Decide how many separator thicknesses belong in the stack
A stack-height calculation that includes cases but omits separator sheets can cross a complete-layer threshold. The current TI-HI calculator does not have an independent interlayer-sheet thickness field. Its height model adds the base and n case heights. If the actual arrangement includes sheets, write their count and thickness separately rather than assuming an ancillary mass entry also adds height.
For this fictional exercise, place one 3 mm sheet between each pair of adjacent case layers. There is no sheet under the first layer and no top cap. With n positive layers there are n minus one interfaces. Total height is p + nh + (n minus one)t, where p is base height, h is case height, and t is sheet thickness. A different component arrangement requires a different count; the formula is not a universal packaging rule.
Compare the bare-case model with the specified components
Use a 144 mm base and cases 250 mm high. At five layers, bare-case height is 144 + 5 times 250 = 1394 mm. Four sheets add 12 mm, making the specified physical height 1406. At four layers, bare height is 1144 and three sheets add 9, making 1153. The sheet effect depends on the selected number of layers.
| Height budget | Bare-case tool HI | Manual HI with 3 mm interface sheets | Manual selected height |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1394 mm | 5 | 4 | 1153 mm |
| 1406 mm | 5 | 5 | 1406 mm |
| 1406 mm, case height altered to 253 | 4 for the altered input | 5 for actual 250 mm cases and four sheets | 1406 mm |
Adding sheet thickness to every case height counts n sheets, not n minus one. In the third row, five fictitious 253 mm case heights plus the base give 1409 mm, excluding a five-layer arrangement that actually needs 1406 under the stated interface rule. Changing the case field this way can be conservative numerically, but it is not an accurate representation of the declared components.
Reproduce the bare-case calculation and label its omission
Use cases 400 by 300 mm on a 1200 by 800 mm base, with rotation and zero horizontal spacing. Uniform TI is eight. Open the bare-case 1394 mm comparison and the bare-case 1406 mm comparison. Both tool records return five layers because the sheet components are absent.
Do not label those links as complete sheet-aware results. Attach the manual height calculation and state the accepted layer count after the component check. At 1394, the reviewed arithmetic count is four despite the tool's bare-case five. At 1406, five can satisfy the stated component height, subject to actual measurements and physical approval.
Check candidates rather than subtracting a guessed allowance
A direct manual method tests each proposed positive n using the explicit height formula. Four gives 1153; five gives 1406; six gives 1659. Compare each to the confirmed total height budget and select the largest that fits, while applying any other confirmed limits separately. For this simple constant-thickness arrangement, rearranging the formula also gives floor((H minus p + t) / (h + t)).
If the sheets vary in thickness or some interfaces use different components, sum their actual thicknesses for each candidate instead. Do not apply one sheet count from a five-layer proposal to every shorter arrangement. Subtracting a fixed twelve millimetres from all comparisons would describe the five-layer sheet set even when the selected stack has only three sheets.
Keep sheet mass separate from thickness
The ancillary mass field can account for sheets and other additional materials if their measured mass is entered consistently. It does not determine their thickness. Five layers with four sheets may also have a different ancillary mass from four layers with three sheets. Record which components the entered mass includes, and recalculate gross when their count changes.
A single positive result under the height formula does not establish carton support, sheet compressibility, handling, or an allowable stack. These facts need the packaging and operational evidence appropriate to the actual load. The 3 mm thickness here is hypothetical, not a recommended separator specification or an assumption that sheets compress to a universal size.
Use the same component definition in the final measurement
Once assembled, measure the complete outside height including the base and any protection. That observed envelope can be checked independently of the planning sum. A difference may reflect measured case height, component placement, or a provisional input that needs revision. Preserve both the predicted component record and the later measurement instead of editing the prediction to match without explanation.
If a top cap or under-layer pad is later added, record it separately. A constant top cap adds one thickness, while interlayer sheets scale with interfaces. Their counts cannot be inferred from a field labelled height. An order tail using fewer layers may have different sheet and cap quantities from a complete pallet.
Sheet-aware manual input record
Base height 144 mm; case height 250; sheet thickness 3; one sheet at each interface between adjacent layers only. Four layers: three sheets, height 1153. Five layers: four sheets, height 1406. Compare total budgets 1394 and 1406. Tool bare-case HI is five for both; manually component-checked HI is four and five. Keep sheet thickness, count rule, mass components, and measurement basis with the accepted specification.
The methodology defines the current calculator model. Explicit interface accounting makes the extra height reviewable without inventing a sheet feature or silently replacing the physical case height.