Services · fabrication
The offcut that becomes the product.
A box that failed grading still holds forty square feet of sound five-wall board. Our cutting table turns it into the pads, dividers and trays that other people buy new — at roughly half the price and none of the pulping.
- Minimum run
- 50 pieces
- Max cut size
- 60 × 96 in
- Tooling
- None for simple profiles
Quote a part
Dimensions, quantity, board preference and what the part has to survive. A sketch in the message field is enough to start.
Answer first
Three questions decide the whole quote.
- What are the dimensions and the tolerance? A sixteenth of an inch is achievable on straight cuts; an eighth on scores and simple dies.
- Which direction does the load run? Flute orientation decides whether a pad supports weight or folds under it — we will ask if you do not say.
- How many, and how often? Fifty is the minimum; repeat runs get scheduled around our grading days, which is why standing orders price better.
Capability
What the table does.
| Part | Board | Tolerance | Typical price | Lead time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Layer pads and top sheets | Single to 5-wall | ± 1/16 in | $0.34 – $1.20 | 3 – 7 days |
| Slotted dividers / H-partitions | Double to triple wall | ± 1/16 in | $0.95 – $2.60 | 5 – 10 days |
| Open trays, cut and scored | Double to 5-wall | ± 1/8 in | $1.20 – $3.40 | 5 – 10 days |
| Corner and edge protection | Triple to 5-wall | ± 1/16 in | $0.28 – $0.75 | 3 – 7 days |
| Display bases and plinths | Laminated panels | ± 1/8 in | Quoted | 1 – 2 weeks |
| Custom die-cut profile | To drawing | ± 1/8 in | Quoted | 2 – 3 weeks |
| Toll cutting, your board | Your material | As above | Labour only | 3 – 10 days |
Process
Drawing to delivery.
- 01
Send a drawing or a sample
CAD, a dimensioned sketch or a physical part in the post. All three work; the physical sample is the fastest to quote.
- 02
We match board
We find the reclaimed construction that meets your strength requirement and tell you exactly what it is before cutting anything.
- 03
First article
On runs over 500 pieces we cut and send one for approval. Nobody wants five thousand pads with the flutes running the wrong way.
- 04
Cut, band, ship
Banded in counts you specify, shipped on our own trucks or with your next box order on a single freight bill.
Questions
Fabrication, answered.
What is the minimum run?
Fifty pieces. There is no tooling charge for straight cuts, slots and simple profiles - we work from your drawing, your CAD file or a physical sample you post to us.
How does the price compare with new die-cut stock?
Typically 40 to 60 per cent less, because the board is reclaimed rather than purchased and there is no tooling amortisation on simple profiles. The gap narrows on complex dies where tooling dominates.
Can you match a specific board grade?
We can match a wall construction and a strength band, and we tell you exactly what the reclaimed board is. What we cannot do is guarantee a specific mill's certificate, because the panels come from boxes with their own histories. For certified applications, buy new.
Can I supply my own board?
Yes. Toll cutting from customer-supplied panels or boxes is common - particularly for plants that generate their own damaged containers and would rather turn them into pads than bale them.
Design inputs
What a quotable drawing contains.
Seven items. Send these and the quote comes back the same day; leave any of them out and we will ask, which costs a day.
- Outside dimensions
- Length and width for flat parts; plus height and fold positions for anything scored. State the tolerance you actually need.
- Load direction
- Which way the part carries weight. This sets flute orientation, and getting it wrong turns a supporting pad into a folding one.
- Board requirement
- A construction, an ECT or Mullen figure, or simply what the part has to survive. Any of the three works.
- Quantity and frequency
- Fifty minimum. Repeat runs are scheduled around grading days, which is why standing orders price better.
- Slot and cut positions
- Dimensioned from a datum edge, not from each other. Chained dimensions accumulate error.
- Assembly method
- Slotted, folded, glued or laminated. Laminated parts need panel count and total thickness.
- Finish expectations
- Reclaimed board carries print and label history on one face. Tell us if one face must be clean and we will orient the cut.
- Packing
- Banded counts, on pallets or loose. Parts are light, so banding style affects freight more than weight does.
- First article
- Standard on runs over 500. One piece cut and sent for approval before the run — the cheapest insurance in fabrication.
Parts catalogue
What comes off the table most often.
Roughly ninety per cent of fabrication volume is these eight parts. Anything not listed is quoted from a drawing.
| Part | Typical size | Board | Tolerance | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Layer pad | Up to 48 × 40 in | Single to 5-wall | ± 1/16 in | $0.34 |
| Pallet top sheet | 48 × 40 in | Double to triple | ± 1/16 in | $0.62 |
| Slip sheet | 50 × 42 in | Single to double | ± 1/8 in | $0.35 |
| Slotted divider | To drawing | Double to triple | ± 1/16 in | $0.95 |
| H-partition | To drawing | Double to triple | ± 1/16 in | $1.35 |
| Open tray, cut and scored | Up to 48 × 40 in | Double to 5-wall | ± 1/8 in | $1.20 |
| Corner piece | 12 – 36 in | Triple to 5-wall | ± 1/16 in | $0.28 |
| Edge runner | To length | Triple to 5-wall | ± 1/16 in | $0.22 |
Send a sketch. Get a price on reclaimed board.
Most quotes come back the same day, and most come in well under what a converting plant would charge for the same part in virgin stock.