Packaging

Packaging levels

Product packaging are organized in 3 levels, defined by Wikipedia as:

Primary packaging

This type of packaging is generally identified as the consumer sales unit (CSU), which means the smallest quantity offered to the consumer. It can be the consumer sales unit directly, but in most cases, it refers to a consumer units reunification into a commercial lot (Example : a carboard pack made of 12 natural yogurts). This packaging wraps the minimal products quantity which a client can buy: it will be removed by the final consumer.

According to the 94/62/CE directive « Packaging and packaging wastes » : « The primary packaging is the packaging conceived to form, on the ales outlet, a sales unit for the final user or the consumer ».

Secondary packaging

The secondary packaging gathers intermediary grouping of CSU which should be easily handling and movable to the store shelves by distributors or sales outlet operators (e.g. American box). This packaging is studied to facilitate the layout and the recycling done by the distributor.

The most common secondary packaging:

  • Carton packs with easy opening or opening with flaps ;
  • Boxes or flow-packs allowing the gathering during promotions.

According to the 94/62/CE directive « Packaging and packaging wastes » : « The secondary packaging is the packaging designed to constitute, at the sales outlet, a group with a great number of CSU » .

  • Whether it is sold unaltered to the final user or the consumer ;
  • Whether it only helps to fill the sales outlet displays,

It must be removed from the product without having its characteristics altered ».

Tertiary packaging

It corresponds to logistics handling variants packaging : these ones allow the transportation of a huge quantity of products to stores or to the industrial. It can be complete pallets from a single reference, of « variegated » pallets (comprising a determined range), and their accessories (films, identification labeling, shrouds, angle iron, etc).

The most common tertiary packaging:

  • transportation boxes (American box);
  • pallets;
  • retractable films ; logistics labels, etc.

Packaging formulation

The packaging formulation allows the calculation of :

  • The cost linked to the packagings ;
  • Tares, net weights and gross weights by packaging level ;
  • Dimensions by packaging level ;

Simple packagings

To add simple packagings to a product, there are two possibilities :

  • Go to the product « Packaging » section and click on the arrow situated at the right of « Create a new product », then, choose « Packaging ». Fill out the name of the packaging (mandatory field) as well as its description, its unit and click on « Save ».

  • Go to the product « Packaging » section and click on « Add » which allows you to select a pre recorded packaging (according to the step previously described).

In both cases:

  • Click on the « Quantity » field to fill the packaging quantities foresaw by level ;

  • Click on the « Unit» field to choose the unit corresponding to the quantity previously chosen. This unit can be of type « Each », « Product per packaging » (allowing to say that we want to put 15 CSU per package), « Meters » or again « Square meters » ;
  • Click on the « Packaging level» field to choose the packaging level : primary, secondary, tertiary ;
  • Click on the « Master » field to say which packaging of the level have the biggest dimensions. It’s possible to know the dimensions of CSU of the primary, secondary or tertiary level. It avoids the filling of each packaging’s dimensions because we only consider the dimensions of the master product of each level.

Note: if there is no master on a certain packaging level, then dimensions of this level should be filled manually as they become manual and not formulated.

In the case in which the UVC’s dimensions are bigger than the packaging’s ones (exampke : chicken), it is necessary to add the aspect « Dimensions on the finished product » and fill the fields « Lenght/Width/Height ».

Then, it’s possible to navigate each entity (packaging) by simply clicking on it.

Thus, we access the properties and the different lists of the packaging.

By clicking on « Properties » and « Edit the properties », you can find, at the bottom of the page, the « Tare » field which allows the filling of the packaging weight.

By clicking on the « Costs » list, it’s possible to complete the packaging costs in the « Value » column and its unit in the « Unit » column. « N-1 » and « N+1 » fields represent the costs of the previous and next year respectively. The « Plants » field is here to complete the costs linked to the plant on the product model (example : storage cost of the plant 1).

By clicking on the « Purchase price » list, you can complete the costs linked to the purchase volumes, the year and the supplier (example : the purchasing of 100 cardboards won’t cost the same price, as the purchasing of 10 000 cardboards). In other words, this list allows to stock the price proposals made by the suppliers.

Click on « Formulate » to compute, for instance, the costs linked to the packaging which will be found in the « Costs » section of the product.

Packaging kits

The packaging kits gather a large number of primary and/or secondary and/or tertiary packaging. They are very useful in two cases :

  • When packaging are common (qualitatively and quantitatively) to many products. Example: 3 packaging kits for 1000 products ;
  • When the palletisation have to be mentioned. Example : pallet height, number of layers, number of cardboards per layer.

To add packaging kits to a product, there are two possibilities :

  • Go to the « Packaging » section of this latter and click on the arrow at the right of « Create a product » and choose « Packaging kit ». Complete this latter’s name (mandatory field), its description, its unit and click on « Save ».
  • Go to the « Packaging » section of this latter and click on « Add » which allows the selection of a packaging kit pre recorded.

In both cases, packaging contained in the kit are added and completed in the same way of which described in the « Simple packaging » section.

If a kit is added as secondary level packaging and with the unit "Product per packing" in the packaging list, then the system will consider the value of the quantity as the number of product / box. All palletization information contained in the kit will be formulated to the products palletisation information. If there is nokit with this configuration, palletisation information are manual in the product.

« Palletisation » aspect addition

Palletisation aspect allows to specify the number of packages per pallet, the number of layers per pallet and the number of packages per layer. It can be added on the packaging kit by going to Product>Packaging>Kit>Properties and by clicking on « Add an aspect » and then by selecting « Palletisation ».

New properties are available on the palletisation kit :

To complete it, click on « Edit the properties ». Then, you have access to the kit designation data (name, description etc.).

Concerning the palletisation data, you’ll have to complete :

  • The number of layers per pallet: here 2;
  • The number of packagings per layer (in a pallet) : here 6;
  • The number of packagings in the pallet last layer : here 4;
  • The total number of packagings per pallet : here 6*2 + 4 = 16.

Then, go to the « Packaging » list to complete the kit with its packagings (cf. Simple packagings).

Then, go back to the product « Packaging » list and click on « Formulate » to calculate the costs due to the packagings.

Eventually, go to the « Reports » list and click on « Create reports » to obtain the production technical sheet on which will the packaging description will appear.

To indicate the packaging dimensions, click on each master packaging and go to its properties. Click on « Add an aspect » and choose « Size ».

It is then possible to add the dimensions (in mm) of the packaging.

After generating the reports, we obtain:

Packaging materials formulation

Packaging materials are used to have, for all finished product, the list of every packaging materials in contact with the consumer and their associated weigth.

Material aspect adding

To add the material aspect on a packaging material entity, you should press the "Add an aspect" button, then choose the pack:pmMaterialAspect aspect.

This will display two new fields:

Materials dropdownlist list

The materials fields is a dropdown list field:

This list is initialised at the system creation with the 7 CITEO values:

  • Steel
  • Aluminium
  • Paper-cardboard other than bricks
  • Bricks
  • Plastic
  • Glass
  • Other materials

If this list is not initialised, you can ask beCPG to import the file "07 - pmLists.csv".

This list can be configured in the Administration beCPG < List of values < Materials.

Materials entity list

In order to formulate packaging materials, it's required to add the entity list Materials to the entities using packaging (that have a packaging list).

Keep in mind that only default CITEO values will be consider in the CITEO export report.

The main entities are finished product and packaging kits. Depending on the case, it could be important to add it in the semi-finished products too if you use packaging list on them.

Note: it's also possible to add this list in the packaging material entity: materials information will be then formulated out of the list instead of the material fields added with the material aspect (which won't be used in the formulation) if used. Using the list allow you to give more details on the quantity, mostly in the case of a complex packaging material with several materials.

Materials entity list formulation

If an entity contains primary pakaging which have materials on its material field or its material entity list, then the materials entity list is formulated, with:

  • Material name;
  • Its quantity (formulated out of the packaging tare or the quantity mentionned on the materials list, and with the packaging quantity indicated in the packaging list of the entity).

% Recycled materials management

If you use the materials list, it's possible to indicate the quantity of recycled material in using 2 lines:

  • Material X
  • Material X recycled

For example, if we consider a 10g plastic packaging which contains 30% recycled plastic:

You must create first the recycled line in the materials list of values in the administration to be able to select it.

CITEO Report generation

CITEO Report is an export report, available in french, which can be generated out of an advanced search on finished products.

Once generated, we have an Excel document:

Materials are group by CITEO regulatory category.

Note: to have them correclty classified, it's important to use the wording of CITEO.

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