Technical Packaging Services & Support

Do You Speak Packaging?

Ten packaging words you don’t tend to hear down the pub

Like any profession, the packaging industry has its own particular words that people outside the industry rarely come across.  Friends and colleagues often need some help in translating technical terminology and abbreviations.

Here are ten words used in the print & packaging profession that can sometimes cause a blank expression or even a little titter:

Butt register – Noun. Register where ink colours meet precisely without overlapping or allowing space between, as compared to lap register. Also called butt fit and kiss register!

Flexo – Adjective.  Flexographic printing which uses flexible plates with the print image standing out in relief. Fluid ink applied to the raised portions of the printing is transferred to the substrate.

Frangible – Adjective. Able to be broken into fragments; brittle or fragile.

Gravure – Adjective. Rotogravure printing which uses a rotary cylinder press, usually at high speed and for long print runs.

Gussets – Noun. The fold in the side or bottom of a pouch, allowing it to expand when contents are inserted.

Gauge band – Noun. A thickness irregularity found in rolls of film. 

Hermetic – Adjective. Describes a seal that is airtight or impervious to gases or fluids under normal conditions of handling and storage.

Shelfready (SRP) – Adjective. A product placed on the shelf without the need for unpacking or repacking.

Tunneling – Noun. A laminating defect caused by incomplete bonding of the substrates.

Ullage – Noun. The amount of unfilled space in a container, particularly with a liquid

Ullage
Ullage

Sources include:

www.glenroy.com; www.printindustry.com; pffc-online.com

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