If you’re looking for strapping products, but are unsure of which one is the best for you and your business, keep reading as I’ll list the four most popular strapping products, their advantages and disadvantages, so that you can make a well-informed decision which will bring best value for your business. The four popular strapping products are: steel, polyester, corded and polypropylene. All of these have their applications and strengths, and knowing the difference between all of them will help you determine which one is right for you.
Steel Strapping
Steel strap is the strongest strapping material out of all four types. Steel pallet strapping is common in many industrial settings including warehouses and heavy construction applications. These straps are incredibly strong, have low elongation (which can be both an advantage and disadvantage), and they are great for strapping products that are hot or sharp. This strapping product is sealed using a seal-less type joints and mechanical seals. Steel pallet strapping is very popular to this day, but it’s slowly losing popularity due to its higher cost than other strapping materials, and the fact that it’s difficult to recycle.
Polypropylene Strapping
Polypropylene strapping is the most affordable and most popular out of all strapping materials. It’s easy to apply, easy to recycle and very light. Its key characteristics include elongation recovery and high elongation. However, it does have retained tension. This strapping material is available in machine and hand grade and it can be sealed with friction welds, heat seals, generic seals and buckles. It’s worth noting that machine grade polypropylene strapping can be used with manual tools, but hand grade polypropylene strapping cannot be used in machine applications.
Polyester Strapping
PET, or polyester strapping is the most rigid out of all strapping options. However, it features less elongation that polypropylene, and it retains tension over longer periods of time. It’s typically sealed with friction welds, seals or heat and is nick resistant. Polyester strapping offers the greatest retained tension and highest strength out of all plastic strapping solutions, and that makes it ideal for heavy-duty loads. Moreover, it’s affordable and it has performance characteristics that make it favourable over the steel strapping in some industries. Just like the polypropylene, polyester strapping is available in both hand grade and machine grade quality.
Cord Strapping
Cord strapping can be found in rayon and polyester, and it comes in two forms – cross woven and uniline. Cord is used in manual applications exclusively and it’s sealed with seals, buckles or it’s tied. Polyester cord strapping is moisture-resistant and is commonly used in outdoor applications. Heavy-duty polyester cord is also used as a replacement to steel strapping in lumber applications.