Nº 01 · DESIGN TECHNOLOGY
Read the file. Rebuild the die.
Most packaging lives in a PDF or an AI file nobody can safely edit. PackOS understands the structure inside it — then rebuilds it as a living, parametric model you can resize, proof, and price without ever re-drawing a line.
Built to run Calyx's own production since 2016 · no signup · files stay private
Nº 01 How it works
From flat file to living structure.
Every line gets a meaning
Cut, crease, perf, bleed, safety — identified by convention and geometry, the way a die maker reads them. The structure family (pouch, carton, label) is recognized, and the real dimensions are measured off the file.
The outline becomes parametric
Not a tracing — a model. Width, height, gusset, seal, zipper position become editable parameters. Change one and every seam, notch, and panel updates to match.
A proof that behaves like the object
Photoreal 3D on the real material — foil, emboss, spot-UV, soft-touch where they will actually land — so approval means approving the thing, not imagining it.
Nº 02 The instrument
The parametric playground.
This is the pitch, touchable: drag a dimension and watch the entire die — panels, seals, zipper, notches — rebuild itself. Then dress it in finishes. It isn't a demo loop: the spec you build here opens as a live Quick Quote, pre-filled.
- CUT BLANK · W × (2H+G)
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- FILM / POUCH · INCL. BLEED · DRIVES MATERIAL COST
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- DIE REBUILDS
- 0
- HAND RE-DRAWS
- 0
Nº 03 The spec sheet
What the design engine does.
Dieline detection
AvailableReads uploaded artwork and dielines, identifies cut, crease, perf, bleed, and safety, recognizes the structure family — stand-up pouch, folding carton, label — and measures the real dimensions off the file. Files that carry several pieces on one sheet — N-up copies, a jar label ganged with its box — are detected, counted, and split into separate line items.
REPLACES · squinting at a PDF and emailing "can you confirm the gusset?"Parametric reconstruction
AvailableTurns the detected die into an editable parametric model. Change a width or a gusset and the whole die — seams, panels, seals, tear notches — updates to match, not just the outline.
REPLACES · a studio re-draw for every size variantPhotoreal 3D proofing
AvailableA production-aware WebGL render of the exact structure on its real material — with foil, emboss, deboss, spot-UV, and soft-touch shown where they'll actually land, so a proof looks like the finished object, not a flat mockup. And the seal zones stay honest — art is composed the way the jaws actually crush it, not stretched over the seams.
REPLACES · paid comp rounds and "we'll see it at press check"AI artwork & layout
In PreviewFrom a brief to concept art direction — color, hierarchy, and placement mapped onto the die's live panels, so the design is born on the structure instead of retrofitted to it.
REPLACES · flat-canvas design that breaks when it meets the fold linesThe structured record
AvailableEvery decision lands as a first-class field — dimensions, material, closure, colorway, embellishment — not a note buried in a file. That record is what everything downstream reads.
REPLACES · the truth living in one person's inboxNº 04 The impact
What that does to a launch.
THE STACK One record flows through all four engines
RECORD · THE SPEC YOU BUILD ABOVE RIDES THESE LINKS — EVERY ENGINE READS THE SAME FIELDS
None of this is theoretical. These engines exist because Calyx needed them to manufacture at scale — the dieline reader, the parametric rebuilder, and the 3D proof were production tools before they were ever a product.
Nº 05 Questions
What packaging teams ask.
What files can it read?
PDF and AI (saved PDF-compatible — Illustrator’s default) artwork or dielines. It reads vector structure (cut/crease separations, spot colors, layer roles) and measures dimensions from the geometry — the same signals a prepress operator uses.
My dielines are... not tidy. Will it cope?
That's the normal case, not the exception. Detection is built on hundreds of real customer files — outlined text, missing layers, decorative "dielines" that are actually art. When something is ambiguous, it says so rather than guessing silently.
Do I lose my original file?
No. The original stays the original. The parametric model lives alongside it as the working structure — and everything exports back out as production-standard files (PDF/X-4, DXF) when it's time to make plates.
Who sees my artwork?
Your file is used to build your dieline, proof, and quote — nothing else. It isn't shared or published. How we handle files.
Do I have to talk to sales to get numbers?
No. The quote is self-serve — spec, proof, and pricing in the browser. Email it to yourself, or bring in our team when you're ready.
What if it reads my file wrong?
Every detected dimension is shown and editable before anything is priced — you approve a spec, not a black box. Ambiguous reads are flagged, not guessed.
Your dieline is already readable. Prove it.
Upload one file and watch it get detected, rebuilt, and proofed in 3D — in about a minute.
No signup · files stay private · how we handle them
Rolling this out across a team? Request an Enterprise Preview