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Packaging reference36 terms

Packaging glossary

Packaging terms explained for brands getting boxes and pouches made: bleed, Pantone vs CMYK, flutes, ECT, GSM, foil, lamination, inserts, endcaps and more.

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  • Child-resistant and tamper-evident packaging

    Also called: Child resistant packaging · Tamper evident packaging · Induction seal · Special packaging

    Child-resistant packaging is hard for children under 5 to open and not hard for adults to use; tamper-evident packaging shows visible evidence if it has been opened. Under 16 CFR 1700 (Poison Prevention Packaging Act rules), listed substances such as aspirin, oral prescription drugs and some iron supplements need it, and it must pass child and senior adult panel tests. Under 21 CFR 211.132, most retail OTC drugs need tamper-evident packaging and a label statement naming the feature. FDA's guidance lists container mouth inner seals, including heat induction seals, as one example. Ask your supplier for the test reports.

    Source: eCFR (US Consumer Product Safety Commission)Source: eCFR (US Food and Drug Administration)Source: US Food and Drug Administration

  • Flexographic, offset and digital printing

    Also called: Flexo printing · Offset printing · Litho printing · Digital printing

    Paperboard packaging can be printed by flexo, offset or digital presses. Flexographic (flexo) printing uses plates, inks and anilox rollers to put the image on the substrate; the Flexographic Technical Association calls it the most widely used printing method in packaging, and it suits long, static runs at low cost. Offset (litho) printing suits high-volume, static carton runs and high print quality. Digital printing, inkjet or toner, needs no film or plates, so it fits short runs, many versions and personalization. Ask the supplier which process they are quoting, because it affects set-up cost and which run lengths make sense.

    Source: Flexographic Technical AssociationSource: PRINTING United AllianceSource: University of Bristol Print Services

  • Flutes (B, C, E and F)

    Also called: Corrugated flutes · Flute profile

    Flutes are the arches in the corrugated medium, glued between flat linerboards, that give corrugated board its stiffness and cushioning. The Fibre Box Association puts B flute at about 47 flutes per foot, C at about 38, E at about 90 and F at about 125. Larger flutes generally give more cushioning and vertical compression strength; smaller ones like E and F print better and suit retail boxes. Profiles vary between corrugators, so get the flute and the wall (single, double or triple) in writing on the quote. More on corrugated boxes.

    Full guide: Corrugated boxesSource: Fibre Box Association

  • Foil stamping

    Also called: Hot foil stamping · Hot stamping

    Foil stamping transfers a thin film of metal or other material from a plastic carrier sheet onto paper or board with a die; hot foil stamping uses heat and pressure to do it. Foil comes in many colors, clear or opaque. Results depend on heat, pressure, dwell time and die material: magnesium dies are often the economical option for short runs and simple art, brass for long runs and fine detail. A combination die can foil and emboss in one pass, which reduces registration drift. Check recycling claims before you print them: the Paperboard Packaging Council tells converters to warn customers before putting its recyclable logo on foiled cartons, because not every municipality can recycle them.

    Source: State of Michigan, DTMB Printing ServicesSource: PostPress (Foil & Specialty Effects Association)Source: Paperboard Packaging Council

  • GSM and points

    Also called: Grammage · Caliper · Paper weight · Point (pt)

    GSM (grams per square meter) measures paper weight; points measure thickness, or caliper, in thousandths of an inch, so 16 pt board is 0.016 inch thick. Paper is usually specified by GSM, while board is often specified by thickness instead, in points or microns. The two don't convert cleanly, because a bulky uncoated stock can be thicker than a heavier coated one. Most folding cartons use single-ply board of 14 to 24 points, chosen by carton size and the weight of what goes inside. Get the board name, GSM and caliper written on the quote, and approve a sample made in that board.

    Source: University of Bristol Print ServicesSource: US National Bureau of Standards (NIST)Source: 4OVER4Source: PRINTING United Alliance

  • Inserts

    Also called: Packaging inserts · Box inserts · Insert cards

    Inserts are the parts inside a box that hold the product in place or present it. Corrugated inserts sit in FEFCO's 09 series of interior fitments (liners, pads, partitions, dividers). The International Molded Fiber Association describes three molded pulp methods: thick wall, transfer molded (like egg cartons) and thermoformed, with thin walls and a smooth finish. Foam inserts, UPS says, should be engineered for the specific product. Insert cards are printed cards for instructions or a thank-you note. Send the supplier a finished product so the insert is cut to it, not to a drawing.

    Source: International Molded Fiber AssociationSource: FEFCOSource: UPS

  • ISTA testing

    Also called: ISTA 3A · ISTA 6-Amazon · Transit testing

    ISTA testing means putting a packed product through test procedures from the International Safe Transit Association to see whether it survives shipping. ISTA's 1 series are non-simulation screening tests, the 2 series are partial simulations not meant to predict shipping performance, and the 3 series simulate transport hazards and are useful for predicting damage risk. Member performance tests include 6-AMAZON.com. UPS says packaged products should be tested to ISTA 3A. Ask which procedure the lab ran, get the report, and test the final packaging with real product. More in quality control inspection.

    Source: International Safe Transit AssociationSource: UPS

  • Labels

    Also called: Product labels · Packaging labels

    Under the FTC's Fair Packaging and Labeling Act rules, a label is any written, printed or graphic matter on a product or its package, so a printed box counts as much as a sticker. For household and personal care consumables, those rules (16 CFR 500) require a statement of identity and the net quantity on the principal display panel, with net quantity in its bottom 30 percent (panels of 5 square inches or less are exempt from that placement), plus the name and place of business of the manufacturer, packer or distributor. Food, drugs and cosmetics are outside them; food follows FDA's 21 CFR 101. For labels that wrap a whole bottle or can, see shrink sleeves.

    Source: eCFR (Federal Trade Commission)Source: eCFR (Food and Drug Administration)

  • Lamination and coatings

    Also called: Matte lamination · Gloss lamination · Soft-touch lamination · UV coating · Aqueous coating

    Lamination bonds a thin transparent plastic film over printed board, most often matte or gloss, while a coating is a liquid layer cured by heat (aqueous) or ultraviolet light (UV). Gloss adds shine and contrast, matte cuts the glare of overhead lights, and soft-touch feels like velvet. A flood coat protects against scuffs but can crack over dark ink at fold lines, where film lamination holds up better. Each finish changes what goes on top: gloss lamination can complicate spot UV and gluing, and soft-touch can weaken glue unless the adhesive suits it. Coatings on primary food packaging also need migration testing, so tell the supplier what goes inside.

    Source: University of Bristol Print ServicesSource: PostPress (Foil & Specialty Effects Association)Source: UV+EB Technology (RadTech)

  • Master carton

    Also called: Master case · Shipping carton · Inner carton · Carton marking

    A master carton is the outer shipping carton that holds a set number of units or inner cartons; an inner carton groups a smaller count inside it. Carton marking is the print on the outside, such as SKU, quantity, weights, dimensions and carton number, which you set in your packing instructions. For US imports, 19 CFR 134.11 requires, unless an exception applies, every article of foreign origin, or its container, to be marked in a conspicuous place, as legibly, indelibly and permanently as it allows, with the English name of its country of origin for the ultimate purchaser. Ask your customs broker which container needs it. See importing from China.

    Source: 19 CFR 134.11, Country of origin marking requiredSource: 19 CFR 134.22, General rules for marking of containers or holders

  • Mylar bags

    Also called: Foil barrier bags · Foil pouches

    Mylar is a registered trademark for PET (polyester) film, owned by the company now trading as Mylar Specialty Films, so a bag sold as a "mylar bag" is not necessarily made with Mylar brand film. Flexible packaging combines plastic film, paper and aluminum foil to get its protective properties, so ask the supplier for the exact layer structure. On your own packaging, say "barrier bag" unless the film really is Mylar. Ask for oxygen transmission rate (ASTM D3985) and water vapor transmission rate (ASTM F1249) on the exact laminate, not just a thickness, and test seals to ASTM F88. More in what is a mylar bag.

    Full guide: Mylar bagsSource: Mylar Specialty FilmsSource: Flexible Packaging AssociationSource: ASTM International

  • Pantone vs CMYK

    Also called: PMS vs CMYK · Spot color vs process color

    Pantone (PMS) colors are spot colors, each a premixed ink printed as a solid, while CMYK (process color) builds thousands of colors from fine screens of cyan, magenta, yellow and black. Pantone says spot color is the way to match a specific color closely, and logos often use it. Many Pantone colors fall outside what CMYK can reproduce and look quite different when converted. Each extra ink needs its own plate and press station, and Pantone itself suggests checking how a spot color would look in CMYK to save money. Give the printer your Pantone number, ask whether they will print it as a spot ink or convert it, and approve a proof.

    Source: Pantone LLCSource: Pro Carton (European Association of Carton and Cartonboard Manufacturers)

  • Paper tubes

    Also called: Paper tube packaging · Composite cans · Spiral wound tubes · Convolute tubes

    A paper tube is a cylindrical paperboard container closed with paper, metal or plastic ends, often with a printed label wrap. Tubes are made either spiral wound or convolute wound: ask your supplier which construction they are quoting, how it changes wall strength and the printable surface, and for a sample at your final size. Watch the recycling claim. Under the FTC Green Guides, if only some components (say, the paper body but not a metal end) are recyclable, the claim should be qualified, and a component that significantly limits recycling makes any recyclable claim deceptive.

    Source: Spiral windingSource: Convolute windingSource: eCFR (Federal Trade Commission)

  • Paperboard grades (SBS, CUK, CRB, chipboard)

    Also called: Paperboard · Boxboard · SBS board · Chipboard

    Paperboard, also called boxboard, is thicker than paper but thinner than corrugated, and it is what folding cartons are made of. North America has three main consumer grades. SBS (solid bleached sulfate) and CUK/SUS (coated unbleached kraft, one product sold under two names) generally contain at least 80 percent virgin pulp and go where print quality and strength matter; CUK dominates beverage packaging, which needs wet and tear strength. CRB (coated recycled board, also called white-lined chip) makes cereal and powdered detergent boxes. Chipboard boxes, such as gift and shoe boxes, must go inside a corrugated outer box to ship with FedEx. For brown board, see kraft paper.

    Source: American Forest & Paper AssociationSource: AICC, The Independent Packaging AssociationSource: FedEx

  • PDQ display

    Also called: PDQ · PDQ tray · PDQ packaging

    A PDQ display is a ready-filled display that arrives with product in it and is quick to put in place in store. PDQ is commonly expanded as "pretty damn quick." FEFCO, the European corrugated industry body, describes ready-filled point-of-sale displays as designed to be positioned in-store quickly and easily. Ask the buyer for the tray footprint and case count it wants. If the unit is a fixed mix of different products sold as one item, GS1 treats it as a predefined assortment with its own GTIN, separate from each product's. Compare it with retail-ready packaging and full POP displays. More on PDQ displays.

    Full guide: PDQ displaysSource: Dictionary.comSource: FEFCOSource: GS1

  • PET, HDPE and PCR plastic

    Also called: PCR plastic · Post-consumer recycled plastic · Resin identification code

    PET is polyethylene terephthalate and HDPE is high-density polyethylene, two plastics EPA tracks in packaging waste. Under ASTM D7611, PET is resin identification code 1 and HDPE is code 2, and ASTM says the code only names the resin: it does not mean the item is recycled or that systems exist to recycle it. PCR is post-consumer recycled content, material recovered after consumer use. Under the FTC Green Guides (16 CFR 260.13), a recycled content claim on a package only partly made of recycled material should be clearly and prominently qualified to avoid deception about the amount or percentage, by weight, of recycled content. Get the PCR percentage in writing from your supplier before you print it.

    Source: Resin Identification Code Revised (D7611)Source: ASTM D7611/D7611M Coding Plastic Manufactured Articles for Resin IdentificationSource: eCFR (Federal Trade Commission)Source: US Environmental Protection Agency

  • POP displays

    Also called: Point of purchase display · Point of sale display · POS display

    A point-of-purchase (POP) display is a unit that sells your product at the place in the store where it is bought. Shop!, the retail environments trade association formed when the Association for Retail Environments merged with POPAI in 2015, judges displays in two divisions: permanent and temporary. Temporary units can be corrugated, which the Fibre Box Association notes is used to display and promote products as well as ship them. Ask the retailer whether it wants a counter unit, a floor unit or an endcap, and get its display rules in writing (footprint, height, load and how it ships) before anyone draws a dieline. More on POP displays.

    Full guide: POP displaysSource: Mission + Pillars (history of Shop! and POPAI)Source: Outstanding Merchandising Achievement AwardsSource: Fibre Box Association

  • Primary, secondary and tertiary packaging

    Also called: Primary packaging · Secondary packaging · Tertiary packaging · Sales packaging · Transport packaging

    Primary, secondary and tertiary packaging are the three layers of packaging. The EU Packaging Directive (94/62/EC, Article 3) defined primary or sales packaging as a sales unit to the final user at the point of purchase, secondary or grouped packaging as a grouping of sales units at the point of purchase, and tertiary or transport packaging as packaging that makes handling and transport of sales units or grouped packs easier and prevents damage. In practice: the bottle, the carton of twelve, the palletized master cartons. Spec and quote each layer separately. See all packaging types.

    Source: legislation.gov.uk

  • Proofs

    Also called: Digital proof · Hard proof · Press proof · Printing proof

    A proof is a sample of your artwork, printed or digital, that you approve before production. A PDF (digital) proof shows content and layout accurately but not color. A hard proof is printed to simulate the final colors, but it is still a simulation. Only a proof made on the actual production equipment (a press proof) shows true color; that is affordable on digital presses and can be costly on offset. When color, foil or a special finish matters, ask for the proof on your real board with the real finishes, check it against the dieline, and approve it in writing before the run.

    Source: University of Bristol Print ServicesSource: UV+EB Technology (RadTech)

  • Retail-ready packaging

    Also called: RRP · Shelf-ready packaging · SRP

    Retail-ready packaging (RRP), also called shelf-ready packaging (SRP), is a shipping case designed to go onto the store shelf as it is, so staff no longer restock the shelf item by item. FEFCO lists the "five easies" that retailers, manufacturers and packaging suppliers set for it: easy to identify in the back room, easy to open, easy to put on the shelf, easy for shoppers to take from and return to, and easy to flatten and recycle. FEFCO calls ECR's "Blue Book" the SRP bible, and its guidance is written for corrugated cases. Get the retailer's own spec before you design one. More on retail-ready packaging.

    Full guide: Retail-ready packagingSource: FEFCO

  • RTD (ready to drink)

    Also called: Ready to drink · RTD beverage · RTD cocktails

    RTD means ready to drink: a beverage sold ready to consume, such as the spirits ready-to-drink cocktails the Distilled Spirits Council (DISCUS) calls RTDs. It is a beverage term, not a display term, and search data shows few people search RTD for displays. If you meant packaging that goes onto the shelf in its shipping case, that is retail-ready packaging. Spirits- and malt-based RTDs generally need a TTB Certificate of Label Approval (COLA); TTB issues none for wine under 7% alcohol, which follows FDA labeling. State law decides where they can be sold.

    Source: Distilled Spirits Council of the United StatesSource: COLAs Online Customer PageSource: Wine labeling: wines with less than 7% alcohol by volume

  • Tins

    Also called: Metal tins · Tin packaging · Decorative tins

    Tins are metal containers made from steel or aluminum, the metals the can industry names for general line and specialty cans. "Tin" is a name, not a spec. On a three-piece can, the flat sheet gets an inside coating and its printing before it is cut and formed. Ask whether the body is steel or aluminum, how the lid closes and whether the art is printed on the metal or labeled. If it holds food, ask which FDA rule the inside coating meets: resinous and polymeric coatings over metal fall under 21 CFR 175.300.

    Source: Aerosol & Other Non-Food CansSource: How Cans Are MadeSource: eCFR (US Food and Drug Administration)

  • Tissue paper

    Also called: Custom tissue paper · Wrapping tissue

    Tissue paper is thin, light paper used to wrap a product inside its box, often printed with a logo or pattern. If you want the FSC label on it, the printer needs FSC chain of custody certification: FSC says its label on a finished product signals that the materials met chain of custody requirements at every step of the supply chain. Ask for the certificate code and check it with FSC. Ask for a printed sample too, since ink coverage on thin tissue is hard to judge from a proof.

    Source: Forest Stewardship Council

  • Unboxing experience

    Unboxing experience is everything a customer sees and touches while opening your package: the outer box or mailer, print inside the lid, tissue paper, inserts, cards and how the product sits. Plan it at the dieline stage, since inside print, inserts and tissue each add a component to quote and pack. Judge it on a box that has been through shipping, not one fresh from the sample room. Keep on-pack claims honest: under the FTC Green Guides, a package should not be marketed as recyclable unless it can be collected and recovered through an established recycling program.

    Source: eCFR (Federal Trade Commission)

  • Void fill

    Also called: Crinkle paper · Honeycomb paper · Air pillows · Dunnage

    Void fill is loose material that fills the empty space in a shipping box so the product can't move. Common types are crinkle paper, honeycomb paper, air pillows and crumpled kraft paper. UPS treats air bags as void fill mainly for lightweight items and not for items with sharp corners or edges, and crumpled kraft paper as void fill for lightweight, non-fragile items, with at least two inches between the contents and the outer box. For sharp or fragile goods, UPS describes a two-box method instead.

    Source: UPS