Free technical tool

IVX Tape
Calculator

Work out in a few steps which carrier (PP/BOPP, PVC, R-PET or paper) and which adhesive (acrylic, hotmelt, natural rubber/solvent or water-activated), plus which width (48mm or 75mm), best fit your board quality, processing speed and temperature conditions.

01 — Preferences

Noise (low noise), sustainability and printing come first — these often steer the recommendation more strongly than the rest.

02 — Board, weight & speed

Board quality (Kraft/Testliner/Printed), box size and weight.

03 — Recommendation

The tool picks the best-fitting carrier/adhesive combination and the right width for your situation.

Interactive tool

Calculate your tape recommendation

Enter the profile of your packaging. The tool calculates live. Start in Simple with just the key questions, or switch to Advanced for speed, temperature, material specification and a comparison with every option considered.

What exactly does this tool calculate?

Carrier vs. adhesive, calculated separately: a tape consists of a carrier/film (PP/BOPP, PVC, R-PET or paper — determines width, printability and tear resistance) plus an adhesive on top (acrylic, hotmelt, natural rubber/solvent or water-activated — determines adhesion and instant tack). This tool calculates them separately, instead of treating them as a single "type".
Thickness & adhesive weight: both the carrier thickness (24–32 micron is common for PP/BOPP, PVC and R-PET have their own scale, paper is expressed in g/m² paper weight) and the adhesive weight (coating, indicative 12–26 g/m²) are adjustable around a "gold standard" per material.
Adhesion per board quality: Kraft (virgin liner), Testliner (standard recycled), Testliner (heavily recycled, dusty surface) and Printed (coated/laminated) all bond differently — the recommendation takes this into account.
48mm or 75mm: determined by both the weight and the size of the box — a large but light box still ends up with too long, under-supported a seam at 48mm, so 75mm is recommended as soon as weight OR size calls for it.
Temperature range: the carrier/adhesive combination must handle the full expected temperature range (cold store, outdoor storage, heat), otherwise the tape loses grip.
Long-term adhesion: besides temperature, how long the tape needs to stay on the box also matters — acrylic builds adhesion more slowly but is strongest in the long run, hotmelt grips instantly but loses grip over time. You'll see this difference reflected in the notes for the recommended product.
Noise (low noise): quiet unrolling is in practice almost always a PP/BOPP carrier with acrylic adhesive — other combinations are then advised against, even if they're stronger in other respects.
Sustainability: shifts the score towards paper (fully reused/recyclable) or R-PET (recycled raw material) if that's the priority.
Your own supplier, with a safety net: upload your current supplier's specifications (CSV, with separate columns for carrier and adhesive) and the tool calculates with those. Missing fields are automatically filled in from the generic standard for that carrier/adhesive combination — and if you switch suppliers, just upload a new file or switch back to the standard.
Printing: indicate whether the tape needs to be printed (branding/logo) — this affects which adhesive/carrier type is suitable and is flagged in the recommendation.
Current tape (optional): do you know which tape you're already using? Fill this in for a direct comparison alongside the recommendation.

↗ Want to know more about the materials? Check the material guide for profiles of every carrier and adhesive type, the sustainable choice between R-PET and paper, and a tool to compare materials side by side yourself.

Internal mode active — supplier data only visible to you

General standardCalculate using the industry standard per carrier/adhesive combination

Own supplierUpload your own product specifications (CSV)

Supplier specifications

Upload a CSV with your current supplier's tape products, with a separate column for the carrier (pp/pvc/petrecycled/papier) and the adhesive (acrylaat/hotmelt/rubber/water). Missing columns/fields are automatically filled in from the general standard for that carrier/adhesive combination, so you never get stuck on incomplete data. Switching suppliers? Just upload a new file — the previous one is replaced.

Drag a CSV here or choose a file.

Choose file

SimpleOnly the essential questions

AdvancedSpeed, temperature, material specification and more

Key preferences

These three choices often steer the recommendation more strongly than the details further down, so they come first.

Noise (low noise) important? Low-noise tape (quiet unrolling) is in practice almost always a PP/BOPP carrier with acrylic adhesive — not PVC or hotmelt.

No priority

Yes — low noise wanted

Sustainability/environment important? Weighs heavily towards paper (fully reused/recyclable) or R-PET (recycled raw material).

No priority

Yes — sustainability first

Printing wanted? Logo/branding on the tape itself.

No — plain/brown

Yes — printed

Board & box

Board quality / surface Determines how well adhesive can mechanically bond to the fibre structure. Box size (longest side) Larger boxes have a longer seam — that needs wider tape to maintain enough overlap and pressure everywhere, regardless of weight. Weight of the box The weight of the contents — together with size determines the width (48/75mm).

Width preference Let the tool advise based on size + weight, or force a width yourself.

Automatic

48mm

75mm

Speed & temperature

Processing speed The more important instant tack is, the more heavily this weighs in. Temperature during processing/storage The full range needs to be covered, not just the average.

Material specification (optional)

Besides carrier and adhesive, the carrier thickness (in micron, for paper in paper weight/gsm) and the adhesive weight (coating, g/m²) are also adjustable. Both default to the "gold standard" — the most common thickness/layer per material in the trade literature.

Carrier thickness preference PP/BOPP: commonly 24–32 micron (28 micron = standard, 32 = extra strong). PVC and R-PET have their own, higher/lower scale; paper is expressed in g/m² paper weight instead of micron.

StandardGold standard per carrier

Extra strongThicker film/heavier paper

Adhesive weight (coating) Indicative 12–26 g/m² depending on adhesive type — not a lab-measured factory standard, but a rule of thumb based on published layer thicknesses. Not applicable to water-activated adhesive (paper).

StandardGold standard per adhesive type

ExtraHeavier adhesive layer

Your current tape (optional)

Do you know which tape you're currently using? Fill this in for a direct comparison with the recommendation. Leave it on "unknown" if this isn't known.

Current carrier Current adhesive Current width

Recommended tape

–

Adhesion (indicative, 1–5)–

Instant tack (indicative, 1–5)–

Carrier temperature range–

Printable–

Carrier thickness–

Adhesive weight (coating)–

Suitability for this board profile–

Match score–

Recommended width

–

Sustainable choice: R-PET or paper?

R-PET or paper — both a sustainable choice, each with a different angle. Check the material guide for the full trade-off, the profiles per material, or compare them side by side yourself.

Comparison with current tape

––

–

Please note: indicative advice. This recommendation is based on general research and practical experience in the packaging industry, not on laboratory measurements of one specific product. The adhesion, tack, temperature, thickness and adhesive weight values are realistic guideline figures for the most common carrier and adhesive combinations on the Dutch market. The low-noise rule (PP/BOPP + acrylic) and the eco score per carrier come from that same trade knowledge. Printed tape often has a minimum order quantity and more limited width options — check this separately. Always confirm critical applications (cold store, high-speed line, heavy export) with a practical test, or get in touch for tailored advice.

Unlock the full comparison

Your tape recommendation above is free to use. Want to see the full table of every carrier/adhesive combination considered, ranked by match score, as well? Enter your name and email address — and we'll gladly think along about your packaging question if you'd like.

Options considered

All carrier/adhesive combinations, ranked by match score for this profile.

Rank	Name	Type	Adhesion	Instant tack	Temp. °C	Printable	Score

Not sure about the recommendation?

This calculator gives you a quick, indicative direction based on trade literature and practical experience. For technically substantiated advice — including a practical test on your own board quality — we're glad to think it through with you.

Get in touch Go to the box calculator