Helicopter shrink wrap packaging

Shrink wrap is not just used for boats.

For this project, a helicopter required protection from weather damage on a journey around the world.

An 8m wide, 200 micron thick shrink wrap was unrolled down the helicopter roof and unfolded down each side. As usual, a perimeter band of woven strapping was run around the base of the helicopter and the shrink wrap was folded around this band and heat welded back on to itself to create a rugged perimeter band – the finishing point for the cover.

Alternatively, the shrink wrap cover could have been taped around the base but this is not normally considered as strong – particularly where a long road or sea journey is involved.

The shrink wrap cover was then shrunk in the normal way, using a hand held hot air gun with a 2m extension to minimise the use of access equipment. After shrinking, two zipped access doors were installed to allow access inside the helicopter for inspection during the journey.