Industrial sourcing · China to Europe

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Buyer guide · Packaging

Shrink wrapping machine from China

The finish of a shrink pack comes from the film and the tunnel, yet most quotes describe the sealer in detail and the tunnel in one line.

Ask about this machine ↗Where the numbers come from

Written and listings checked 30 September 2026. Every figure on this page names its source.

What you are actually comparing.

Two quotes, one machine name

What hides inside the price

L-sealer, sleeve sealer or bundler

An L-sealer wraps single retail items in centre-folded film. A sleeve sealer wraps groups of bottles or cans in open-ended PE film. They are different machines under one name.

Tunnel opening and heat

The tunnel must pass your largest pack with clearance and bring the film to shrink temperature at line speed. Ask for opening size, heated length and heating power.

Which film it is built for

POF gives a clear, tight retail finish. PE suits heavy multipacks. PVC gives off fumes when sealed and needs extraction. A machine set up for one film may not run another well.

Seal knife and trim handling

Hot knives and impulse seals differ in seal strength and cleaning. Ask how film trim is wound off, since loose trim stops a line.

Infeed and conveyor

Manual loading, a pusher or a full automatic infeed decide labour. Roller conveyors in the tunnel suit boxes; mesh belts suit small or unstable items.

Decode the model code.

On many tunnels the four digits are the opening in centimetres. A 4020 tunnel spec sheet checked lists a 400 mm by 200 mm opening.

A pack 350 mm wide leaves (400 - 350) / 2 = 25 mm each side in a 4020 tunnel.
A pack 180 mm high leaves 200 - 180 = 20 mm above it.

Before you ask for a price.

Send these with the enquiry. Without them, any number a factory gives you is a guess dressed as a quotation.

Your largest and smallest pack, in width, length and height, with a sample.
Single item or group, and how the group is collated.
Film type and thickness, and whether the pack is retail-facing.
Packs per minute, and whether the machine joins an existing line.
Power available: tunnels draw most of the load.

Turn the claim into a demonstration.

Require this	A pass looks like
Wrap a counted run of your largest pack in your film at target speed.	No burn holes, dog ears or loose film at the corners, and rejects under the count agreed in writing.
Wrap your smallest pack straight after the largest, with the setting change timed.	The changeover finishes inside the quoted time and the small pack wraps tight without distortion.
Open a sample of seals by hand and inspect the trim path over the run.	Seals do not part along the seam, and no trim jams the machine during the run.

The documents that must arrive with it.

EU Declaration of Conformity to 2006/42/EC, or Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 for delivery from 20 January 2027, plus 2014/35/EU and 2014/30/EU.
Wiring diagram and heater element list with part numbers.
Regulation (EC) 1935/2004 declaration only where the film or machine touches unwrapped food.

The one people forget. The heater element list. Tunnel heaters are the wear part, and without their rating and part numbers a burnt element stops the line until the factory ships one.

When this is the wrong machine.

Buy something else if

Named, not hedged

You are wrapping whole pallets for transport, not retail packs.

A stretch wrapping machine, which holds the load with stretch film and no heat.

Each item needs a sealed barrier pack, for example food that must stay fresh.

A flow wrapping machine, which makes a sealed pack around each item.

Where the numbers come from.

We name the kind of source, how many and when, and never the factory. Listed prices are asking prices, not landed cost. Where we do not hold a fact we say so: that is a GAP, not an estimate.

Listings · 11Eleven marketplace listings for shrink wrapping machines, checked September 2026, advertised asking prices from US$1,350 for a tunnel alone to US$40,000 for automatic lines. Several quoted one wide range across many models. Asking prices, not landed cost.
Listings · 1One manufacturer spec sheet for a 4020 tunnel, checked September 2026, stated a 400 x 200 mm opening, 800 mm length, 5 kW heating and a 0 to 10 m/min conveyor.
GAPGAP - no supplier quotations logged for this machine yet. Three to five quotations for one configuration would give a real price spread.

Related machines.

Stretch wrapping machine. Choose a stretch wrapping machine when you secure whole pallets for transport rather than wrap retail packs.
Flow wrapping machine. Choose a flow wrapping machine when each item needs its own sealed barrier pack.

Every machine we source in this area is on the Packaging page. How a project runs, stage by stage, is on how it works, and what it costs is on pricing.

Straight answers

Questions buyers ask about this machine.

What is the best shrink wrapping machine from China?+

The pairing of sealer and tunnel that fits your largest pack and your film. Choose the tunnel by opening size first, then the sealer.

Chinese vs European shrink wrapping machine: which should I choose?+

For L-sealers and simple tunnels the design is mature, and the main difference is heater and control quality. For high-speed bundling lines, integration support weighs more than the frame.

What should a shrink wrapping machine sourcing guide cover?+

Machine type, tunnel size, film type and infeed. Every quote should state all four in writing so you compare like with like.

Who is the EU importer of a shrink wrapping machine?+

Buying direct from China usually makes you the importer. You check the Declaration of Conformity names the machine and serial number, and your name goes on the machine or its papers.

Contact

Tell us what you need.

Send a machine, a quotation you want checked, or a question. We reply with what we would look at first.