Buyers who order custom printed pouches for the first time are usually surprised by one number: the curing time. Everything else in the schedule follows from it. This walkthrough covers the actual stages of a rotogravure pouch order at a Chinese factory, with realistic durations, so you can plan a launch date without guessing.
The short version
From artwork sign-off to goods leaving the factory, a standard gravure order takes 20–35 days: about 3–5 days of prepress and cylinder making, 2–3 days of printing, 1–2 days of lamination, 1–3 days of curing, then bag conversion and QC. Digital printing shortens this to roughly 10–15 days because it skips cylinders entirely, at a higher unit cost.
| Stage | Duration | What actually happens |
|---|---|---|
| Artwork and proof | 2–3 days | Dieline filled, prepress adjusts trap and overprint, digital proof sent for sign-off |
| Cylinder making | 3–5 days | One steel cylinder per colour, engraved and chrome-plated |
| Printing | 2–3 days | Gravure press runs your film; first-piece inspection against the proof |
| Lamination | 1–2 days | Two or three films bonded with adhesive |
| Curing | 1–3 days | Laminated roll sits at 40–55 °C so the adhesive fully crosslinks |
| Slitting and bag making | 2–4 days | Rolls slit to width, pouches formed, sealed, spouts or zippers welded |
| QC and packing | 1–2 days | Seal strength, leak and print checks; cartons packed |
| Booking and loading | 3–7 days | Container booking, customs paperwork, loading |
Curing: the stage nobody plans for
After two films are laminated, the adhesive needs time and heat to finish bonding. Two-component adhesives crosslink in a curing room over one to three days depending on the adhesive chemistry and the film combination. Bag-making cannot start before curing ends, because an under-cured laminate delaminates at the seal flange or fogs the print.
This is also the stage where schedule promises quietly slip. If a factory quotes 20 days total but budgets only 24 hours of curing for a three-layer foil laminate, bags will fail delamination checks and the batch gets redone. Ask your supplier how many curing days their schedule includes for your structure. A straight answer here tells you more about the factory than any certificate.
What actually delays orders
In order of how often we see it: artwork revisions after cylinder making (a changed panel means a re-engraved cylinder, 3–5 days again), slow proof approval because the decision-maker is travelling, missing film stock for exotic structures like kraft/PLA, and port congestion adding days to booking. Only the first two are within anyone’s control, and both happen before printing starts. Lock the artwork, and the rest of the schedule holds.
A practical tip: approve the digital proof within 24 hours of receiving it, even if you only comment “approved as sent”. Factories run multiple customers through the same press schedule, and an approved proof reserves your slot; a pending one does not.
Digital versus gravure at small quantities
Digital printing skips cylinder making and curing is shorter, which is why trial runs land in about half the time. The trade-off is unit cost and a narrower film range. For a first market test under 10,000 pcs, digital is usually the right call. Once a design proves itself and volumes climb past roughly 20,000–50,000 pcs per design, gravure takes over on cost and colour fidelity.
A worked example
A skincare brand orders 30,000 stand-up pouches with zipper, matte finish, three colours. Day 1: artwork confirmed. → Day 4: digital proof approved. → Day 9: cylinders engraved. → Day 12: printed. → Day 14: laminated. → Day 16–17: curing. → Day 21: bag making done. → Day 23: QC and packing. → Day 26: container loaded.
Six weeks from first email to goods on a boat — and most of that schedule was fixed by the customer’s own approval speed, not the factory’s.
FAQ
Can rush orders skip curing?
No, and no factory should claim they can. Rush orders save time on cylinders and press scheduling, not on chemistry.
Do cylinders belong to me?
They stay at the factory but are reserved for your designs. Reorders skip the cylinder stage, which is why repeat orders run about a week faster.
Post time: Nov-14-2026