Can you recall the moment you thought about replacing steel strapping with polyester? I am sure you must have assumed that it would never work like many of us do. According to our thought process, the polyester may not hold up the way steel did and often needed much heavier polyester strap than we really needed to get the job done. However, the fact is that most companies make use of polyester strapping over steel. After all, it offers huge cost savings.

Now before we dig deeper, here are a few terms that has a lot to do with steel and polyester strapping.

• Tension- Tension occurs when you put strapping in a tool and pull (or stretch) the strap tight.
• Elongation- The moment you apply enough tension to the strap, the strap begins to stretch, otherwise known as elongation.
• Recovery- If you elongate the strap far enough, it returns to its original state. This is what we call recovery.
• Working Range- When you elongate the strap to a point where it wants to recover but not so much that it will not recover, you are within the strap’s working range.
• Tension Decay – The point at which the strap begins to lose its initial tension. It mainly depends on three factors- one- the type of strapping material, Two- the amount of applied tension, Three- how long the strap keeps that initial tension.

Why is polyester strapping called the economical & safe option?

Safety precautions are quite essential while working around steel strapping. In case, if a worker applies too much tension to the strap, and that strap snaps, the worker can sustain serious injuries. Apart from this, steel strapping coils normally weigh approximately 100 lbs. If not picked up correctly, workers can sustain injuries. On the other hand, polyester strapping can withstand a large amount of tension but won’t cause any kind of serious injuries if it comes loose. Polyester strapping also weighs approximately four times lighter than steel strapping and each coil has almost four times the amount of material compared to steel strapping! That, in and of itself, is a huge win for many companies.

Besides, you can think of other considerations such as :-

• Tooling requirements- Steel strapping requires the use of two separate tools. Polyester, conversely, needs only one. Not only is that cost-effective, it is faster.
• Potential damage- Is your product painted or fragile? Steel banding can mare the surface of fragile items. By nature, it can also rust and/or stain the surface of a load. Polyester (PET) strapping is weather resistant, clean, and non-abrasive.
• Best of all- Although, steel strapping is best in terms of popularity when it comes to transportation of heavy loads traveling long distances, and in many applications, it’s the right strapping for the application. But in case if you are looking for a material that is both ergonomic and economic, as well as product friendly and reliable, polyester strapping is a great cost saving option to consider.