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Frequently Asked Questions
What is thermoforming?
What are thermoformed containers?
What types of material do you use?
What markets do you serve?
Do you do food packaging?
Do you do medical packaging?
Do you offer stock packaging?
Do you manufacture overseas or domestically?
Do you offer contract packaging/fulfillment services?
Do you have easy-open features on your clamshell packaging?
Do you make your own thermoform tools; if so, what type?
What type of design services do you offer?
What size is your company?
What is thermoforming?
Thermoforming is a manufacturing process where a plastic sheet is heated to a pliable forming temperature, formed to a specific shape in a mold, and trimmed to create a usable product. The sheet, or "film" when referring to thinner gauges and certain material types, is heated in an oven to a high-enough temperature that it can be stretched into or onto a mold and cooled to a finished shape.
What are thermoformed containers?
Thermoformed containers are the thin-gauge, rigid plastic packaging that is applicable to most consumer products for its protection, performance and cost. Examples of thermoformed containers include plastic clamshells, which can house anything from a cell phone to last nights' dinner leftovers. Other examples include plastic blisters, which are often sealed to a fiber-based graphics card for the merchandising of small items. Thermoformed containers come in all shapes and sizes and their application to protecting and displaying consumer products in an aesthetically pleasing and economically competitive way is endless.
What types of material do you use?
Dordan has experience thermoforming the following traditional resins: PET, RPET, 100% post-consumer regrind PET, PETG, RPETG, Anti-stat APET, PVC, ESD PVC, PP, PS, ABS, HIPS, RHIPS, HDPE, RHDPE, LDPE, FDA-certified material.
Dordan has also sampled and tested the following bio-based/compostable/biodegradable resins: PLA, PLA & starch-based product, Cellulous Acetate, PHA, TerraPET, Aeirs InCycle, etc.
What markets do you serve?
As custom manufacturers, we like to think there is no market we can't serve. From consumer electronics to health and beauty to industrial applications like dunnage trays, there are few jobs Dordan can't develop a thermoformed packaging solution for.
Do you do food packaging?
We manufacture specialty/custom food packaging on a case-by-case basis.
Do you do medical packaging?
We do non-clean room pharmaceutical/medical packaging.
Do you offer stock packaging?
Yes, we offer a selection of Dordan-owned stock tooling that allows us to manufacture custom runs for our clients.
Do you manufacture overseas or domestically?
We manufacture packaging domestically from our strategic Midwestern headquarters in Woodstock, IL; this allows us to ensure that our own rigid quality standards are being met throughout the entire manufacturing and distribution process. All materials used in the process of manufacturing are made in America.
Do you offer contract packaging/fulfillment services?
Yes, no matter what you need—be it a thermoformed tray or the fulfilled package—Dordan is here to help.
Do you have easy-open features on your clamshell packaging?
Yes, we always design our packaging with the end user/consumer in mind. Contact us today at sales@dordan.com to learn about the various easy-open features we offer our clients.
Do you manage inventory?
Yes, we can manage inventory.
Do you make your own thermoform tools; if so, what type?
Yes, Dordan has a custom tool and die shop at our Midwestern headquarters; this allows the same team of packaging engineers that create the package design to create your custom tooling, resulting in a seamless transition from concept to reality. All tooling, prototype and production, is machined out of aircraft-quality aluminum on our large format CNC machining centers. Trim headers, die build-up, locators and assist plugs, which are all critical to superb forming, are machined in the same way. Die boards for cutting dies are burned on a CNC laser and the steel rule is bent, notched and cut by a precision automated machine. Finally, all of these components are finished and assembled by skilled craftsman to produce the ultimate blend of craftsmanship and technology.
What type of design services do you offer?
Dordan's design team can create designs from scratch, take existing designs and add optimizing features, or, replicate existing designs. Before moving to prototype, Dordan offers its clients a variety of digital renderings to represent package design concepts, including, but not limited to: Animations, VRML, PDF, Microsoft Office Document Files, Wire Frames, Engineer Drawings, Die Lines for Insert Cards; and, Dordan can import/export the following types of engineering files: IGES, X_T, STEP, DXF.
What size is your company?
Dordan is headquartered in Woodstock, IL, which is also the location of its manufacturing plant. Spanning over 50,000 square feet, Dordan is a state of the art facility, equipped with the most current thermoforming, software and machining technologies available. At the Woodstock facility, Dordan has the capacity to convert 75,000,000 pounds of material annually. Also located at the Woodstock facility is an in-house tool and die shop, and the following departments: quality assurance, engineering and design, sales and marketing, and research and sustainability.
