Adhesion Test Kit
A branded test kit box that lets contractors prove EnKoat's coating on their own roof, with no manual needed. 1,000+ kits sold in 3 months.
Category
Packaging Design
Client
EnKoat
Duration
8 Weeks
Tool
Adobe Illustrator, Slack
Project overview
One box that sells, instructs, and inventories
I designed the custom-printed box for EnKoat's Adhesion Test Kit, a sample kit contractors use to prove the coating bonds to their roof. One design now covers both coating products; the test is explained in three icons, and every item is listed on the box. 1,000+ kits sold in 3 months, shipped to 20+ contractors.
Background
Contractors want proof before they commit
Contractors don't take a coating's adhesion on faith. Before specifying EnKoat on a roof, they want to apply it to their own substrate, pull it, and see the bond hold. The Adhesion Test Kit lets them do that on site with everything in one box: product, roller, mesh strips, a pull scale, and instructions.
The kit started as an internal assembly of off-the-shelf parts shipped in a stock box. As demand grew, a stock box with a temporary sticker no longer matched the product inside. My job was to turn it into a branded, self-explanatory package that works as a sales tool the moment a contractor opens it.
Four small panels
to sell, explain a field test, and list eight items
Two
products
(EnBase™ 110 and EnFlex™ 210) sharing one printed box
About $16 in parts per kit
so no special finishes or extra inserts
Used on rooftops
in sun and wind: read at a glance, not studied
Research
Most brands hand contractors a PDF, not a kit
I looked at how five roof coating manufacturers support field adhesion testing. Most publish text-heavy instructions and leave contractors to gather their own supplies. That gap shaped the brief: a self-contained kit with the steps printed on the box.
Click the brand name to see its source.
What this meant for the design
Everything in the box
Competitors mostly leave contractors hunting for a scale and fabric strips. EnKoat's kit ships all eight items, so the right side panel lists them.
Three steps, not six or seven
Competitor procedures run 6–7+ steps in dense text. I reduced the on-box version to Prepare → Test → Evaluate and put the detail behind a QR code.
The box is the brand moment
Four of the five brands deliver the test through PDFs and blog posts, so a designed box sets EnKoat apart on the roof.
Key decisions
Three decisions that shaped the box
One job per panel
Front sells, back instructs, one side builds trust, the other lists contents.
The test in three verbs
Prepare → Test → Evaluate, with icons that work even if the words are skipped.
One front, two products
EnBase™ 110 and EnFlex™ 210 share a box, so one print run covers both.
Key research insights
What the Research Was Really Saying
Audit the kit
I worked from the actual parts list and how the test runs on site, which gave me the three-step flow and the eight-item inventory.
Set the system
Dark field, EnKoat blue as the only accent, heavy sans headlines, and a line-wave texture that wraps all four sides so the box reads as one object when rotated.
Draw the icons
One stroke weight across the step and benefit icons so they hold up at small print sizes.
Bridge the gap
While the custom box was on order, kits shipped in existing boxes with a temporary sticker. The final artwork went onto the confirmed dieline.
Production
Designed for print, not just the screen
Dieline: 4-panel box, 8" L × 4" W × 8" H, with 0.125" bleed.
Spec
Detail
Box size
8" L × 4" W × 8" H [confirm against final dieline]
Panels
Front and back 8" × 8"; sides 4" × 8"; each built with 0.125" bleed
Files
Print-ready Adobe Illustrator artwork per panel
Color
Dark field + one accent (EnKoat blue) + white type
Result
A kit that explains itself
The kit now arrives as a branded package that explains itself: what it is, how to run the test, and what's inside, with no manual or sales call needed.
One printed box covers both EnBase™ 110 and EnFlex™ 210
A three-step visual replaces written instructions on the box
Contents are checkable on arrival from the side panel
Impact
1,000+ kits sold in 3 months
Each of those kits put EnKoat's brand and the three-step test directly in a contractor's hands on the roof. The box does the explaining on site, without a manual.
What's next? As demand grows, the box will be produced with a carry handle, keeping the same design across all four panels.
