Clamshell Packaging.

Choose snap closures if the pack will be opened and closed again, and a welded seal if theft or tampering is the concern. Snap buttons are formed into both halves and click shut, and reclosable shells are usually run in PP so the hinge survives repeated flexing. A sealed build has its perimeter welded and takes scissors to open.

Heavier gauge goes with the sealed tier, because a thin welded shell can be pried apart at the corners.

Yes, we can score perforated opening lines or a peel corner into the flange. The shell stays sealed on the shelf and still shows if anyone has got into it, but at home the buyer tears along the line instead of reaching for scissors.

We set the score depth against the sheet gauge so the pack doesn't split in transit, and we'd prove it on the sample before the full run.

A cavity that fits the item closely is what stops it being worked loose, so we build the tool from your actual product. Any play lets someone flex the shell and slide the item out without breaking the seal, while a product-true form holds it immobile. Euro slots and stand bases are formed into the same tool.

Send a production unit if you can, since early prototypes often differ by a few millimetres and that shows up as rattle.

An RPET or PET shell can go into the PET stream wherever local programs accept clear thermoforms, and the paper insert card goes in with paper. The split is easy for the buyer because the card lifts out once the shell is open. PVC shells are harder to place in recycling, which is one reason we steer most retail work toward RPET.

Print goes on an insert card inside the shell, since the clear plastic itself carries no graphics. The card can be printed CMYK with Pantone spot colours and finished with gloss or matte lamination, spot UV or hot foil. Sitting behind the PET, the ink is protected from scuffing in transit.

Plan artwork for both sides of the card if the back of the shell is also clear.

Most of the clamshells we form fall between 4 × 3 × 1 in and 12 × 9 × 3 in, measured across the closed pair. Every shell is tooled to one product, so the size starts from the item and adds clearance for the insert card and the seal flange.

A hang tab or a freestanding base adds height, so tell us early which retail presentation you need.

Our minimum for custom clamshells is 500 units. That quantity covers the forming run and the printed insert cards together, and the same tool can go on to produce orders of up to 100,000.

Products with different shapes each need their own tooling, so a range of several items is quoted shape by shape.

Production takes 7 to 10 business days once you approve the sample, and a rush slot can bring that down to 5 to 7. A formed sample takes 5 to 7 business days, and its fee comes off the production invoice when you go ahead.

Test the sample with your real product, checking the fit, the closure and how the card reads through the plastic.