuss the overall investment approach including palletizing in palletizing robot implementation, and points to watch when assuming unattended night operation in night unattended operation.

Takeaway 3: labor-hour benefits turn into money only when the time goes to other work

In the estimate, freed-up operator time is multiplied by the labor cost rate. But if the freed-up time becomes idle waiting, the actual monetary benefit is zero. Decide before installation whether shipping-area operators can move to labeling, inspection or loading preparation, or be reassigned to other processes.

Takeaway 4: reductions in load collapse are not included in the monetary figures

Once containment force is made consistent by machine wrapping, a reduction in load-collapse and damage complaints can be expected. However, this estimate does not monetize the reduction in load collapse as a benefit. If you add it as a benefit at a stage where you have no data on current complaint counts or loss amounts, weakly grounded figures make the payback look shorter, which easily leads to overestimation or double counting. Record the reduction in load collapse in writing as an “upside factor,” and evaluate it once actual results come in after start-up.

Cautions to avoid double counting

Labor hours (operator time) and film (material cost) are separate cost items, so adding them together is fine. On the other hand, increases in production or sales, such as “wrapping time is shorter so shipments increase and sales rise,” are not added in this estimate. Shipping volume is determined by demand and does not increase just because a wrapper is installed. For the general approach to investment decisions on robots and FA equipment, see also ROI of robot implementation.

Safety design: EN 415-6 and on-site safety functions

Safety standard for pallet wrapping machines

In Europe there is EN 415-6, one of the safety standards for packaging machinery, which covers pallet wrapping machines. DIN EN 415-6, September 2013 edition, specifies safety requirements for the design, manufacture, installation, commissioning, operation, adjustment, maintenance and cleaning of pallet wrapping machines, and is a standard that supports conformity with the EU Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC. Its scope includes not only stretch-film pallet wrapping machines but also mobile stretch-film wrapping machines and semi-automatic self-propelled stretch-film wrapping machines. On the other hand, pallet strapping machines (banding machines) fall within the scope of EN 415-8 and are outside the scope of EN 415-6.

In the United States there is ANSI/PMMI B155.1-2023 as a safety standard for packaging machinery, and according to commentary, responsibility for risk assessment and risk reduction lies with both the machine supplier and the user. For plants in Thailand it serves as a reference, but the idea that “safety is not solely the machine manufacturer’s responsibility” is worth remembering.

Which standards and regulations must be complied with in Thailand depends on the type of machine and the conditions of the plant. Please confirm individually with the competent authorities, experts and certification bodies. Specific requirements such as performance levels for safety controls are also to be determined by the standards themselves and expert judgment, and this article does not draw conclusions on them.

Hazards and safety functions

Lantech lists the hazards of stretch wrappers as the rotating turntable, the film carriage under tension, moving arms, conveyors, unexpected start-up or sudden stops, and film breaks or jams. It then lists the following as the main safety functions.

• Emergency stop
• Fixed guards and interlocked doors
• Intrusion detection with light curtains, laser scanners and safety mats
• Soft start/soft stop and jam detection
• Lockout/tagout (LOTO) points and safety PLC

With a semi-automatic turntable machine, operators approach the machine to attach and cut the film. Build into the procedures where people are when the machine starts, and who fixes it and how if the film breaks mid-wrap. With fully automatic machines, identify the situations in which people enter the guarded area (film roll changes, clearing jams, cleaning) and design them together with LOTO procedures. For the approach to fences and doors, the article on robot safety fence standards is also useful.

12 items to include in a stretch wrapper RFP

When requesting quotations from vendors, write out the following 12 items consistently. If you collect quotations without aligned assumptions, you cannot compare either capacity or price.

1. Load-type list and volumes: pallet dimensions, height, weight, stacking pattern, stability, number of variants, daily volume
2. Type and installation space: the preferred type (or the types you want compared), the shipping-area floor plan, and the direction loads go in and out
3. Capacity: average daily volume and volume per hour during peak hours
4. Pre-stretch and containment force adjustment/recording: pre-stretch rate, tension adjustment range, how containment force is set and recorded
5. Film specifications and target amount per pallet: type, thickness and width of film used; target grams for each load type
6. Number of recipes and changeover: how many wrapping patterns can be registered per load type; changeover procedure and time
7. Tail treatment and film-break countermeasures: method of cutting the film and securing the tail; detection and recovery when a film break occurs
8. Safety functions and applicable standards: emergency stop, guards, interlocks, intrusion detection, LOTO, applicable standards and the basis for conformity
9. Upstream/downstream connections: signal exchange with conveyors, palletizers, AMRs, forklifts and WMS
10. Data output: in what format the number of loads wrapped, film usage, and the number and causes of stops can be retrieved
11. Thai-language screens and training: language of the operating screens and manuals; content and number of training sessions for operators and maintenance staff
12. Local maintenance and consumables inventory: technician setup in Thailand, response time, inventory of consumables such as pre-stretch rollers

Item 9, “upstream/downstream connections,” is especially important if you go fully automatic. Upstream, the wrapper connects to case packing (case packing automation), palletizing and empty-pallet supply (pallet dispenser selection); downstream, to shipping-label application (automatic label applicator selection) and conveyance (automated forklifts). Decide at the RFP stage which machine outputs which signals and who integrates the whole. We summarize the approach to designing the packaging line as a whole in packaging line automation.

Confirming load collapse prevention in acceptance testing (FAT/SAT)

Build the evaluation set first

Acceptance testing is carried out in two stages: FAT (factory acceptance test) at the vendor’s factory and SAT (site acceptance test) in your own shipping area. The key is to run the same procedure in FAT and SAT.

First, prepare three representative load types of your own: the heaviest load, the tallest load and the most unstable load. For FAT, bring your actual loads or equivalent dummy loads; for SAT, use actual loads in your own shipping area. All target figures and methods of setting them given here are placeholder target examples. They are not values set by any standard.

Metrics to check

1. Film amount: weigh the roll and calculate the average over 10 pallets. Example target: “within the grams per pallet set in the specification”
2. Containment force: measure at three points, top, middle and bottom. Set the target as “at or above the minimum value for loads that shipped in good condition with hand wrapping”
3. Cycle time: whether it can handle the daily volume and the volume during peak hours
4. Tail treatment and film breaks: for example, the number of film breaks when wrapping 100 consecutive pallets; the plant decides the pass criteria
5. Load height and product changeover: time required to switch recipes, and whether there are changeover errors
6. Safety functions: actually trigger the emergency stop, interlocked doors and intrusion detection, and confirm each one works
7. Simple tilt/vibration test: a simple check of whether the load withstands vibration and tilting during transport

Load stability, and the approach for EU-bound loads

For the tilt/vibration test in item 7, Annex III of EU Directive 2014/47/EU is a useful reference for EU-bound loads. This annex requires that cargo securing withstand, as forces arising from vehicle acceleration and deceleration, 0.8 times the weight of the cargo in the forward direction, 0.5 times sideways and 0.5 times rearward, preventing the cargo from tilting or tipping over. Since this is a provision for roadside inspections within the EU, it does not directly apply to transport within Thailand, but it can serve as a reference for design targets for EU-bound load configurations.

The same annex lists EUMOS 40509 as a standard applicable to transport packaging. EUMOS 40509 is a dynamic test method that uses an acceleration bench to reproduce the motion from acceleration, cornering and braking and evaluates whether a load configuration remains stable during transport; it was revised in 2020. The evaluation covers both elastic deformation during the test and permanent deformation remaining after the test. The specific pass/fail criteria need to be confirmed in the standard itself, and this article does not give figures. ISTA 3E, a test for unit loads on pallets transported by truck, has also been recently revised.

If testing in accordance with a standard is required, do not settle for an in-house simple test; please consult a third-party testing laboratory. It is also important to confirm in advance the test methods and criteria your customers require.

Keep measuring once a month after start-up

Passing the acceptance test is not the end. After start-up, measure and record film amount and containment force at least once a month. The condition of loads and handling of film may change with the seasons, and, as mentioned earlier, film amount may creep up through “just to be safe” setting changes. With records, when a complaint comes in you can decide by the numbers whether the settings should be changed. A reduction in load collapse can also be evaluated only by putting these records side by side with complaint counts.

Issues specific to Thailand and ASEAN

1. Labor cost context

Thailand’s minimum wage, as of the revision effective July 1, 2025, is THB 337–400 per day. THB 400 applies to Bangkok, Chachoengsao, Chonburi, Phuket, Rayong and Koh Samui, as well as to the hotel and entertainment businesses nationwide; the lowest, THB 337, applies to Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala. In the east, Chonburi, Rayong and Chachoengsao fall on the THB 400 side.

The wage ceiling used to calculate social security contributions had been held at THB 15,000 since 1995, but was raised to THB 17,500 from January 1, 2026, making the monthly contribution THB 875 each for employer and employee. The ceiling is scheduled to rise in stages to THB 20,000 in 2029 and THB 23,000 in 2032. It is hard to imagine the burden of hand wrapping becoming lighter in terms of labor cost in the future.

Incidentally, Thailand’s electricity tariff for the September–December 2026 billing period is reported to average 3.95 baht/unit (excluding VAT), but the electricity cost of a wrapper is small in the overall picture, so there is no need to give it much weight in selection.

2. Heat, humidity and film management

Shipping areas in Thailand are hot and humid. As a general precaution, film rolls should be stored away from direct sunlight and high temperatures. Keep records after acceptance as well to confirm that the wrapping result does not change with the seasons. The monthly measurement records are also useful for checking this.

3. Export-destination requirements: the EU PPWR

The EU PPWR (Regulation (EU) 2025/40) has applied since August 12, 2026. Article 29 sets out rules on the reuse of transport packaging. Article 29(1) requires economic operators that use transport packaging to transport products within the EU to ensure that, from January 1, 2030, at least 40% in total is reusable packaging, and from January 1, 2040, sets an aspirational target of at least 70%. Pallet wrapping and straps are also covered by this.

On the other hand, Article 29(2) and (3) require 100% reuse, for example between sites of the same operator. On this point, Delegated Decision (EU) 2026/429, adopted on February 25, 2026, exempted pallet wrapping and straps from the 100% reuse requirement. It was published in the Official Journal on May 6, 2026 and entered into force on May 26, 2026. However, pallet wrapping remains included in the calculation of the 40% target under Article 29(1). Industry association commentary cites, as background to the exemption, that the market for reusable alternatives is not sufficiently developed and that many logistics and industrial companies would face substantial adaptation costs.

In addition, PPWR Article 7 requires plastic packaging to contain a certain percentage of post-consumer recycled content, set for “other plastic packaging” at 35% in 2030 (or three years after the entry into force of the relevant implementing act, whichever is later) and 65% in 2040. Whether stretch film may fall into this category needs to be confirmed, including the annexes and exclusion provisions.

Note that the reuse obligation under Article 29 falls on economic operators that use transport packaging within the EU. Whether these obligations, including Article 7, apply directly to Thai exporters depends on how the transaction is structured, and this article does not draw a conclusion. However, you may be asked, via customers or importers, for film with recycled content, a switch to thinner film or reports on usage. Recording film amount per pallet makes it easier to answer such questions. For specific responses, please confirm individually with the competent authorities, experts and your customers. In Thailand too, the Pollution Control Department is reported to be advancing an action plan on plastic waste management.

4. Power outages, voltage and recovery procedures

The quality of the plant’s power supply affects stable machine operation. As a general procedure, decide how to handle a partially wrapped load when the machine stops due to a power outage or momentary voltage dip, and in what order to restore operation after an emergency stop. For fully automatic setups, include the handling of loads left on the conveyor in the procedure.

5. Local maintenance and consumables

Carriages and pre-stretch rollers are wear parts. Whether there is inventory in Thailand and how many hours it takes a technician to arrive greatly affect the impact of a stoppage. Whether operating screens and manuals are available in Thai is also essential for getting the shop floor to stick to the settings. Be sure to confirm these through items 11 and 12 of the RFP.

6. See machines in person at trade shows

The best way to get a real feel for the differences between types is to see actual machines. In Thailand, ProPak Asia 2027, a trade show for packaging and processing machinery, is scheduled to be held at IMPACT, Muang Thong Thani, on June 9–12, 2027. Bringing photos, dimensions and weights of your representative load types and asking vendors specific questions makes comparison easier.

7. Apply the same approach to sites in Vietnam

At other ASEAN sites such as Vietnam, the same approach—load-type inventory, measuring film amount, setting a containment force standard and acceptance testing—can be used as-is. Laws on labor costs, safety and the environment differ by country, so please confirm them individually.

90-day plan for stretch wrapper selection

Days 0–30: Measure

• Load-type inventory (dimensions, height, weight, stacking pattern, stability, variants, volumes)
• Measure hand-wrapping film amount (weigh the rolls and work out the amount per pallet by load type and by operator)
• Measure the time it takes to wrap one pallet
• Compile the number and details of load-collapse and damage complaints

Days 31–60: Compare

• Compare types (turntable, rotary arm, ring, self-propelled; semi-automatic or fully automatic)
• Ask 2–3 vendors to run actual-load tests with your three representative load types
• Measure the containment force of loads currently shipping in good condition with hand wrapping, and set the target standard
• Prepare the RFP (12 items)

Days 61–90: Decide

• Finalize FAT pass criteria (film amount, containment force, cycle time, film breaks, safety functions)
• Rebuild the model estimate using measured values and make the purchase decision
• Plan the SAT, plan training for operators and maintenance staff, and assign responsibility for post-start-up monthly measurements

The “hand-wrapping film amount” measured in the first 30 days is the foundation of this entire plan. Skip it, and both the payback period and the acceptance-test targets become numbers without basis.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

What is a stretch wrapper? How is it different from hand wrapping?

It is a machine that wraps stretch film around a load stacked on a pallet to hold it together so it does not collapse during transport. The biggest difference from hand wrapping is that the film stretch rate, tension, number of wraps and wrapping height can be reproduced identically every time through settings. Many machines have a pre-stretch mechanism and are designed to produce the necessary tightening with less film. Beyond reducing the burden on operators, a major advantage is that it reduces variation in how loads are wrapped.

How should I choose between a turntable and a rotary arm stretch wrapper?

Lantech lists four criteria: product type, weight and variety; floor space; budget; and required speed. If your loads are stable and standard, volumes are low, and you want to keep initial cost and installation space down, a turntable type is a candidate; if you have unstable, heavy or fragile loads, a rotary arm type is a candidate. A 2012 trade-magazine article also says that unstable loads such as mixed or column-stacked pallets cannot be rotated on a turntable. First take inventory of your own load types, and decide based on the heaviest, the tallest and the most unstable loads.

How much film does pre-stretch save?

Vendor materials contain statements such as “reduced by up to 60%,” but these are conditional values based on assumptions such as “about 105 feet without pre-stretch and 30 feet with pre-stretch.” The actual reduction varies greatly depending on how much your current hand wrapping uses. Before installation, the reliable approach is to weigh your rolls to work out the actual usage per pallet, and then wrap the same loads on candidate machines and compare.

What are typical stretch wrapper installation costs and payback periods?

In this article’s model estimate (all placeholder values), for a plant shipping 120 pallets a day, payback was approx. 1.1 years for a semi-automatic turntable machine (initial cost THB 900,000) and approx. 5.6 years for a fully automatic in-line system (initial cost THB 4,500,000). However, if hand-wrapping film amount is 0.40 kg/pallet rather than 0.60 kg, these extend to approx. 2.8 years and approx. 15.3 years respectively. As this is a calculation template rather than an industry average, please recalculate with your own measured values and quotations.

What should acceptance testing check for load collapse prevention?

Prepare three load types—the heaviest, the tallest and the most unstable—and run the same procedure in FAT and SAT. The metrics to check are film amount (average over 10 pallets), containment force (at three points: top, middle and bottom), cycle time, tail treatment and film breaks, product changeover, operation of safety functions, and a simple tilt/vibration test. A practical way to set the containment force target is “at or above the minimum value for loads that shipped in good condition with hand wrapping.” If testing in accordance with a standard is required, please consult a third-party testing laboratory.

Will stretch film become unusable under the EU packaging regulation (PPWR)?

It is important to look separately at what has been decided. Under the 2026 Delegated Decision (EU) 2026/429, pallet wrapping and straps were exempted from the 100% reuse requirement in PPWR Article 29(2) and (3). However, they remain included in the calculation of the 40% reuse target from 2030. The obligation falls on economic operators that use transport packaging within the EU, and whether it applies directly to Thai exporters depends on how the transaction is structured. Since customers may ask for film with recycled content or reports on usage, please confirm individually with the competent authorities, experts and your customers.

Summary

• What determines payback in stretch wrapper selection is not headcount reduction, but whether the machine can deliver the same film amount per pallet and the required containment force every time
• The order of decisions is five steps: load-type inventory, type decision, targets for containment force and film amount, safety design, and confirmation in acceptance testing
• There are four types: turntable, rotary arm, ring and self-propelled. The choice largely depends on whether you have unstable or heavy loads
• Vendor figures are maximum or conditional values, and the same values will not necessarily be achieved with your loads
• In the model estimate (placeholder values), payback is approx. 1.1 years for a semi-automatic turntable machine and approx. 5.6 years for fully automatic in-line. If hand-wrapping film amount is 0.40 kg, these extend to approx. 2.8 years and approx. 15.3 years respectively
• That is why you weigh your current hand-wrapping film amount before buying. After installation, too, measure and record containment force and film amount once a month
• Proceed while confirming safety standards, the EU PPWR and Thai regulations individually with the competent authorities, experts and certification bodies

You are welcome to start with load-type inventory, how to measure your current hand-wrapping film amount, or drafting the RFP and acceptance criteria. If you are considering shipping-area automation or introducing a stretch wrapper at a plant in Thailand, we can help you sort things out from the very first stage of your review. Please feel free to reach out via our contact page.

References

• Lantech, global launch of the SL400AMR (September 30, 2026): https://www.lantech.com/r4/news/lantech-launches-sl400amr-integrated-stretch-wrapper-globally/
• Lantech, launch of the SL400/SL400LT and AMR-integrated solutions (February 2, 2026): https://www.lantech.com/r4/news/lantech-launches-amr-integrated-stretch-wrapping-solutions-and-introduces-sl400-and-sl400lt-for-sale/
• Lantech, Turntable or straddle: four things to consider: https://www.lantech.com/turntable-or-straddle-stretch-wrapper-four-things-to-consider/
• Lantech, semi-automatic machine product description: https://www.lantech.com/r4/news/lantech-introduces-the-next%e2%80%91generation-semi%e2%80%91automatic-stretch-wrappers-sl400-and-sl400lt/
• Logistics Management, How to pick the right stretch wrapper (June 1, 2012): https://www.logisticsmgmt.com/article/packaging_corner_how_to_pick_the_right_stretch_wrapper
• Robopac Genesis Thunder/2 (Food Processing): https://foodprocessing.com.au/content/packaging-labelling-coding/product/robopac-genesis-thunder-2-rotary-ring-wrapper-574180478
• Robopac Robot S7 (WSI Machinery): https://www.wsimachinery.com/products/robopac-robot-s7
• Lantech, the golden rule of containment force: https://www.lantech.com/do-you-know-the-golden-rule-of-containment-force/
• Lantech, how to figure out the right containment force for your loads: https://www.lantech.com/how-to-figure-out-the-right-containment-force-for-your-loads/
• Handle-It, Stretch Wrapper ROI (PDF hosted by Cisco-Eagle): https://www.cisco-eagle.com/uploads/Handle-It/Stretch-Wrapper-ROI.pdf
• Lantech, Blown vs cast: how is stretch film made: https://www.lantech.com/blown-vs-cast-how-is-stretch-film-made/
• Lantech, film optimization and sustainability: https://www.lantech.com/r4/guide/4-ways-to-impact-sustainability-with-film-optimization/
• EU Directive 2014/47/EU (EUR-Lex): https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32014L0047
• EUMOS, revision of EUMOS 40509 (June 26, 2020): https://intern.eumos.eu/eumos-takes-cargo-testing-for-safe-transport-to-the-highest-level/
• Lansmont, EUMOS 40509: https://www.lansmont.com/standards/eumos-40509
• ISTA, revision of ISTA 3E: https://ista.org/news_manager.php?page=31493
• DIN EN 415-6 (DIN): https://din.de/en/wdc-beuth:din21:186757107
• Lantech, stretch wrapping equipment safety features: https://www.lantech.com/stretch-wrapping-equipment-safety-features/
• Regulation (EU) 2025/40 (PPWR, EUR-Lex): https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=OJ:L_202500040
• Commission Delegated Decision (EU) 2026/429 (EUR-Lex): https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32026D0429
• NATUR-PACK, exemption of pallet wrapping films and straps from reuse requirements: https://www.naturpack.sk/en/news/ppwr-reusability-exemption-for-pallet-wrapping-films-and-straps/
• IBEBVI, exemption for pallet wrappings and straps under the PPWR (February 25, 2026): https://www.ibebvi.com/blog/legislation-4/exemption-for-pallet-wrappings-and-straps-under-the-ppwr-171
• Thailand minimum wage revision (DLA Piper, July 2025): https://www.dlapiper.com/insights/publications/2025/07/thailand-increases-minimum-wage-across-all-provinces
• Thailand social security wage ceiling increase (Baker McKenzie, December 2025): https://www.bakermckenzie.com/en/insight/publications/alerts/2025/12/thailand-higher-wage-base-for-ssf-contributions
• Thailand electricity tariff, September–December 2026 (The Nation Thailand): https://www.nationthailand.com/news/general/40068945
• ProPak Asia 2027 event overview (ThaiPR.net, June 19, 2026): https://www.thaipr.net/en/manufacturing_en/3732314