Object: Cardboard

A definition (or lack of)

Cardboard is a generic term for a heavy-duty paper of various strengths, ranging from a simple arrangement of a single thick sheet of paper to complex configurations featuring multiple corrugated and uncorrugated layers.

In business and industry, material producers, container manufacturers, packaging engineers, and standards organisations, try to use more specific terminology. There is still not complete and uniform usage. Often the term "cardboard" is avoided because it does not define any particular material.


Origin


The term has been used since at least as early as 1683, with a publication of that year stating that "The scabbards mentioned in printers' grammars of the last century were of cardboard or millboard". The Kellogg brothers first used cardboard cartons to hold their flaked corn cereal, and later when they began marketing it to the general public a heat-sealed waxed bag of Waxtite was wrapped around the outside of the box and printed with their brand name. This marked the origin of the cereal box, though in modern times the sealed bag is plastic and is kept inside the box rather than outside. Another early American packaging industry pioneer was the Kieckhefer Container Company, run by John W. Kieckhefer, which excelled in the use of fibre shipping containers, which especially included the paper milk carton. 


Flutes 

When dealing with differing types and styles of cardboard, we often refer to its flute, or flutes. What is a flute? Well, it simply means the type of corrugation that is sandwiched between the two outer layers of cardboard. The larger the flute, the stronger the box.