The humble cardboard box is one of the most used packaging materials. It is a core product in packaging manufacturing. It not only fills the shelves, but it can be seen all throughout the supply chain too. When looking at a cardboard box, typically printed and branded with inviting colours and wording, it is hard to imagine it started life as a tree. We discuss the box manufacturing process step by step.

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As consumers, we often forget to consider how items came to be, but we think the packaging should be celebrated. So, how does a tree finally become a box?

The steps of box manufacturing

1.     The tree

While we ideally look for recycled cardboard for box production, at one point, a cardboard box started life as a tree. Typically, the trees used for box manufacturing are softwood trees such as pine and fir tree. The reason they are chosen is that they have long fibres which can help to create a smooth finish for the cardboard as well as creating tension which increases the strength.

Many manufacturers will choose wood from sustainable and managed woodland; this means that any trees that are felled are replaced to help maintain the ecosystem of the forest. The paper and cardboard created will have a different colouring depending on the tree used. For example, silver birch trees will produce a dark colour, while a spruce will create a light brown colour.

2.     The pulp

From felling the tree, wood chips are made. These wood chips are then broken down into pulp. This can be done through grinding the wood against a stone or chemically cooking the wood chips. With this, you can add chemicals such as sodium sulphate to increase the strength of the pulp. For most cardboard, the pulp is left as the same colour. However, it can also be bleached to create a white appearance.

3.     Corrugation

Once the pulp has been dried, you can then start to create cardboard. For corrugated cardboard, it requires two pieces of paper or card called liners and a portion of fluted cardboard, which sits in between the liners. To fluting helps to give the cardboard further strength and a higher level of protection against damage.

Rolls of the paper made from the dried pulp are fed through a corrugated roller, which flutes or ruffles the paper. Depending on the quality of the box being made will depend on the level of fluting required. As increasing the fluting leads to higher use of material and therefore increased strength, this is used for high-quality boxes. For cheaper boxes, less fluting can be used which can help to create space-saving, a reduced amount of material used and can lower the carbon emissions.

The corrugation machine uses hot steam to create the flutes. At the same time glue is rolled down each side of the flute, so that is sticks to the liners. Once corrugated cardboard is formed, it is then trimmed to provide straight edges.

4.     Cutting

Now that you have complete corrugated cardboard, it is time to cut the card to size, depending on the box requirements. There is a comprehensive guide, and many of the machines are programmed to cut the cardboard to scale automatically depending on production demand. Once the basic outline has been cut, the card is then sent to a trimmer.

The trimmer is designed to deal with intricate aspects that the cutting machine cannot handle. A trimmer can add handles to boxes and cut flaps that are needed to construct the box. The trimmer also scores the cardboard, making it easier to fold when the box is ready for assembly.

5.     Assembly

Assembly will depend on the requirements of the box. The use of flaps and slots may be best for business who want to construct their boxes on demand. As well as these, boxes built with tape are often efficient to be constructed as and when they are required. Usually, for more robust boxes, glue and stitching are used to fold sections together and keep the box secure.

Specific innovative machinery can construct boxes for you on demand. For example, Ribble Right Size is an on-demand box making machine. It creates the perfect size box depending on your needs to reduce waste and ensure the best fit. The box is constructed for you which can significantly reduce packing production time.

After assembly, offcuts can be recycled to continue in the chain of box making. After the boxes have been branded, printed and utilised, they can be recycled and create a continuous cycle of recycled box manufacturing.

Daily Rigid boxes

Rigid Paper Boxes (also called &#;Set-Up Paper Boxes&#;) are a very common type of packaging carton. They are often used for luxury products packaging. Rigid board boxes are typically thicker, prettier and stronger than an average folding carton, which is made of a single layer SBS paperboard. They are instead made of 2-3mm thick greyboard or chipboard inside, wrapped with art paper that can be as plain or luxurious as desired.

Rigid board boxes, as the name suggests, are setup paperboard boxes, which are rigid and sturdy. Look at the the classic gift boxes at your home. If you&#;ve ever purchased an expensive jewlry, or a bottle of luxury perfume or beauty products, or a nice pair of shoes or heels, they are probably packaged in a rigid paper box.

Luxury watches are another typical products which have the rigid box packaging.  iPhones, iPad and other well-known mobile phones all use rigid boxes for packaging today. And so do many beauty products and high-end cosmetic products and spirits,. Just to name a few.

The Process to Make a Rigid Box

The dieline or template creating is the first step to make a rigid paperboard box. And it is the most important procedure, which determines the success or failure of the packaging. When the template is done, a sample making is the 2nd step, which is used for the test and improvement of the dieline accuracy. An accurate template means that the box will have very good structure.

When the template is confirmed, it is the blueprint we use to produce the rigid box. Most of the production processes are done by machine today, like cutting. But for the assembing, setup of the rigid box and gluing, these jobs are still done by hands. It explains why the rigid paper box usually has a very high cost.

With competitive price and timely delivery, Heao Printing sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.

The outer wrap is the skin of the paper box, which is beautifully decorated. It has the very fine finish and printing, very eye-appealing. While the inner greyboard or chipboard is the skeleton (framework). It is 2-3mm in thickness, which makes the carton box very rigid and strong. Cutting dies are used to cut the chipboard to its custom size and shape, while scoring dies are used to crease the greyboard for the foldingand setup of the rigid box.

As illustrated below, the 4 side panels of the box are folded up along the scoring lines to form the framework. Next, tape is applied to secure the sides using a machine called a quad stayer. These processes are done by the machine.

The wrap is the outer skin of the rigid box. It is either art paper or specialty paper. &#;Both has very fine printing, texture and ifnish, giving a luxury feel. They are well prepared and trimmed perfectly to fit the box. The skeleton formed by the chipboard is then placed on the wrap where glue is used to adhere the two together by the machine.

Rigid Box Styles &#; A Quick Overview

Most Rigid boxes consist of basically two parts &#; a lid on the top and a base at the bottom. The shapes of the rigid board box vary greatly &#; square, rectangular, circular, triangular, V-shaped etc.

The lift-off lid rigid box is a typical telescope rigid box. It has a separate lid and a separate bottom base. Telescope lids have a lid that covers either the entire base, called a Full Telescope Box, or just part of the base, called a Partial Telescope Box.

A Full Telescope lid, like on chocolate or candy boxes, have a lid that covers the entire base of the box. This particular example has &#;thumb cuts&#; to make opening the box easier. The iPhone box is a typical full telescope rigid box.

Partial Telescope (also called Partial Cover) rigid boxes are exactly what you&#;d expect, the lid only partially covers the base.

The Classic Shoebox mentioned earlier is a style of lid that has a lip that is, traditionally, 1 inch deep. Meantime, most shoebox are not exactly rigid paper box, because they are made of corrugated paperboard. They are corrugated folding cartons, which can be flat packed, stored and shipped.

Don&#;t let the name of this rigid box style confuse you, the classic shoebox style doesn&#;t have to be used for just shoes.

Besides the telescope rigid box, another popular rigid board box is what we know as a Tray with Sleeve, or Slipcase, or Shell and Slide, or slide rigid box, or match boxes, or drawer rigid box.

A special type of partial telescope box is called Neck Box, or Shoulder Box. An extra tray is glued on the side panels of the base and protrudes up past the top edge of the base. This protrusion creates a &#;neck&#; and the top edge of the base becomes the &#;shoulder&#;. Such a rigid box looks quite elegant.

Sometimes the &#;neck&#; is made extra long and it protrudes past the lip of the base so much so that it creates a gap between the lid and the base. This is done mostly for esthetic reasons.

&#;Hinged Lids&#; &#; Rigid Boxes

Unlike the lift off lid rigid box, the hinged lids rigid box is a one-piece package. The lid is attached permanently to the bottome base. The lip can flip open easily like a book or a clamshell. Thereore, it is also called flip top box, cigar box or clamshell rigid box. There are many different styles of hinged lid rigid boxes. And here are some popular styles.

Flip Top or Cigar Box is a classic and versatile style of rigid box. Traditionally it has been used for high-end cigars, but can, and is, used for almost anything.

Here is a variation of the Flip Top or Cigar Box &#; The Book Style rigid box, when closed, resembles a hard cover book. This style is commonly used to package everything from luxury food items to clothes to beauty products and consumer electronics.

Clamshell Style is found in many other types of packaging, not just rigid boxes. Corrugated packaging as well as folding cartons and thermoform / blister packaging utilize this style.

As mentioned previously, the rigid paper box, cardboard setup box has so many variations that it would be nearly impossible to list them all; add on top of that, there are a plethora of possible extras such as platforms, compartments, magnetic closures, windows, ribbon pulls, handles, etc. But the above examples should give you an idea of the common fundamental styles. Besides, there are collapsible rigid boxes, foldable rigid boxes, and various custom setup boxes.

Rigid Box packaging is not simply about luxury and beauty.  It can (and should) be took into consideration to replace a folding carton, or printed paper box when protection and durability during transport and the often rough retail environment are major factors. In addition, in the consumer&#;s home, where repeated use and storage of the product in the box is an asset, rigid boxes will add value for your customers.

Contact us to discuss your requirements of Paper Box Factory. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.