| A |
|
| Abrasion/wear resistance |
How well a packing material or ink stands up to abrasion or wear. |
| ADR |
A term from hazardous goods legislation: “Accord européen relatif au transport international des marchandises dangereuses par route” (European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road). |
| ASSCO |
Association / organisation; European Solid Board Packaging Manufacturers’ Association. |
| B |
|
| Barrier material | Greaseproof, waterproof and vapour-proof films to protect sensitive, edged or irregularly shaped machines. |
| BCT (Box Compression Test) |
Packaging technology / test method: top-to-bottom compression strength; measurement of the strength of the packaging when stacked; measured in newtons (N). |
| Bookbinding board | Grey mill board made of 100% recycled fibres, used to make book covers. Bookbinding board is flat and very smooth, and can be drawn, punched, grooved and embossed. |
| Bursting strength |
The ability of a corrugated cardboard sample, held by circular clamps, to withstand evenly increasing one-sided pressure until it ruptures, measured in kilopascals (kPa) (see also Mullen tester). |
| C |
|
| Coated paper |
Paper coated on one or both sides with a pigmented coating to improve surface smoothness, gloss, whiteness and printability. |
| Collapsible box | Fully glued, single-piece construction box with diagonal bends which is supplied flat and simply opened out to make it ready for use. |
| Corrugated cardboard | Cardboard consisting of one or more layers of corrugated paper glued to one layer or between multiple layers of a different paper or cardboard. Most common types: - Single-sided corrugated cardboard - Single-wall corrugated cardboard - Double-wall corrugated cardboard - Triple-wall corrugated cardboard |
| Corrugated roll | See Single-sided corrugated cardboard |
| Creasing | Groove in corrugated cardboard for ease of folding. |
| Cushioning travel | Compression travel in padding. In PE foam this is about 70% of the padding thickness. |
| D |
|
| DIN |
Standard; Deutsches Institut für Normung e.V. (German Institute for Standardization) |
| Display packaging |
Packaging that can be used to present goods attractively as well as transporting them. |
| E |
|
| ECT (Edge Crush Test) |
Packaging technology / test method: Method for establishing the edge crush resistance, which is measured parallel to the fluting in a small corrugated cardboard sample; measured in newtons per metre (N/m) |
| Edge crush resistance |
See ECT |
| Egg crate foam |
Polyurethane foam with raised bumps, only suitable for slightly sensitive packaged products. |
| EN |
European standard (issued by CEN (Comité Européen de Normalisation = European Committee for Standardization). |
| ESD packaging |
ESD stands for electrostatic discharge. Components vulnerable to ESD must be transported in anti-static or conductive packaging. |
| Export packaging |
Packaging which, in its construction, strength and labelling, is suited to the particular transport conditions of the exporting and recipient countries and any transit countries. |
| F |
|
| FCT (Flat Crush Test) |
Packaging technology / test method: Test procedure used to establish the flat crush resistance of single-wall corrugated cardboard, measured in kPa. |
| FEFCO |
Association / organisation; European Federation of Corrugated Board Manufacturers. |
| Felt board | Board containing textile fibres, giving it a soft, flexible feel. |
| Flat crush resistance |
Ability of single-wall corrugated cardboard to withstand vertical surface loading before it collapses; measured in kilopascals [kPa]. |
| Fluting |
Corrugating medium with a high proportion of semi-chemical pulp. Paper used for the corrugated layer of corrugated cardboard; usually made of waste corrugated cardboard with additives to increase rigidity. |
| Folding box |
Usually consists of a single part, the base and lid being formed by four closing flaps. |
| G |
|
| Gift packaging |
Consumer packaging with decorative design or features. Can normally only be shipped when combined with shipment packaging and product-specific inner packaging (padding). |
| Glassine | Transparent, greaseproof and food-safe cellulose paper. |
| Gluing |
Joining the manufacturer’s joint(s) of corrugated or solid board packaging with glue tabs. |
| Grammage |
Mass of a packing material per unit of area; expressed in g/m². |
| H |
|
| Hazardous goods packaging | Shipment packaging that complies with transport regulations governing the carriage of hazardous goods. |
| I |
|
| IATA-DGR |
A term from hazardous goods legislation; Dangerous Goods Regulations of the International Air Transport Association. |
| ICAO-IT | A term from hazardous goods legislation; Technical Instructions of the International Civil Air Transport Organisation. |
| Inner Flaps |
Flaps on the face ends of folding boxes/cases (code 0201 to 0206) |
| Insulated packaging |
Packaging with high thermal insulation capacity |
| ISO |
Standard; International Organization for Standardization; responsible for technical and non-technical standards. Insulated packaging Packaging with high thermal insulation capacity. |
| K |
|
| Kraft liner |
Linerboard for corrugated cardboard, consisting of at least 80% long wood fibres (the rest being used paper). Very high strength. |
| Kraft paper |
Paper with very high strength, mostly made of kraft pulp, to which used kraft paper may be added. |
| L |
|
| Lamination of packaging | Gluing multiple sheets of paperboard together or gluing a paper or film surface on to paperboard to improve its technological properties and/or appearance. |
| Lidded box | Type of packaging where each side of the base is covered by each side of the lid (codes 0301 to 0313). |
| Linerboard |
Smooth paperboard which is glued to fluting to make corrugated cardboard. Linerboard types include kraft liner, test liner and schrenz. |
| Loose fill |
Loose filling materials such as polystyrene chips, maize starch chips etc. |
| M |
|
| Manufacturer’s closure | Join between two adjacent edges of a folding box / case, completed in the factory using glue, adhesive tape or staples; glue joins are usually accomplished with a glue tab (strip attached to one edge). |
| Microflute | Corrugated cardboard with very small corrugations of less than 1 mm for non-sensitive products, offering little by way of cushioning, easily printable and therefore normally used for retail packaging. |
| Migration | General term for transfer of substances between media. Migration is a particularly important issue in food and pharmaceutical packaging. |
| Mill board | Several layers of paper (normally used paper) glued together to achieve the desired thickness. |
| Moulded packaging | Made-to-measure packaging, usually designed for series production. |
| Mullen tester |
Test device for establishing the bursting strength of paper, board, corrugated cardboard and other materials. |
| Multi-material packaging | Packaging made of more than one material (e.g. board and plastic). |
| O | |
| Outer flaps | Closing flaps parallel to the long side of folding boxes / cases. |
| P |
|
| PA/Polyamid |
Universal plastic with high melting point, known by the brand name Nylon; in the packaging industry, used as film sheets. |
| Package | See parcel |
| Packaged good | See Packaged product |
| Packaged product |
Product to be packaged or that has already been packaged. |
| Packaging | Umbrella term for all packaging and packaging aids. The term can be further refined by indicating the type of packaged product (e.g. “fruit packaging”), the functional task of the packaging (e.g. “shipment packaging”) or the material used (e.g. “metal packaging”). |
| Packaging check |
Packaging technology / test method: Process of establishing specific, reproducible characteristic values of packaging materials, items and aids, packages, or the packing method, for example using physical, chemical or sensory techniques. |
| Packaging crepe |
Creped packaging paper, grammage 180 g/m² - 270 g/m². |
| Packaging item |
Product made of packaging material designed to surround or contain the packaged product to enable it to be shipped, stored or sold. |
| Packaging material |
Material used to make packaging or packaging aids. |
| Packing aid |
Packing aids are materials that give strength to or increase the strength of the packaging, such as nails, adhesive tapes, staples and straps that hold boxes and cases together. |
| Padding |
Inserts made of elastic materials (e.g. foam) to absorb and reduce impact (by creating braking travel) or separate the packaged product from the impact. |
| Paperboard | Several layers of paper couched together when wet; fibre-based material of a weight between that of paper and solid board. |
| Paper density |
See Grammage |
| Paper cushioning |
Universal packaging made of mechanically crushed kraft paper. Special training is required before use. Soft padding is used for lightweight products and hard padding for heavy products. |
| Paper bag |
Flexible packaging for products that are not sensitive to pressure or impact. |
| Parcel |
Result of combining packaged product and packaging. |
| PE/polythylene |
PE is one of the most versatile thermoplastics. In its basic form it is clear and colourless to milky white. Its applications range from films and packing foam to moulded packaging made of open cell PE foam and foam-moulded padding made of closed cell foam. |
| Polykraft |
Waterproof PE-coated kraft paper, thicker than conventional waxed paper; good resistance to grease, oil and water; often used in export and overseas packaging. |
| PP/polypopylene |
Polypropylene is a thermoplastic, very similar to high-density polyethylene but less dense, more rigid, harder and heat-resistant to over 100°C. Its applications range from films and foam plastics to injection-moulded and deep-drawn packaging. |
| PS/Polystyrene |
Polystyrene is a widely used bulk plastic. It can be used for injection moulding, extrusion and blowing. Its most well-known application in packaging is in expanded polystyrene foam (e.g. Styrofoam). |
| Pulp moulding | Process by which 100% used paper is dissolved and reformed by pressing and drying – with the addition of binders and/or fillers if necessary. |
| Puncture resistance | The ability of a corrugated cardboard sample, held by clamps, to withstand the mechanical penetration of a penetrator; measured in joules [J]. |
| PUR direct foam insertion | Packaging foam which expands inside the packaging to surround the packaged product. Available in different densities for lightweight to medium-weight products. The quality of the packaging largely depends on the material being correctly used. |
| PUR/polyurethane |
The polyurethanes (PUR) used in the packaging industry are duroplasts and are made from polyisocyanates and polyalcohols. By modifying the basic materials and using different catalysts it is possible to make soft, hard and semi-hard foams for packaging. |
| PVC |
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is one of the most well-known plastics. PVC is suitable for almost any plastic processing method. Its applications include for example films, injection-moulded and deep-drawn components and foam plastics. |
| R |
|
| RAL |
Association / organisation; Founded in 1925 as the “Reichs-Ausschuss für Lieferbedingungen”; now: RAL Deutsches Institut für Gütesicherung und Kennzeichnung e.V. (RAL German Institute for Quality Control and Labelling) |
| RCT (Ring Crush Test) |
Packaging technology / test method: Test to measure the edge crush resistance of linerboard or fluting with the aid of a ring-shaped clamp in which pressure is applied to a strip of corrugated cardboard; measured in kilonewtons per metre (kN/m). |
| RESY |
Association / organisation; RESY (Organisation für Wertstoff-Entsorgung GmbH) (Organisation for the Disposal of Recyclables) guarantees to fully dispose of or recycle all transport and secondary packaging made of paper or board which is labelled with the RESY symbol. The use of the RESY symbol indicates that the material satisfies the requirements of the German Packaging -Recycling-System Ordinance for transport packaging. |
| Retail packaging | Packaging offered as a sales unit, which ends up with the end consumer. Retail packaging is also used by businesses, the hotel and food service industry and other service providers to enable or facilitate the handover of goods to the end consumer (e.g. service packaging), and includes disposable crockery and cutlery. Retail packaging might be the wrappings for paper reams or rolls, the aluminium foil around films, foil containers, etc. |
| Reusable packaging | Packaging which can be used more than once, used in loan and return systems or issued in exchange for a deposit. |
| RID |
A term from hazardous goods legislation; Réglement International Concernant le Transport des Marchandises Dangereuses par Chemins de Fer (Regulations Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail). |
| Ring crush resistance |
See RCT |
| S |
|
| Schrenz |
Very lightweight linerboard made of mixed, unsorted used paper. |
| Secondary packaging | Additional packaging surrounding the retail packaging, which may protect the goods in a self-service scenario, prevent theft, or have a primarily promotional purpose. Examples: blisters, films etc. |
| Semi-chemical pulp paper | Corrugated paper manufactured in a part-chemical, part-mechanical process, offering high rigidity (also known as fluting). |
| Shipment packaging | Packaging of a construction and quality intended to satisfy shipping requirements. It is normally used as outer packaging for the packaged product or to hold several individual packages together. |
| Shredded paper | Padding and retaining material that must be well compressed; only suitable for relatively non-sensitive products. |
| Silver tissue | Very lightweight, wood-free, flexible tissue paper made of pure cellulose. |
| Single-material packaging | Packaging material that can be recycled in a material cycle without first being split into different material components. |
| Single-sided corrugated cardboard | Corrugated cardboard consisting of a layer of corrugated paper glued to paper or board, usually sold in rolls; often referred to as corrugated roll. |
| Soda paper | (Kraft paper) containing at least 90% fresh, usually unbleached sulphate pulp (kraft pulp). It is characterised by its high strength and durability. |
| Stamping |
Cutting and creasing corrugated cardboard using special stamping tools in a flat bed or rotary stamping process. |
| Stapling | Sealing the manufacturer’s joint with staples. |
| Starch chips |
Loose fill material based on industrial starch, used to fill cavities for products that do not require strong padding. |
| Storage packaging | Packaging which is especially suitable for medium- to long-term storage. |
| T |
|
| Tear-off strip | Narrow self-adhesive tape made of plastic or fibre material which is stuck to the inside of corrugated cardboard packaging, at right angles to the corrugations, to allow sealed packages to be opened easily. |
| Telescopic boxes |
Packaging with adjustable length and height. |
| Test liner |
Linerboard with two or more layers for corrugated cardboard, without a defined fibre composition, but with guaranteed strength characteristics. |
| Tissue paper | Soft, grey recycled paper, mostly for +B74 prepacking of surface-sensitive objects. |
| Top-to-bottom compression strength | Measure of the stacking strength of corrugated cardboard packaging. The test method used is the box compression test. |
| Transport packaging |
Transport packaging refers to packaging that facilitates transport, protects the goods against damage in transit, or is used for safety reasons and ends up with the distributor. This includes pallets, shrink and stretch films, intermediate and cover layers, iron or plastic straps, and also corrugated cardboard boxes used as transport containers for packaged goods. |
| Triplex paperboard |
Multiplex paperboard, smooth on one side, made of three different material layers with a defined composition; the term triplex board is used for materials with greater mass per unit of area. |
| TUL processes |
German abbreviation for Transport, Umschlag und Lagerung, (transport, handling and storage).Association / organisation; RESY (Organisation für Wertstoff-Entsorgung GmbH) (Organisation for the Disposal of Recyclables) guarantees to fully dispose of or recycle all transport and secondary packaging made of paper or board which is labelled with the RESY symbol. The use of the RESY symbol indicates that the material satisfies the requirements of the German Packaging Ordinance for transport packaging.Association / organisation; RESY (Organisation für Wertstoff-Entsorgung GmbH) (Organisation for the Disposal of Recyclables) guarantees to fully dispose of or recycle all transport and secondary packaging made of paper or board which is labelled with the RESY symbol. The use of the RESY symbol indicates that the material satisfies the requirements of the German Packaging Ordinance for transport packaging.Association / organisation; RESY (Organisation für Wertstoff-Entsorgung GmbH) (Organisation for the Disposal of Recyclables) guarantees to fully dispose of or recycle all transport and secondary packaging made of paper or board which is labelled with the RESY symbol. The use of the RESY symbol indicates that the material satisfies the requirements of the German Packaging Ordinance for transport packaging. |
| U |
|
| Universal packaging |
Packaging product made of standard packaging materials with a broad range of applications, for example wraparound packaging. |
| UN number |
A term from hazardous goods legislation; Four-digit number identifying a hazardous substance, group of substances, or object. |
| UN packaging |
Specially tested packaging for shipping hazardous goods. The UN number is internationally accepted evidence that the packaging meets certain strength criteria. The labelling on the packaging does not give information about the use of the packaging for a particular substance. The packaging type, maximum holding capacity and/or maximum mass, and any other special regulations are defined separately for each substance in ADR/RID. |
| V |
|
| Vibration test |
Packaging technology / test method: Simulation of transport conditions where packages are excited on a vibrating table. Tests sinusoidal vibration, noise and shock. The behaviour of the test item is analysed using acceleration sensors. |
| W |
|
| Wood wool |
Padding material consisting of long wood shavings manufactured on special wood wool machines. |
