Design & Design Tips

Our design team specializes in point of purchase displays and industrial corrugated design as well as molded pulp, foam and wood. During the design process our designers will work with you to ensure the packaging meets your requirements. When designing, we focus on safe storage and transportation as well as the esthetic and marketing aspects of the packaging. An important part of our sales process is to have our design team evaluate your packaging to see if fits your handling and marketing needs as well as it could.



Platform: Mac OX
Program Proficiency: Creative Suite CS5
Use the electronic file which we e-mail you as a template for your box design. DO NOT measure the box and do the layout on your own! It will not work, because industry standard folding allowances must be added to the blank measurement of a box panel. Make sure the die line we provide to you is marked as an OUTSIDE VIEW. Copy the drawing into Adobe Illustrator. Group it as one and designate it onto a layer. Lock the layer. Now put your art onto the next layer.


Flexography Art: (Printing directly onto corrugated board)
Please provide art in Adobe Illustrator. It is the standard for the Flexo Industry. If you can't supply your art in the program of choice, we can convert it for you, but an hourly art fee will be charged.


File preparation:
Outline all fonts, rather than to include fonts with the job, since this can get tricky crossing platform from Mac to PC. Provide linked files. DO NOT imbed them. We will preflight all files prior to making printing plates to ensure they are printable and advise of any changes that are needed to make your art successfully imprint onto corrugated.


Design Considerations for Flexography:
There is some movement at press. Elements meant to hit directly on the score lines seldom will. Instead bleed past the scores or shy away by 1/4." Keep all copy 1/4" away from scores as well.
Stay away from designs where an art element wraps around and lines up on different angles of the box. Due to jump at press and die cutter the design rarely lines up perfectly.
® r-bug sizes need to be exaggerated so they won't fill in. Rule of thumb: Make them double the size you normally would. Use a screen value of 42.5 dpi for half tone images. Use only 10%, 20% and 30% line value.
Halftone images in Mezzotints are more corrugated friendly than dots.
Minimum type size is 10 point. Positive print requires a lighter typeface with smaller print, but negative print requires a bolder typeface. Non serif typefaces are preferable. The smaller the type the more undesirable serif typefaces are.
A long line across the corrugation should be a minimum thickness of 5 point or it may be lost during the plate making process. Beware; it may wobble when printing across the corrugation.


Litho Label Art: (Offset Lithography sheet which is laminated to corrugated board)
Use Vector bases programs, such as Illustrator or InDesign to assemble the job. DO NOT assemble the entire job in Photoshop. The type will pixelate and turn blurry and the file can get enormous.
If you are confident that your files are correct and ready to output to proofs, we will provide you with pre press requirements on how to create a Press Ready PDF le that enables us to preflight your job efficiently. Should pre flight issues be apparent, we will provide you with an itemized list of problems and the cost involved to fix the issues.
If you can't supply press ready files, supply them in a Vector based program such as Illustrator or InDesign. Leave them in layered format. Include all linked files, DO NOT embed them. Outline all fonts. All linked files should be 100% to size at 300 pixels per inch. We will preflight and fix any issues for you at an hourly art fee rate.


Design Considerations for Lithography:
Labels must be trimmed to the specifications provided to you on the die line. (See the red line). Make the document size the same size as the trimmed label size. Note that part of the structure may extend past the red line, because the label will not cover this area.
Backgrounds must bleed 1/4" over the outer circumference of the die cut as a minimum, but can bleed out to the trim lines.
Non background images must shy away from die cut edges or score lines by 1/8".
Limit your label size to 28 x 40 whenever possible. While labels up to 54 x 77 are available, they are much more expensive.
A 28 x 40 sheet has a printable area of 26 1/2 X 39 1/2". A 54 x 77 sheet has a printable area of 53 x 76.
Keep files in CMYK. Adding spot colors increases the cost. Also beware that converting spot colors to CMYK may change the color.
Large solid black backgrounds should have "under color" built in. C40, M30, Y30, K100.

Triple A Containers, Inc. is an ISO 9001 Certified manufacturer who produces RoHS compliant packaging. We maintain these stringent standards to ensure that your needs are met, and the environment will be preserved for generations to come.

Please click here to contact us and we will evaluate your complete packaging process to see if we can provide your packaging more cost effectively.  We can share more recycling techniques with you. Join us in preserving our Earth!

High End Direct Flexography Print

High end direct flexographic printing competes well against medium to high volume, over size label work. We have the ability to print 85-110 line screen, which give you excellent results.

This type of retail packaging is widely used in the produce and wine & spirits industry.

Triple A Containers, Inc. is an ISO 9001 Certified manufacturer who produces RoHS compliant packaging. We maintain these stringent standards to ensure that your needs are met, and the environment will be preserved for generations to come.

Please click here to contact us and we will evaluate your complete packaging process to see if we can provide your packaging more cost effectively.  We can share more recycling techniques with you. Join us in preserving our Earth! 

P.O.P Displays

Well designed, high impact displays create sales. In a highly competitive retail environment you need to present your product so its benefits can be communicated to the consumer at a glance.

Our in house Design Team is available to help you from concept to finished design. Our production team can make it become a reality. We can then have it packed out and shipped, or sent to your contract packaging house for pack out.

We will work with you to create the right solution to your marketing needs.

Free Standing Merchandisers Counter Displays End Caps

Side Kicks Pallet Display

Triple A Containers, Inc. is an ISO 9001 Certified manufacturer who produces RoHS compliant packaging. We maintain these stringent standards to ensure that your needs are met, and the environment will be preserved for generations to come.

Please click here to contact us and we will evaluate your complete packaging process to see if we can provide your packaging more cost effectively.  We can share more recycling techniques with you. Join us in preserving our Earth!

Litho Lamination

When you need that extra glossy, but structurally sound, extremely high end print job, we use an offset printed sheet and laminate it to a corrugated sheet, turning it into litho laminated packaging.  If you need product to sell itself, or you want to build quality brand recognition, litho laminated packaging may be the option that works best for you.

Litho lamination is used for:

Product Packaging Promotional Packaging Display Headers

Display Trays Retail Box Packaging P.O.P Displays

We have the creative design staff in house, that can take you from concept to a finished product that you can have confidence in.

Triple A Containers, Inc. is an ISO 9001 Certified manufacturer who produces RoHS compliant packaging. We maintain these stringent standards to ensure that your needs are met, and the environment will be preserved for generations to come.

Please click here to contact us and we will evaluate your complete packaging process to see if we can provide your packaging more cost effectively.  We can share more recycling techniques with you. Join us in preserving our Earth!

Moulded Pulp Packaging

Triple A Containers specializes in designing and manufacturing molded pulp packaging for companies seeking economical as well as recyclable packaging solutions. Our heavy-duty molded pulp packages can be used as low-cost alternatives for foam and corrugated inserts. These biodegradable products are best suited for packaging furniture, medical instruments, wine bottles, and electric motors.

Molded pulp is made from 100% recycled cardboard boxes and paper. The wet molding and heat pressing process enables us to produce molded pulp packages up to 30" in length and 20" in width. Molded pulp packaging inserts offer resilient cushioning for product protection. Our space-saving molded pulp paper inserts can be nested and stacked for efficient storage or shipping applications. Triple A Containers’ skilled design staff can work with your existing designs or create completely new packaging concepts to meet your product packaging challenges. 

Trays, window corner protectors, and containers are some typical pulp packaging products we mold. Our third-party testing partners perform diverse range of tests on these custom packaging products to ensure conformance to ASTM, and IATA standards. In addition to custom design and development of packaging products, we also specialize in offering value-added services such as assembling, consulting, warehousing, and distribution.

Triple A Containers, Inc. is an ISO 9001 Certified manufacturer who produces RoHS compliant packaging. We maintain these stringent standards to ensure that your needs are met, and the environment will be preserved for generations to come.

Please click here to contact us and we will evaluate your complete packaging process to see if we can provide your packaging more cost effectively.  We can share more recycling techniques with you. Join us in preserving our Earth!

Lean Manufacturing

In order to provide more cost effective packaging, Triple A Containers, Inc. made a decision to adopt Lean Manufacturing processes throughout the company.


We recruited a lean manufacturing consultant P Squared (P²) to help us with this continuous manufacturing improvement process because of their vast experience in our industry. 


This is their story:
P² is a multi disciplined team of improvement professionals with expertise in Engineering, Business, and Organizational Psychology. The P Squared (P²) team motto; Process Raised by the Power of People is evidence in all of our work. 

P² customers enjoy lasting profitability from holistic process improvement. This approach is effective because we improve more than the problem process; we also address the policies, procedures, and personalities that support the process. We provide assessment and design training, coaching, and accountability systems to ensure that administrative and production improvements endure.
We work in a variety of industries improving everything from Administration to Warehousing. We work with assembly lines, but our strength is in application of Lean strategies to job shops. The combined packaging industry experience of the team is over 100 years. 


Consequently, you may find someone who knows more about Lean, and you may find someone who knows more about packaging, but you won't find anyone who knows more about Lean packaging.

Assessment

We benchmark plants on a world class Lean production standard. It is our habit to share all the opportunities that we observe with the appropriate personnel. The assessment provides a prioritized action plan for Lean transformation of both physical and cultural aspects. 


The deliverables of the assessment include:
The Rapid Plant assessment, a tool developed by the University of Michigan. Overall Equipment Effectiveness calculation on key machine centers with estimated ROI for improvement. Key leverage points for the most rapid cultural improvement based on observation, industry best practices, and interviews with team members.

Training

P² delivers public workshops and custom in-house training for all of the necessary skills for the Lean transformation of an organization. These are a few examples of public and private workshops:

• Lean Champion Training for the packaging industry held at Clemson University.
• Organize for success, creating a visual workplace with 7S.
• Value Stream Mapping
• YGWYM (you get what you measure) Overall Equipment Effectiveness and other key score cards.
• Quick Changeover
• Total Productive Maintenance for Operators and Maintenance personnel.
• How to hold a Kaizen Event in Production, Sales, or Administrative.

Implementation

We spend the bulk of our time showing companies how to implement Lean strategies. Most consultants Recommended and Run.  We diagnose the problem and stay to show our customers how to carry out the prescribed action plan. We are implementers of Lean. During the implementation we replace ourselves within the organization by training local personnel.

Coaching

P² team members constantly gather best practices as they work with all aspects of business. Each of us has also prepared, through education and experience, to provide specialized service. We know that our success is directly tied to the success of our customers. We often coach for free, as we just can't hold back, but more extensive coaching in groups or individual appointments are available at a contracted rate. Dr. Ellis provides leaders with specialized Executive Coaching to help them manage change and develop their skills for an accelerated Lean transformation.

Triple A Containers, Inc. is an ISO 9001 Certified manufacturer who produces RoHS compliant packaging. We maintain these stringent standards to ensure that your needs are met, and the environment will be preserved for generations to come.

Please click here to contact us and we will evaluate your complete packaging process to see if we can provide your packaging more cost effectively.  We can share more recycling techniques with you. Join us in preserving our Earth!

Custom Pallets & Crates

Manufacturing custom crates as well as pallets for automotive, electronics, and marine applications is our specialties. Our custom pallets and crates are best suited for safe shipment of heavy-duty products such as engines, pumps, and aircraft components. Adhering to RoHS standards, we produce custom crates to ensure maximum usability and protection.

Depending on your specific product type, size, weight, and handling requirements, Triple A Containers produces custom crates from heat treated lumber, plywood, steel bands, and various reusable materials. We can also supply wooden pallets with corrugated packaging and foam inserts for protective shipping of fragile components. Our design team specializes in creating industrial corrugated designs and custom graphics for packaging.

We collaborate with Performance Testing Labs LLC, a company that specializes in drop testing, to inspect our packaging designs’ conformance with ISTA shipping standards. To facilitate efficient and safe material handling, we manufacture crates with a wide range of features, including handles, lock latches, and vapor barrier bags.

Triple A Containers, Inc. is an ISO 9001 Certified manufacturer who produces RoHS compliant packaging. We maintain these stringent standards to ensure that your needs are met, and the environment will be preserved for generations to come.

Please click here to contact us and we will evaluate your complete packaging process to see if we can provide your packaging more cost effectively.  We can share more recycling techniques with you. Join us in preserving our Earth!