A packaging material transition rarely happens in a single day. There is usually a period when the old material is still in stock, the new machine is being installed, and the team is learning a new workflow. Running both systems in parallel during that period is often the safest approach, provided the parallel period is planned rather than improvised.
The first step is quantifying the remaining plastic inventory. A physical count of rolls, bags, and boxes, recorded by material type and estimated consumption rate, tells the buyer how many weeks or months of plastic material remains. That number sets the length of the parallel period and prevents the situation where the new machine is running while months of plastic inventory sits in storage.
The second step is deciding how to allocate orders between the two systems. There are three common approaches. The first is to use the plastic material for the least fragile orders and the paper material for the more fragile ones, which gives the team practice with the new material on the orders where protection matters most. The second is to use the paper material for the highest-volume product categories, which builds familiarity fastest. The third is to use the paper material for one packing station and the plastic material for another, which allows a direct comparison of throughput and damage rates between the two.
The third step is training. The team should learn the new machine before the parallel period begins, not during it. A short session covering roll loading, touchscreen settings, and staging, followed by hands-on practice during a slower period, gives the team the familiarity to use the new machine confidently. The machine comes with a multilingual touchscreen control, and operators can set parameters directly without extra training, which shortens the learning curve.
The fourth step is measuring. The parallel period is an opportunity to compare the two materials on the metrics that matter: packing time per order, material cost per order, damage rate, and storage footprint. Recording those metrics during the parallel period provides the data to justify the full transition and to identify any product categories where paper cushioning is not the right fit.
Aircosan manufactures paper bubble machines at its own facility in Foshan, Guangdong, and builds units up to 80cm wide. The machines run on standard 110V or 220V power at around 200W, with no compressor, heating element, or adhesive system, which means they can be installed quickly without electrical work. The forming pressure adjusts automatically based on the actual paper thickness, so the team does not need to tune the machine during the transition.
The fifth step is ending the parallel period deliberately. Once the plastic inventory is consumed and the paper system is running smoothly, the plastic material should not be reordered. A facility that reorders plastic during the transition extends the parallel period indefinitely, which defeats the purpose of the transition. The purchasing team should be informed of the switch date so that plastic orders stop at the right time.
The parallel period is not a sign of indecision. It is a risk management technique that allows the team to learn the new system without disrupting the packing line. The facilities that transition most smoothly are the ones that plan the parallel period deliberately rather than improvising their way through it.