Samples are an important part of getting aligned with your supplier around expectations for the look and feel of your finished product.
With many custom-made products, samples and prototypes do not always exactly match the final product. This is because producing a single unit could be almost as costly as producing the entire run.
Manufacturers use different types of samples to give you a composite understanding of the final product. With each sample type, you can get an idea of what the final product will look like, without the costly machine setup. There are samples to show print quality, structure, and the look of a custom color printed on specific material.
Of the sample options below, reference samples are the only ones that aren’t custom manufactured for your product. All other sample types will add weeks to your lead time. We’ve included estimated lead times for each custom sample option, so you can factor sampling into lead times. These lead times do not include shipping, so add 3-5 days for shipping within the US and 3-4 weeks for shipping from Asia.
A reference sample is a sample of past work that a supplier has done for other brands.
Uses: You can request reference samples that show specific aspects you want to see or compare. For example, you can request samples of different print processes, materials, or finishes.
Limitations: Suppliers may not have samples of every possible combination (i.e. specific Pantone values on specific materials), but they can usually send something close.
Cost: Reference samples are typically free, you may just need to pay for shipping.
A color drawdown is a sample of your custom Pantone or GCMI color, mixed by the factory and hand-applied on a specific material. Ink colors, when printed, will not look exactly like they do in a Pantone or GCMI book. A material’s color and porosity greatly affects how an ink color will appear.
Uses: A color drawdown helps you come to an agreement with the supplier on the color you want used in production, and on acceptable color tolerances.
Limitations: It’s a small swatch, so you won’t get the idea of the overall print quality. It is also common to see variation in ink opacity, even within a single production run. The drawdown will not show that variation.
Cost and timeline: For most factories, color drawdowns are included with a PO, and you may need to pay for shipping. It can take up to 10 business days to create a color drawdown. If you need to make changes to the color, this process can take several iterations.
A structural prototype is a functional sample that is cut, scored, and/or molded without printing or other customizations. For corrugated boxes and folding cartons, a structural sample is an unprinted, table-cut sample. For molded pulp or injection molded products, a structural sample can be 3D printed.
Uses: Before placing your order, you can request a structural sample to test product fit, customer experience, and transit performance. When you place an order for custom corrugated boxes or folding cartons, suppliers will often send a structural sample for your approval before production starts. See how to review a structural box sample for a list of things to check for.
Limitations: Sometimes, the material will not have the exact specs of the production boxes (i.e. fluting will be correct but material color or strength could differ) — this will depend on what material is in stock where the sample is cut. Corrugated structural samples are table-cut, or cut on a table using a single blade and scoring wheel. In production, boxes will be cut using a cutting die. The cutting die applies force to the material, which creates deeper scores and compresses the layers of the corrugated board. This means that table cut structural samples are more rigid than production boxes.
Cost and timeline: The cost varies depending on your supplier. Structural samples often ship within a week of ordering them.
A printed structural prototype is a structural sample with printed artwork. For boxes, a printed structural sample is usually digitally printed with your design.
Uses: A printed structural sample will help you understand the artwork placement and get a better feel for the overall experience.
Limitations: Since these are table-cut samples, they have the same cutting limitations as structural samples (above). These samples are also digitally printed. Assuming you are not using digital printing for the final production run, the print quality and colors will not align with those of the final production version. For print process and color samples, we recommend requesting color drawdowns.
Cost and timeline: The cost varies depending on your supplier. Structural samples often ship within a week of ordering them.
A pre-production sample (PPS) is made with the actual tooling and machinery that will be used in a full production run. This type of sample is usually impractical for US-based production because of the cost, but is more reasonable for Asia-based production.
Uses: See exactly what the production run will look like, printed with the production print process and cut with a cutting die.
Limitations: Cost and time are the main limitations, since the setup and tooling for creating a production sample is the same needed for a full production run. If you are using a non-standard material, you may need to pay for the supplier to special order material. Some suppliers are unwilling to produce production samples because of the costly setup. Creating a full pre-production sample is not typically possible with flexo or litho-printed corrugated boxes, especially for those produced in the US.
Cost and timeline: A production sample requires the same amount of setup as a full production run. Like a full production run, you will need to pay for the tooling (cutting die, print plates, mold, etc.) and other fees. If you approve the production sample and don’t need changes to the tooling for the full production run, you will not need to pay for tooling again. Depending on the product, it can take up to 20 business days to create a production sample.
A top of production sample (TOP) is a sample taken from the real production run. These samples are typically sent by mail or courier so that you can evaluate the quality of the finished product.
Uses: Evaluate your finished product before it reaches your customer. This type of sample is often used for photography or other marketing and merchandising uses. It can also be used to make small adjustments to larger production runs that last several days or weeks.
Limitations: If a top of production sample is sent to you by mail, you will typically not be able to evaluate it until the production run is already over. Manufacturers are often moving quickly so all units from the production run may have already been packed and left the factory.
Cost and timeline: Besides the cost of production itself, you will also need to include the costs and wait time of shipping.
