About Corrugated

Corrugated fiberboard is made up of the medium, which is fluted paper, and the linerboard which adheres to the medium on one or both sides. If there is linerboard on only one side of the medium it is called single faced board. There may be more than one fluted layer and each of the layers may be a different kind of flute.

The following illustrations demonstrate some different types of boards:

Single Face One medium is glued to one sheet of linerboard
Single Wall (also known as Double Face) The medium is between two sheets of linerboard.
Double Wall Three sheets of linerboard with two mediums in between.
Triple Wall Four sheets of linerboard with three mediums in between.

Corrugated boards gets its strength from the arch type design of the flutes. When pressure is applied to the end of the flutes they act as a rigid column. When pressure is applied to the face of the board the flutes act as arches to support the pressure. The linerboard provides additional strength. The layer or layers of flutes also provide insulation and protection to the products from temperature changes.

Flutes come in several different sizes, the largest and most common is A-flute. Other common flute sizes are B, C, E, & F. The larger the flute the greater the vertical and compression strength. Different flute sizes can be combined in double and triple wall boards to provide the best of compression strength, cushioning strength and total thickness of board.

Box Dimensions

Dimensions are given in the sequence of length, width and depth. The dimensions of a box are described based on the opening of an assembled box, which can be located on the top or the side. The opening of a box is a rectangle; that is, it has two sets of parallel sides. The longer of the two sides is considered its length, the shorter of the two sides is considered its width. The side perpendicular to length and width is considered the depth of the box.

Dimensions can be specified for either the inside or the outside of the box. Accurate inside dimensions must be determined to ensure the proper fit for the product being shipped or stored. At the same time, palletizing and distributing the boxes depends on the outside dimensions.