Cardboard box

Many boxes are made of thick paper.

Some have wavy paper inside. This wavy part makes the box very strong. These strong boxes help move goods safely. Some boxes are thin and fold flat. These hold things like cereal. Other boxes are stiff and stay in one shape. They hold fancy gifts like jewelry. You can even recycle these boxes! They are very useful tools.

Most people call them cardboard boxes. But experts often use better names. They use terms like paperboard or corrugated fiberboard. Paperboard is a thick type of paper. It is used for cereal boxes. These are called folding cartons. They fold flat when they are empty. This helps save space. Some boxes are called set-up boxes. These are made of stiff paperboard. They do not fold flat. People use them for jewelry or electronics.

Corrugated fiberboard is very strong. It has a wavy middle layer. This layer is called a flute. The flutes help the box stay tough. This makes them good for shipping. In 1874, Oliver Long made a new kind. He added flat sheets to both sides. This is how we make boxes today.

Boxes are great for play, too. A cardboard box can be a toy. In 2005, a box joined the National Toy Hall of Fame. You can even use them to stay safe. A stuntman once landed on a runway of boxes. The boxes crushed to soak up the power of his fall.

Many people call them cardboard boxes. Experts use more specific names for these containers. They might say paperboard or corrugated fiberboard. Paper is made by pressing moist fibers together. These fibers come from wood, grasses, or rags. Paperboard is a thicker version of paper. It is usually more than 0.25 mm thick. Some paperboard is called a folding carton. These are used for cereal or medicine. They fold flat to save space when empty.

Corrugated fiberboard is a very strong material. It uses a wavy middle layer called a flute. This flute gives the box its strength. It is great for shipping and storage. There are also set-up boxes. These are made of a stiff paperboard. They do not fold flat like other cartons. People use them for jewelry or electronics. Some boxes are even used for drinks. These are called paperboard laminates. They help keep juice or milk fresh.

People have been making these boxes for a long time. The first paperboard boxes appeared in England in 1817. A firm called M. Treverton & Son is linked to this. In that same year, Germany made a box for a game. In 1890, Robert Gair invented the pre-cut box. He was a printer from Brooklyn. He discovered his idea by accident. A metal ruler shifted while he worked. It cut and creased the paper at once. This made it easy to fold boxes.

New designs helped boxes grow in use. Albert L. Jones patented a single-sided corrugated board in 1871. He used it to wrap glass items. In 1874, G. Smyth built a large machine for this. That same year, Oliver Long improved the design. He added flat sheets to both sides. This created the corrugated cardboard we use today. By 1908, both names for the material were common. The Kellogg Company was the first to use them for cereal.

Cardboard is also wonderful for play and safety. Children often use boxes as toys. They can imagine a box is a time machine. In 2005, a box joined the National Toy Hall of Fame. A large box house is kept in New York. Boxes can even help protect people. They can absorb energy when they are crushed. A stuntman named Gary Connery used this in 2012. He landed on a runway made of thousands of boxes. This helped him land safely without a parachute.

Cardboard boxes are industrially prefabricated containers used to package goods and materials. While many people use the word "cardboard," specialists in industry often avoid this term. This is because cardboard is not a single, specific material. Instead, it can refer to several different heavy, paper-like substances. These include card stock, paperboard, and corrugated fiberboard. These containers are very important for modern life because they can be readily recycled.

To understand these materials, we must first look at how paper is made. Paper is a thin material created by pressing together moist fibers. These fibers usually come from cellulose pulp, which is derived from wood, grasses, or rags. Once the fibers are pressed and dried into flexible sheets, they become paper. Paperboard is a thicker version of this material. It is generally thicker than 0.25 mm. According to ISO standards, paperboard has a basis weight, or grammage, above 224 g/m2. Some paperboard is single-ply, while others are multi-ply.

There are several distinct types of containers used in different ways. Corrugated fiberboard is a combined material made of a fluted corrugated medium. This medium is a wavy layer sandwiched between one or two flat liner boards. The flute provides strength, making it ideal for shipping and storage. Another type is the folding carton, which is often made of paperboard. These are used for consumer goods like cereals, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. They are designed to fold flat when empty to save space. There are also set-up boxes, which are made of a non-bending grade of paperboard. These do not fold flat and are delivered fully constructed for high-end items like jewelry.

Drink boxes are another specialized type of container. They are made of paperboard laminates, which are layers of paperboard. These are widely used for beverages like juice, milk, and wine. They are often used in aseptic packaging to maintain the freshness of liquids. The history of these boxes began in the early 19th century. The first commercial paperboard box is credited to M. Treverton & Son in England in 1817. In that same year, Germany produced a cardboard box for a board game called "The Game of Besieging." At that time, paper and cardboard were still considered relative luxuries.

Major technological changes occurred throughout the 1800s. In 1856, corrugated paper was patented in England, though it was used for tall hats rather than boxes. On December 20, 1871, Albert L. Jones of New York City was issued a patent for single-sided corrugated board. He used this material to wrap bottles and glass lantern chimneys. In 1874, G. Smyth built the first machine for large-scale production. That same year, Oliver Long improved the design by adding liner sheets to both sides. This created the corrugated cardboard used today. By the early 1900s, these cartons began replacing wooden crates for shipping.

Another major milestone was the invention of the pre-cut box. In 1890, Robert Gair, a printer from Brooklyn, invented the pre-cut paperboard box. This invention happened by accident. While printing seed bags, a metal ruler shifted and cut the material. Gair realized he could cut and crease the paper in one single operation. This allowed boxes to be manufactured in bulk as flat pieces that fold easily. This method was later applied to corrugated boxboard once that material became available around the turn of the twentieth century. The first corrugated cardboard box manufactured in the US appeared in 1895.

Cardboard boxes also have a significant place in culture and safety. Because they are inexpensive, they are used for science experiments, toys, and costumes. In 2005, a cardboard box was added to the National Toy Hall of Fame in the US. This was a rare honor for a non-brand-specific toy. Even in professional stunts, boxes can be useful. They can absorb energy when they are crushed due to the mass and viscosity of the enclosed air. In 2012, stuntman Gary Connery used thousands of cardboard boxes to build a crushable runway. This allowed him to land safely from a wingsuit without using a parachute.