Korrvu® Packaging Receives is Right Choice for Diploma Manufacturer

Sometimes the right protective package goes beyond ensuring product safety, and provides a marketable benefit for consumers as well. Such is the case with Sealed Air’s Korrvu® retention packaging and the licensed collegiate diploma manufacturer, Church Hill Classics (CHC).

CHC began as a home-based business in 1991 when the founder, Lucie Voves, started selling framed artwork of Dartmouth College from her home in Newton, Conn. Once Voves began selling her artwork through the Dartmouth alumni magazine, a demand was created for matching diploma frames. The company’s on-going growth led Voves and her husband to purchase a 47,000-square-foot building space in Monroe, Conn. in 2007. Today, CHC employs a staff of 65 and sells diploma frames for more than 1,000 colleges and universities across the country. The company also provides custom framing for Greek-letter organizations including honor societies, the military, professional associations and businesses.

Prerequisites for CHC’s Packaging
By 2007, CHC’s growth produced a need for a packaging solution that was not bulky, easy to carry, stackable and passed FedEx and UPS carrier testing. CHC also needed to ensure the new packaging method protected the glass frames as well as its previous method.

The packaging solution’s environmental profile was also a consideration. “Having an environmentally responsible packaging option for an on-campus environment is paramount,” said Voves. “The curbside recyclability of Korrvu® packaging made this method even more attractive to us and our customers.”

CHC was approached about using Korrvu® retention packaging by one of Sealed Air’s packaging distributors. A Sealed Air team, including a Korrvu® specialist, began working with CHC to develop a specialized solution for the company. During the customization process, Sealed Air created different prototypes in order to develop the package that is being used today.

Korrvu® Packaging Process 101
Korrvu® retention packaging uses a proprietary corrugated retention frame and elastomeric film to hold the frames securely in place during shipment. When the side flaps of the retention frame are folded up, the resilient film is loosened, creating an insertion pocket. The diploma frame is placed in the pocket between the film and corrugated retention frame. When the flaps are folded down, the film, which is attached to the corrugated frame, stretches over the diploma frame and holds it securely in place. Held safely in the Korrvu® retention packaging, the product is then placed in a corrugated shipping box.

The Korrvu® retention package allows CHC to simplify its assembly and packaging process. Once the diploma frames are assembled, CHC employees insert them under the film membrane of the Korrvu® retention packaging before placing them on a cart. An inspector reviews the frames for defects and assigns them to a packer that folds down the sides of the package, and inserts them into the easy-to-carry box.

Before adopting Korrvu® retention packaging, CHC had to wrap the assembled frames in protective material before putting them on a cart that was then moved to the packaging area, where the frames were put on a strapping machine. “With our old method of packaging, we were having a lot of bottle-neck problems between the assembly area and the packaging area,” said Voves.

Korrvu® Packaging Tests High
It was crucial that CHC’s new packaging method passed the independent testing done by major parcel carriers, so that their products could be insured during shipping. The Korrvu® retention packaging solution developed for CHC was sent to UPS and FedEx to undergo the testing, which included regulated test procedures with vibration and drop tests. “One of our carriers commented during the testing that they have had a lot of previous success with theKorrvu® packaging format,” said Voves.

Korrvu® Packaging Makes the Grade
One of the greatest results from CHC’s change to the Korrvu® retention package was that the space savings of Korrvu® packaging’s more efficient pre-use storing allowed the packaging process to take place in the same area as the framing tables. CHC was unable to do this in the past because it did not have enough space to store all of the old packaging supplies near the framing tables.

CHC also benefited from a 50 percent reduction in the labor necessary for packaging. “We used to have one packer for every table,” said Voves. “Now we only need one packer for every two tables.” In addition, the versatility of the Korrvu® retention package also allowed CHC to go from using eight different package sizes to three. CHC employees also have benefited from the new packaging. “Our employees say the new packaging format with the Korrvu® retention package is faster and easier than our old method,” said Voves.

The Smart Box Campaign Receives Extra Credit
While the company was originally looking for an effective and cost-efficient packaging solution to deliver its products to customers, CHC quickly found that the Korrvu® packaging was providing additional benefits to the customers themselves. “The package functions so favorably, we’ve even had customers ask if they can just purchase the boxes from us,” said Voves.

The Korrvu® retention package includes a handle for easy customer carry out and allows for visual inspection without completely unpacking the product. The Korrvu® retention package’s clear sleeve and slide-out design allows the package to be used for shipment and display.

The many customer benefits of the Korrvu® retention package led to CHC SMART Box
sales campaign which emphasizes the following package attributes:

– Slide out design
– Manage inventory
– Approved Shipper
– Re-packable
– Take-along tote

“The stores used to have to choose between a frame strapped in a display box or paying extra for a ship-ready frame carton,” said Voves. “Today SMART Box inventory is completely flexible and can be easily carried out of the store by the consumer or shipped. In challenging economic times, this has allowed our stores to manage their inventory more effectively and given us a competitive advantage.”

The Commencement of a Great Partnership
“Our business is constantly growing as we continue to develop new customers inside and outside of the collegiate business,” said Voves. “During this growth, it is important for us to have partners like Sealed Air that can most effectively meet our needs and the needs of our customers.”

And as CHC grows, Sealed Air continues to look for ways to develop products that fit the company’s unique needs to benefit both CHC and its customers.