Why ECMA Standards Are Important For Custom Product Packaging

ECMA Standards sheet paper with a box design printed on it with visible box cut lines.

Standardization and custom product packaging boxes can exist together. ECMA standards will help you achieve the best results with your product packaging boxes.

Living in a time that promotes uniqueness and having everything tailored to our needs, people tend to look at standardization with disapproval. We are so caught up in trying to create the perfect product, something that our customers will see as the only possible answer to their needs, that we automatically look down on anything that has the word standard in the title. But, ECMA standards are not there to make all the product packaging look the same. Their function is something completely different.

Why We Need ECMA Standards?

Doing business on the global market has created the need for codes that people in different countries and industries will understand without the danger of the message getting lost in translation. So if you have ever felt like you and your business partners speak different languages, standards are there to avoid just that. And also to make sure that you will get high-quality product packaging. And that is very beneficial, don’t you think?

Technical drawing of a flat, unfolded roll end tuck top box with ECMA Standards.

Technical drawing of a flat, unfolded roll end tuck top box with a design for bath bomb packaging applied with ECMA Standards.

Two stacks of carton with a printed box design cut to the box flat shape with ECMA Standards.

How ECMA Standards Can Help Improve Your Product Packaging

ECMA is the international network for businesses involved in the folding carton industry. It is dedicated to supporting the healthy development of the folding carton industry, developing best practices in the industry and providing advanced international standards. Although ECMA is based in Europe, they have partners in North America, and their ECMA codes of folding carton designs are recognized and used worldwide. Since folding cartons are one of the most eco-friendly product packaging options on the market, it is important to encourage businesses to use them by making their custom product packaging boxes as good as they can be.

Technical drawing of a flat, unfolded carton gift box following ECMA Standards.

Technical drawing of a flat, unfolded carton gift box with a design for a cosmetics product applied with ECMA Standards

Front view of a cosmetics product packaging box with black, white and gold design details for ECMA Standards.

ECMA Carton Styles Explanation

In ECMA carton styles, there are six groups of box styles. Five pairs of codes represent additional explanation. So, the ECMA code begins with the letter that determines the group, followed by four main groups of two digits that help determine the style of the box. The fifth group of numbers is known as additional group X and represents specific devices that can be used with all models of the groups A to D and some models of the last group (F). If any of the elements are not used, that pair in the code will be 00.

2D and 3D technical drawings of four different ECMA carton styles

What ECMA Carton Styles Exist for Your Custom Product Packaging Boxes

A - Long Seam Rectangular Boxes, With Glue Along a Larger Dimension

First pair - the bottom closure system
Second pair - the top closure system
Third pair - location of the bottom closure system
Fourth pair - location of the top closure system

Technical drawing of a product packaging carton box group A on the left side and an ECMA code on the right side with the text explaining each part of the code with ECMA Standards.

B - Short Seam Rectangular Boxes, Without Longitudinal Gluing

First pair - the base.
Second pair - the closure system
Third pair - the number of dust flaps on the base
Fourth pair - the lid.

Technical drawing of a product packaging carton box group B on the left side and an ECMA code on the right side with the text explaining each part of the code for ECMA Standards carton box styles..

C - Long Seam Non-Rectangular, With Glue Along the Larger Dimension and at Least One Non-Rectangular Outer Face of the Main Body

First pair - the general shape.
Second pair - the shape of the base.
Third pair - the bottom closure system.
Fourth pair - the top closure system.

Technical drawing of a product packaging carton box group C on the left side and an ECMA code on the right side with the text explaining each part of the code with ECMA Standards.

D - Short-Long Seam Non-Rectangular, without Longitudinal Gluing

First pair - indicates the use of glue.
Second pair - the shape of the base.
Third pair - the fixation system.
Fourth pair - the lid.

E - Product-Integrated Cartons That Are in Direct Contact With the Product or Intended for Group Packaging.

First pair - the type of product
Second pair- the closing system.
Third pair is not used
Fourth pair is not used

Technical drawing of a product packaging carton box group E on the left side and an ECMA code on the right side with the text explaining each part of the code with ECMA Standards.

F - Other Folding Cartons That Cannot Be Placed in Any Other Group

10 – Special model similar to group “A”.
20 – Special model similar to group “B”.
30 – Special model similar to group “С”.
40 – Special model similar to group “D”.
50 – Special model similar to group “Е”.
60 – Special model with flat surfaces.
70 – Special model with curved surfaces.
80 – Inserts, partitions and dividers.

Only the first and second pair is used, and they represent the type and subtype of the box.

Technical drawing of a product packaging carton box with ECMA Standards group F on the left side and an ECMA code on the right side with the text explaining each part of the code.

We understand that this may be overwhelming, but the good news is that you don’t have to know this information by heart. You should be aware that the ECMA code in the description of the box has meaning and can help you decipher what you are buying to make sure there is no misunderstanding between you and your supplier. ECMA standards offer one kind of universal language that can help everyone involved in the packaging business understand each other.

ECMA Standards - Technical drawing of a flat, unfolded roll end tuck top box with a design for cookie packaging applied.

ECMA Standards - An assembled cookie packaging carton box with an opened lid.

ECMA Standards - A stack of flat, unfolded cookie packaging boxes cut to final shape.

To conclude, if a printing company uses ECMA standards for their boxes, that does not, in any way, stand in the way of you getting unique custom packaging for your product. It only means that you can be sure that you will get the box you need, regarding certain elements and quality. ECMA carton styles for boxes are there to ensure that certain rules are followed when printing folding carton boxes and that customers will get the quality product that they need. Thus, standardization helps the industry move forward and improves the services printers have to offer.