The chances are that if you look around you’ll see a corrugated box or two, no matter where you are in the world. It’s possible that it’s even more.
I’m now seated at my workplace desk, and I’m looking at the number six. And no, I’m not a hoarder in the traditional sense. All of my office supplies and printing paper were delivered in these boxes, which may also be used to keep items in a tidy and orderly manner.
A few Corrugated Boxes may be found in the corner of my room or closet virtually all of the time, even though I live alone. I’m always purging and organising my belongings, and these bins include things that will be donated.
The exact box that is now in my immediate vicinity came from Trader Joe’s, which used to package my goods. It was in this exact package that the frozen hash browns were first delivered to Trader Joe’s. As you can see, a single corrugated box may be used for a variety of tasks and is seldom used just once.
Corrugated boxes are probably something you take for granted, yet they play an important part in our daily lives, both at work and at home.
Corrugated boxes may be found almost anywhere, including our homes and workplaces — whether you work in an office, a garage, a retail shop, a restaurant, a fire station, or just about any other setting.
The vast majority of items are sent in corrugated boxes, and many of these things are kept in these boxes for easy storage. The majority of retail packing boxes perform a variety of tasks before being sent to the recycling facility.
It should come as no surprise that the corrugated packaging sector is thriving. The need for eco-friendly packaging is rising as ecommerce grows, and customers are demanding more environmentally friendly packaging solutions. This trend is not expected to cease anytime soon. Consider these stats:
- In 2023, it is predicted that the total amount of corrugated packaging shipped in the United States would be around 443 billion square feet.
- According to industry estimates, the corrugated board packaging market was worth more than $262 billion in 2019 and is predicted to grow to about $400 billion by 2025.
- The corrugated packaging industry is responsible for the packaging and transportation of more than 95 percent of all commodities consumed in North America.
- In the United States, there are more over 1,100 corrugated manufacturing plants.
- Corrugated boxes provide protection, are cost-effective, and may be readily customised to meet specific needs.
What’s not to like about this?
In the field of packaging, the corrugated box is dismantled.
Although most people refer to corrugated boxes as cardboard boxes, the two are not the same in terms of technicality.
Because of this, some people may be confused by the terminology. Cards are a heavy-duty kind of paper stock that is widely used for folding cartons and other similar purposes.
Folding carton boxes, which are often seen along grocery store shelves, are constructed of cardboard. Consider the contents of a cereal or mac and cheese box. This is hardly the sort of package you’d expect to withstand the shipping procedure, and yet it did. If you send one of these in the mail, it’s probable that it will arrive in shreds at its intended location.
The strength of a corrugated box, on the other hand, is unbeatable.
Corrugated boxes are constructed of two layers: a liner and a medium. These pieces of paper are bonded together to form a single unit. They’re normally composed of three layers of fiberboard, although they may be somewhat thicker.
The outermost layer is referred to as the linerboard, or just the liner for short. Liners are the flat pieces of material that are normally found on the outside of the board, but they may also be found on the inside, as in the case of a double or triple walled board.
The flute is the wavy layer in the centre of the piece that serves as the medium. This internal component is responsible for the robustness of corrugated packing boxes and the widespread usage of these containers for shipping and storage.
What is the procedure followed in the production of corrugated shipping boxes?
I’m going to go out on a limb and presume that everyone is aware that corrugated boxes begin their lives as a forest of trees. Allowing for the above, let us take a deeper look at how these boxes are constructed. Here’s a brief overview of the corrugated box manufacturing process:
- The trees have been felled and their bark has been scraped away.
- These logs are processed into wood chips to be used as fuel.
- The woodchips are pulped using either a chemical (sulfite and sulphate) or a mechanical (grinding) pulping process to get the desired pulp consistency.
- The fluting is created with a corrugated rolling machine.
- A corrugator machine is responsible for pressing and glueing the layers of boards to one another.
- A die cutter is a tool that cuts out features such as flaps and folds.
- The board has been sliced and bonded together.
- And presto, you’ve got yourself a corrugated box.
If you want to go even further and witness the corrugated box manufacturing process in action, YouTube provides a surprising number of intriguing videos showing the many steps involved in the production of corrugated boxes.
Also check out our Custom Hanger Boxes product.
