Writing a strapping standard operating procedure for a packing team

Many packing teams strap by habit. One person learned from another, the tool hangs on a hook, and the rolls on the shelf are whatever arrived last. That works until a new starter joins, a supplier changes a component, or a customer complains about a collapsed pallet. A short standard operating procedure (SOP) turns habit into a method that the whole team can follow and a supervisor can check.

What a strapping SOP is for

A good SOP does three jobs. It fixes the approved combination of strap, closure and tool for each product. It describes the steps in the order they happen at the station. And it records the safety points that belong to this task, rather than repeating a general site induction.

It should be short enough to post at the station and specific enough that two operators following it produce the same pallet. A practical format is a controlled master copy in the document system and a laminated one-page version at the station. A QR code on the station sheet can link to photographs or a short video of the correct method, which phones on the packing floor can open in seconds.

A section-by-section template

Section	What to include
Scope	Products, pallet types and stations covered
Approved materials	Strap type, nominal width and thickness; closure type and size; internal item codes and supplier references
Tools and settings	Tool type, tension setting per product, seal or clip size, inspection interval
Strap pattern	Number of straps, positions, edge protection, joint position
Steps	Numbered actions in station order
Checks	What the operator confirms before the pallet leaves
Releasing strap	How to cut or release safely, and who may do it
Housekeeping	Disposal of offcuts and cut strap
Deviations	What to do when approved material is unavailable
Training and revision	Who is trained, revision date, document owner

Approved materials

Name each item precisely. “19 mm buckle” is not enough when two wire diameters or two finishes are stocked. Give the internal code, the strap reference and the closure, and link them to the approved sample record if there is one. Our sample approval guide explains how to keep that record so that it can be reordered from.

Steps

Write steps as actions, one per line, in the order the operator performs them. For a woven strap and buckle joint, for example: place edge protection; feed the strap around the load; thread the buckle as shown in the photograph; tension with the approved tensioner to the marked setting; check that the buckle has seated correctly; trim and tuck the tail. Each line should be checkable by someone watching.

Checks before dispatch

A short visual check catches most errors: the right number and position of straps, joints on flat faces, no twisted strap, protection in place, label applied, tail ends secured.

Safety points that belong in the SOP

A strapping SOP is not the place for every site rule, but some risks belong to this task.

Manual handling. Strap rolls, coils and the loads themselves are handled repeatedly. HSE’s guide Manual handling at work sets out the hierarchy employers in Great Britain follow: avoid hazardous manual handling so far as reasonably practicable, assess what cannot be avoided, and reduce the risk. The assessment considers the task, the load, the working environment, individual capacity, handling aids, how work is organised, and its pace and frequency. Roll dispensers, the height of the strapping station and the way strap is passed around the load are all relevant.

Releasing tensioned strap. Cut strap can spring back. The SOP should say where to stand, how to hold the strap and which cutter to use. HSE’s warehousing guidance, HSG76, advises checking that loosening load-bearing straps will not allow goods to fall.

Housekeeping. HSG76 lists banded strapping loops among warehouse trip hazards. State where offcuts go and when the area is cleared.

Tools. Strapping tools are work equipment. In Great Britain, regulation 9 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 requires adequate health and safety training for people who use work equipment and for those who supervise or manage its use. Other countries set comparable duties; follow the local requirements where the team works.

Deviations and change control

The most useful line in many SOPs is the one that says what to do when approved material runs out. Without it, operators improvise: a different buckle, a narrower strap, an extra strap to compensate. Write down who may approve a substitute, for how long, and how it is recorded.

The same discipline applies to supplier changes. A new strap grade or closure source should go through a trial before it enters the SOP. Our article on controlled line changeovers describes a trial approach, and the receiving checklist helps confirm that deliveries match the approved specification before they reach the station.

Keep it alive

Give the SOP an owner and a review date. Review it after any incident, customer complaint, tool change or component change. Ask operators what is unclear or impractical; they usually know before anyone else. A short sign-off sheet showing who was trained on which revision is enough for most teams, and it supports the training duty mentioned above.

Supplying the components your SOP names

YAKU supplies galvanized wire buckles, sheet metal clips, steel strapping seals, and PET and woven strap on request. If you are writing an SOP around a new component, send the strap and tool details through our enquiry page so that the approved specification starts from accurate part data.