Cold Corrugation: What It Is, How It Works, and Why It Matters

Cold corrugation is a method of manufacturing corrugated board where the fluting medium is mechanically formed and bonded to linerboard using ambient-temperature adhesives and pressure.  

The process eliminates the need for steam systems, thus reducing energy consumption, simplifying plant infrastructure, and enabling corrugated board production in facilities where conventional corrugators are impractical and/or inefficient.

So how does Cold Corrugation work?

The process follows four core steps:

• Mechanical fluting
  The fluting paper is formed into a corrugated profile using profiled rollers at ambient temperature.
  

• Adhesive application
  A cold-curing adhesive is applied to the flute tips at room temperature.
  

• Pressure bonding
  Linerboard is bonded to the fluted medium using controlled pressure.
  

• Immediate usability
  Produced board can be converted almost straight off the line and has an outstanding print surface.

The benefits of the cold corrugation process are significant and include:

Cold corrugation delivers cost reductions, environmental benefits and reduced waste.  A typical return on investment, for sheet converters who make their own board using cold corrugation, is less than three years.

Why does cold corrugation exist and who will use it?

Conventional corrugation systems were designed for centralised, high-volume production.  The Interpac 1250 Cold Corrugator helps address the limitations of that model by moving production closer to the point of use, giving decentralised, lower-carbon and more flexible corrugated board production.  

The cold process is not intended to replace ultra-high-volume corrugators, but serves customers where efficiency, footprint, and energy use matter most.  It is particularly suited to:

• Sheet plants seeking reduced energy costs
• Box manufacturers wanting independence from board suppliers
• Facilities without steam or boiler infrastructure
• Manufacturers targeting low-carbon packaging
• On-demand or decentralised production environments
• Geographies where transport time and costs are high

In Summary

The Interpac 1250 Cold Corrugator delivers a steam-free corrugating process in which:

• The fluting medium is shaped mechanically
• Adhesives cure at ambient temperature
• Bonding is achieved through pressure

And delivers benefits including:

• Significantly reduced energy consumption
• A very compact physical footprint
• Short start-up and shut-down cycles (low waste)
• Much lower capital and operating costs
• High quality printable board

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Frequently Asked Questions