Folding cartons, or paper boxes are highly customizable not only in their design, but also their shapes and structures! In this post, we’re continuing our How It’s Made series by walking you through the folding carton production process.
Read on to learn more!
Order Paper
As with every packaging production process, we start with the paper. Folding cartons are made with a paper board material. This paper board comes in a brown and white Kraft finish, depending on how you want your final design to come out! Here at LeKAC, our folding carton material starts at a thickness of 350g, and we offer a wide variety of structure styles!
Did you know: The paper board can go up to 400g for added structure! Ask your Business Development Consultant for more information!
Once ordering the paper is complete, we print the designs onto the paper board. This is done through one of four printing methods. If you need a quick refresher, these methods are: offset, screen, relief and digital printing. For a more in-depth explanation of how each of these printing methods works, check out our previous post here!
When we’re printing any of our packaging, we often use a design made on a die line. Die lines are 2D nets of the packaging, which we send to our suppliers. These die lines inform the manufacturers how to cut and print your packaging to make sure it comes out exactly as you envision it.
The die lines also have an important feature called a bleed line. The bleed is the space outside of the printing margins, between the printing image and the page. The bleed area allows for movement and design inconsistencies in the printing process, and provides a safe clearance space for die-cutting!
Add-Ons
At this phase of the production process, it’s the part you all know and love. Add-ons, while optional, can add a whole new dimension to any packaging product. From special coatings, foil, cutout windows and embossing, the variety of add-ons available can help add a unique touch to your packaging.
Die-Cut
This next phase of the production process cuts the folding carton design out to the correct shape. In this stage, the edges of the die line get a crease to make folding easier. Additionally, we create die cut windows at this phase!
Gluing
Once printing, die-cutting and creasing are complete, it’s time to glue and fold! Folding cartons don’t always require glue, but rather use pre-cut closures to hold them together! For more examples of glue-free packaging, check out our previous blog post!
Once any necessary gluing is complete, the boxes head to packing before they ship to your door. Our folding cartons usually ship flat to allow for more efficient shipping and storage. The assembly happens in stores as you need them!
Why Folding Cartons?
Overall, why should you think about using a folding carton? These boxes come in a wide variety of shapes and structures. They can be as luxurious or simple as you need and are also 100% recyclable (unless you add a lamination)!
With folding cartons, the possibilities are endless. They’re great options for a wide array of businesses, from fashion to food. Want to learn more about how folding cartons can work for your business? Contact us today to find out how we can help!
