Corrugated Paperboard for Dummies

Different common types of Corrugated Paperboard and their uses

Corrugated packaging boxes are some of the most commonly used forms of transport packaging in the world today. The raw material used for this form of packaging is corrugated paperboard (or simply ''board''), and it is produced in many ways and with many specifications in order to fit the corrugated packaging and corrugated transport material requirements for a particular product and its supply chain, starting from a factory to the doorstep of a consumer. In the US alone, 95% of all consumer products are shipped in corrugated boxes, with 75% of this amount of box material being recycled each year. The basic principle is to use combinations of paper and adhesives with varying levels of heat and pressure; which allows for a variety of types to be produced, with varying levels of strength, weight and durability.

Corrugated paperboard starts out with basic liner (also called paperboard; from which the name comes) in massive rolls. The wavy paper shown below, sandwiched between the straight papers is called the corrugating medium (while the straight paper on both sides of the wavy one are the liners).

Common Corrugated Paperboard types and uses

Single-face Corrugated Board: A single liner is glued to a corrugated medium to form a single-face paperboard. This is commonly seen in packaging for fine china, light bulb etc.

Single-Wall Corrugated Board: Two liners are glued to either side of the corrugating material to form a single-wall paperboard. This is the simplest and most widely used form of packaging for shipments for a variety of plastic goods and food products. This is the box consumers come across most often In daily life.

Double-Wall Corrugated Board: When another layer of corrugating material and a layer of liner is added to a single-wall paperboard, the resulting product is the much stronger and shock absorbent double-wall paperboard. This form is heavier and more expensive and is generally used to ship/ transport bulk packaged foods, material like nails and rivets, appliances like TV''s and DVD players and even furniture. For larger and heavier goods, Triple-Wall Corrugated Paperboard is produced in the same way.

Production

Corrugated paperboard is specifically designed to fit product based requirements. Producers usually specifically design the kind of paperboard to be used for each specific product type in accordance with transportation requirements, weight and strength and shock absorbent properties. The production of corrugated paperboard is simply explained as follows;

1- The first sheet of straight liner is unrolled and heated.
2- This sheet is then passed through high pressure steam to make it soft and spongy.
3- The sheet is then passed between a set of long sprockets in order to create the ridges (or flutes). This process forms the wavy ''corrugating medium''.
4- The glue is then applied to one side (in case of single-face paperboard) or either side (in single-wall paperboard) of the corrugating medium.
5- Sheets of liner are then unrolled and glued to one or either side of the corrugating medium to form a single-face or single-wall paperboard.
6- Further layers of corrugating medium and liner are added to form double-wall and higher classifications of corrugated paperboard.

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