The marks a package
has to carry
Handling symbols, recycling marks and consumer marks, drawn as geometry rather than traced from a picture — so they scale, and so the line stays the weight you set when the mark goes on a carton at 15 mm. Free, and no sign-up
- Drawn, not traced.
- Every mark is built from its geometry, so it is sharp at any size and there is no bitmap edge anywhere in the file.
- The weight is yours, and it is held.
- A mark scaled from a picture takes its line down with it. Here the line is a number in millimetres and it stays that whether the mark prints at 15 mm or 100.
- The numbers are set in type.
- A stacking limit, a resin code, a period after opening — the figure inside the mark is real type, not a seven-segment fake.
- Marks nobody may redraw.
- EAC, UKCA, the Green Dot, Triman, RESY, FSC. They are listed as slots that take the artwork the scheme issued you, because approximately-right is what gets a consignment stopped.
- Arranged as a panel.
- Set how many stand across, the gap between them, and whether each is boxed. What comes out is one piece of artwork to place.
- True size on screen.
- ISO 780 states a minimum size for a handling mark. The preview is in millimetres, so you can hold a ruler to it.
What is in it
Six things it does
A package carries four or five marks, and the question is which four and how big.
The ISO 780 symbols
- This way up, fragile, keep dry, keep away from heat
- Do not stack, and stacking limit by number
- Centre of gravity, do not roll, no hand hooks
- Clamp here, do not clamp, sling here, temperature limits
The loop and the codes
- The Mobius loop, drawn as three identical chasing arrows
- Resin identification codes 1 to 7, with the abbreviation shown
- The board mark, for corrugated
- The crossed-out wheeled bin, with the bar under it
Consumer marks
- Period after opening, with the months set in it
- The glass and fork, for food contact
- Set the figure and it is drawn in real type
- Add a caption under any mark
The marks somebody owns
- EAC, UKCA, the Green Dot, Triman, RESY, FSC
- Paste the SVG you were issued and it is placed in the same grid
- A whole document or a single path — both are read
- Until you do, the slot shows as an empty box rather than closing up
In the panel
What you can set
Four tabs.
Marks
- Add any mark, in any order
- Move one up or down the panel
- Set the figure a mark carries
- Paste your own artwork for the ones held by a scheme
Size
- The height of a mark in millimetres
- The weight of the line
- The gap between marks, and how many across
- The size of the whole panel, shown as you go
Look
- One ink for the lot
- Captions under the marks, at a size of your own
- A box round each mark, or round the panel
- Padding inside the frame
Export
- SVG
- PDF at true size
- Nothing uploaded
- A file named for what is in it
How it works
Four steps
Pick the marks
From the handling, recycling, consumer and conformity groups.
Set the figures
A stacking limit, a resin code, the months after opening.
Size it
The height of a mark and the weight of its line, in millimetres.
Take the file
SVG or PDF, vector, at the size it prints.
Who it is for
What it is used for
Shipping cases
This way up, fragile and the stacking limit, at the size the standard asks for.
Retail cartons
A small panel of recycling and consumer marks, in the same ink as the rest of the box.
Cosmetics
Period after opening, with the months set in the jar.
Food packaging
The glass and fork, and the resin code for the tray.
Export paperwork
A slot for the conformity mark your scheme issued you, placed in the same grid as the rest.
Artwork templates
One panel to drop into every layout, so the marks are the same size on all of them.
Prepress
Vector at true size, with the line weight already set for the process.
Questions
Asked often
Why are some marks empty boxes?
Because they are not geometry, they are a logotype held by somebody — EAC, UKCA, the Green Dot, Triman, RESY, FSC. The only right version is the file the scheme issued you, and a redrawn approximation is what gets a consignment stopped. Paste your SVG into the slot and it is placed with the rest.
How big should a handling mark be?
ISO 780 states 100 mm on a shipping container. On a retail carton nobody prints them under about 15 mm, below which the line and the shape start to run together. The tool says so when you go under ten.
Why is the line weight separate from the size?
Because scaling a drawing scales its line. A mark taken from a 100 mm original down to 15 mm arrives with a line a seventh of the weight, and under a flexo plate that either disappears or fills in. Here the weight is a number in millimetres and it holds.
Can I add my own SVG?
Yes, for any mark that has no geometry of its own. Paste the whole document or a single path — both are read. It is fitted into the same box as the drawn marks, so it lines up with them.
What are the resin codes?
1 PET, 2 HDPE, 3 PVC, 4 LDPE, 5 PP, 6 PS, 7 other. Set the number and the panel shows which plastic it stands for.
Is anything uploaded?
No. The panel is drawn in your browser and the file is written there. Your artwork does not reach a server.