A steel coil edge protector is not there to absorb impact. It is there to stop the coil edge and the banding from destroying each other. On a 5 tonne coil with 32 mm steel banding, the strap is tensioned to the point where it will deform the coil wrap unless something spreads the load, and the edge of the coil is exactly where that deformation becomes a claim.

What fails first on a coil

The coil edge is a rolled lip, thinner and harder than the body. Under banding tension it bends inward, and the strap then sits in the deformed lip with reduced tension. Nothing looks wrong at the mill. The failure shows at the customer: an out-of-round coil that will not feed, or a strap that has cut into the outer wrap and marked the surface.

Edge protection moves the banding contact from the lip onto a paper board that is wide enough to bridge the lip and part of the coil face, so the force is carried by the wrap rather than by the edge.

Horizontal eye or vertical eye changes the board

Horizontal eye (coil lying flat): the banding runs over the outer circumference, so the board runs across the eye at the top and bottom. Leg length only needs to bridge the coil width and sit flat on the outer wrap.

Vertical eye (coil standing): the coil rests on its edge, and the banding plus the coil weight both bear on the bottom contact line. Here the board at the base does structural work, and a heavier wall or a doubled board is normal.

Getting this wrong is the single most common specification error on coil packaging: a board sized for a horizontal coil is too narrow and too light for a vertical one resting on its edge.

Wall thickness against coil weight

As a working guide: up to 2 tonnes, 4 mm wall with a 50 mm leg. Two to 5 tonnes, 5 mm with a 50-60 mm leg. Above 5 tonnes, 5 mm doubled at the base, or a paper board combined with a timber or plastic chock. The board spreads load; it does not replace the chock, and we say so rather than let a buyer discover it at the port.

Where paper wins against plastic

Plastic edge profiles are common on coils, and they have one advantage: they do not care about water. Paper wins on three points that matter more in practice. It does not slide — the laminated fold grips the coil wrap where a smooth plastic profile slips under tension. It does not mark coated or oiled surfaces. And it goes into the same waste stream as the wooden pallet and the paper wrap at the receiving end, which increasingly matters to mills reporting their packaging waste.

What the protector does not do

It does not hold a coil that is not properly chocked. It does not correct a strapping plan that puts all the tension on one band. It does not stop a coil rolling in a container if the blocking is wrong. Buyers who expect edge boards to solve stability problems need a strapping and blocking plan, and that is a conversation worth having before the order rather than after.

Ordering a coil specification

Four facts fix the specification: coil weight, coil width, eye orientation and band width. From those, the leg length and wall are determined, and the cut length follows the circumference or the coil width depending on orientation. Sample boards on a new coil size take 3-5 working days; production runs 7-15 working days after approval.

Questions buyers ask

Can the board be cut to the coil circumference? Yes, any length from 300 mm to 6,000 mm to the millimetre, which is what an eye-band application needs.

Will paper survive a sea leg in a coil carrier? Yes, if it is dry at dispatch and not stored on a wet deck. Moisture content is held below 10 percent.

Do you supply the chocks as well? No. We supply the paper edge protection; chocks and blocking are normally sourced locally or from the coil handler.

What band width does a 50 mm leg suit? Up to about 32 mm, leaving 9 mm of board either side of the band.

What is the minimum order? 3,000 metres per size.

Send the coil weight, width, eye orientation and band width, and we will return a specification with a load calculation. Email mona@hengnicepacking.com.