Terminology

• Basis Weight - The weight per a selected unit of grade of paper; also known as grammage.
• Cardboard - A generic term for any heavy pulp-based paperboard.
• Chipboard - A term for paperboard made from reclaimed paper stock.
• Containerboard - Paperboard used in the manufacturing of corrugated fiberboard.
• Corrugated - Any material featuring parallel folds or ridges.
• Die - A customized manufacturing tool used to cut or shape material using a press.
• Extrusion - The process of pushing material through a cross-sectioned die that enables easier, more complex production.
• Fiberboard - An engineered product made from wood fibers; commonly seen in particleboard and in the furniture industry.
• Fluting Profile - Varying degrees of fluting width and spacing that enable greater cushioning or structural strength depending on need.
• Folder - One or more pieces of combined board provide an unbroken bottom surface and are scored to fold around a product.
• Grammage - A grade of paper's weight per unit; also known as basis weight.
• Inner Packing Pieces - Corrugated in any form that is used to cushion, separate or fill voids.
• Inner Packing Forms - Die cut corrugated that is used to support irregular products from below or lock them into place from above.
• ISO - International Organization for Standardization; a group of representatives from other national standard-setting organizations with political links; awards the coveted ISO certification.
• Linerboard - The flat part of corrugated that adheres to the medium or fluting.
• Manufacturer's Joint - Where the two ends of a box blank must be fastened together with tape, staples or glue.
• Medium - Another name for the fluted part of corrugated.
• Mil - A verbalized unit of measurement for thousandth(s) of an inch; also called a thou or point.
• Packaging - The art, science and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, sale or storage; also, the process of design, evaluation and production of packages.
• Pad - A plain piece of corrugated that is used as padding or to separate products.
• Paperboard - A slightly thicker variation on general paper; made from vegetable fibers through water suspension. ISO defines it as paper with a basis weight above 224 g/m2.
• Partition - Dividers that provide different cells for each product in the box; most frequently used with glassware.
• Pulp - A dry fibrous material made from the chemical or mechanical separation of fibers from wood, fiber crops or waste paper.
• Puncture Resistance - The ability of a material to resist progressive tearing once it has been pierced or cut.
• Rigid Box - The three pieces of the rigid box style include two identical end panels and a body that folds to form two side panels, an unbroken bottom and top. Flaps used to form joints can be on the end pieces or the body or both. End panels are attached to the body with special equipment, and six or more joints must be sealed to set up the box before it is filled. Once the six or more joints are sealed, the box is solid.
• Self-Erecting Box - Typically a regular slotted container fitted with unique folds at the bottom or sides that allow the box to form quickly when needed.
• Slot - Any rectangular area that needs to be cut away from a sheet of corrugated.
• Slotted Box - The slotted box style is generally made from one piece of corrugated or solid fiberboard. The blank is scored and slotted to permit folding. The box manufacturer forms a joint at the point where one side panel and one end panel are brought together. When the box is needed, the box user squares up the box, inserts product and closes the flaps.