Nº 04 · PRICING TECHNOLOGY
Reasoned ranges, not marketing math.
Packaging pricing is usually a black box defended by a sales rep. PackOS prices straight from your file, built by a team with a decade of actually running the presses — explainable, comparable, and about a minute from file to priced ladder.
≈60 seconds · no signup · files stay private
Nº 01 How it works
From file to price in three moves.
The file becomes a spec
Dimensions, structure, material, inks, and finishes are read off the artwork — the same fields a converter's estimator would extract by hand, in about a minute.
The model stacks the real costs
Material area × substrate, setup amortization, run-length curves, finishing passes, and overs — the levers a converter actually prices on, moved the way real converting economics move them.
Quantity breaks you can reason about
The ladder shows why unit price falls — plates cost the same at any run length — so the tradeoff between cash and unit cost is a decision, not a mystery.
Nº 02 The instrument
The cost X-ray.
Drag the quantity. Watch each layer of the cost rebalance — and see exactly why the price breaks where it does. Tap or hover a band for the plain-language reason.
Tap or hover a cost layer — each one has a plain-language reason.
- UNIT PRICE
- $0.00
- ORDER TOTAL
- $0
- vs 1,000 UNITS
- –
- SETUP SHARE
- –
Nº 03 The spec sheet
What the pricing engine does.
Instant quote
AvailableFile → structured pricing in about a minute for supported formats — labels, flexible packaging, and folding cartons today — with quantity breaks you can compare on the spot.
REPLACES · the three-week RFQ email thread and the re-keyed spreadsheetReal cost model
AvailablePrices on the levers a converter actually uses — material, tooling, run length, embellishments, and waste — so the number moves for the reasons the press does.
REPLACES · take-it-or-leave-it numbers with no visible reasoningManufacturing-grounded
AvailableBuilt by the team behind Calyx Containers — the model moves on the levers real converting jobs move on, and your formal Calyx quote is priced against jobs we actually ran.
REPLACES · benchmark guesses from someone who has never run the jobVendor pricing lanes
In PreviewCompares routes and specs so a quote reflects the best real way to make it — the right press, the right substrate, the right run — not a single default lane.
REPLACES · quoting three vendors and comparing apples to bowling ballsRFP & basket pricing
AvailableUpload many files — or an RFP with a CSV line list — and every line prices in one pass, matched to its artwork by SKU, with one running basket total.
REPLACES · the quarterly RFP spreadsheet that takes a month to chase downNº 04 The impact
What that does to procurement.
FIGURES REFLECT TYPICAL SELF-SERVE QUOTES ON SUPPORTED FORMATS · YOUR RANGES ARE PRICED FROM YOUR FILES
None of this is theoretical. The people who built this engine ran real production for a decade — the presses, the substrates, the waste — and your formal Calyx quote is priced against jobs we actually ran. The instant self-serve number is an honest, labeled estimate from the same spec record.
THE STACK One record flows through all four engines
RECORD · THE FORMAT & QUANTITY YOU SET ABOVE RIDE THESE LINKS — EVERY ENGINE READS THE SAME FIELDS
Nº 05 Questions
What buyers ask about the pricing.
Is the instant number a real quote or a teaser?
It is a structured, labeled estimate priced from your actual file — real dimensions, material, and finishes — with volume tiers and lead time. You see the honest range across quantities up front, and your formal Calyx quote confirms the final number from the same spec record, so nothing is re-keyed in between.
Can I still negotiate?
Yes — but from an honest baseline. Because the model shows what drives the cost, conversations move to real levers: quantity, material, finishing. That tends to save more than haggling ever did.
What formats can be priced today?
Pressure-sensitive labels, flexible packaging (stand-up pouches and friends), and folding cartons all price instantly in Quick Quote — carton numbers are clearly labeled scoping estimates. Rigid and fully custom formats are quoted through the enterprise lane.
Does the instant price hold when I order?
The quote is a record, not a teaser — the spec that priced the job is the spec your formal quote confirms. If the spec and quantity don't change, there's nothing to re-open. If you change them, the model shows exactly which lever moved and what it did.
What's the minimum order?
It depends on format — flexible formats price from short runs up, and the ladder is honest about when a small run carries a heavy setup share. The instrument above shows you that tradeoff before you commit.
Stop waiting three weeks to learn your own costs.
Upload a file and get the ladder — quantity breaks, materials, lead time — in about a minute.
No signup · files stay private · how we handle them