PPE and Double PE Packing: What It Means and When You Need It

"PPE packing" confuses a lot of buyers. In 2020 it meant the sealed plastic pouches that PPE kits travelled in. Today, when someone writes "double PPE" or "double PE packing" on a purchase order, they almost always mean something more ordinary. They want the goods inside two layers of polyethylene (PE, the common polythene) before the carton or sack is closed.

I will explain that packing here. It is not about the kits, and it makes no health claims. A plastic pouch keeps dust and moisture out. That is all anyone should claim for it.

What was a PPE pouch?

During the pandemic months, a PPE kit (coverall, gloves, mask, shoe covers) went into a printed, sealed LDPE pouch. Many pouches then went into a carton.

The pouch had a plain job. It kept the kit clean and dry between the factory and the store room where someone opened it. These pouches were usually made from the same kind of LDPE film used for industrial liners, the bags that line cartons, drums and woven sacks.

I think two details from that time still matter for any printed pouch.

1. The ink must not rub off. A pouch that leaves colour on gloves or on the goods inside is a failed pouch. Rub the print hard with your thumb, then with a damp cloth. If either one shows colour, reject the lot.
2. The film should be tested by the supplier for what you need, such as thickness and seal strength. Ask for the test values on the quotation, not on a phone call.

What does double PE packing actually mean?

It means two separate polythene layers around the product.

Usually the arrangement looks like this. The goods go into an inner bag, which is heat sealed or tied. That bag goes into an outer liner that lines the carton, drum or woven sack. Then the outer pack is closed.

Why two? Because one layer is only as good as its weakest spot, and on our own film lines we check for exactly these defects. A pinhole, a weak seal or a scratch from a carton staple lets moisture in. The second layer is insurance.

There is a second benefit, and the PPE period taught it to many people. At the customer's end, the outer liner is removed in the receiving area, where the dust is. The inner bag goes clean into the store or onto the production line.

When is it worth using two layers?

Use it when moisture, dust or spillage would actually cost you money.

1. Powders and granules: spices, chemicals, masterbatch, detergent. One tear and you lose product and clean a container floor.
2. Goods that rust or swell: hardware parts, bearings, wooden or paper items.
3. Sea freight. A container sits in humid ports for weeks, and condensation forms inside it.
4. Monsoon dispatches across India, when cartons wait in open courier hubs and humidity stays above what paper can tolerate.
5. Food ingredients in bulk, with a food-grade inner bag.

When is it a waste of plastic?

This is my strong view, and I know some buyers will disagree.

A T-shirt in a courier bag travelling 3 days inside India does not need a second bag. The courier bag is already a sealed PE layer. Adding a polybag inside it doubles the plastic and adds nothing a customer will notice.

At JPPL we work on three levers to use less plastic. One is downgauging, i.e. using thinner film without losing strength. Another is replacing plastic with paper where paper does the job. A second bag that nobody needs goes against both. Use double PE only where the risk is real.

How do you specify it on a purchase order?

Write these 5 things down, and the supplier has no room to guess. These are the same questions we need answered before we can quote a liner.

1. Material. LDPE, or an LDPE and LLDPE blend for better puncture strength. Ask for virgin film if the inner bag touches food. Recycled liners are fine for industrial goods that do not touch food, and they cost less.
2. Thickness in microns for each layer. Tell the supplier what is inside, the weight per pack and how it travels, and ask them to recommend a micron in writing.
3. Size. A tube liner for a carton of length L, width W and height H needs a flat width a little more than L + W. Its length should be at least H + W, so the top can fold over and close. For a 40 x 30 x 30 cm carton, that means a flat width of about 72 cm and a length of at least 60 cm.
4. Closure. Heat seal for the inner bag. A twisted neck with tape or a tie for the outer liner.
5. Print, if any. Ask for a rub-resistant ink and do the thumb test above on the first lot.

Check point 3 with a real carton before you order 5,000 liners. A liner that is 2 cm too narrow tears at the corners when you fill it.

Where PackSmith fits

For small quantities, our LDPE film roll works as an extra wrap layer around goods inside a carton. You can see our other films in plastic films.

Custom liners and printed pouches are made to order at JPPL, in your size and micron. Send us the carton size, what goes inside and how it ships, and we will suggest whether you need one layer or two.

Many times, I am sure, the honest answer will be one.

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