Our clothes expressed who we are and what we want to be known for, so does packaging of the products tell you about the product, reason why you want to buy it and what company produces it. We always care what the product is packed in.
We don't want to spend too much time browsing in the grocery store surrounded by thousands of products, unable to decide what to pick. Packages of these products made it much easier to pick and decide.
Today, businesses are becoming environmentally-conscious and have to keep up with the increasing trend--green revolution!
There are so many eco packaging materials that help reduce impact on the environment in many ways. Here are some of the traits to look for:
- Recycled materials
- Annually sustainable materials (corn, cotton or bamboo)
- Biodegradable materials (unbleached paper or clam shells)
- Recyclable materials (corrugated paper or glass)
- Reusable materials (glass bottles)
- Recycled cardboard boxes
- Biodegradable bags and boxes
- Compostable food materials
- Chicago Paper Tube and Can Company - which produces EcoPak (a cosmetic packaging product which can be used to contain many beauty products)
- Newton (running shoe company) - designed a form-fitting package for a running shoe from molded recycled cardboard
Step
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Activities
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1
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The class is grouped into 3 groups with 5-10 members per group.
Then, each group selected a leader for their group.
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2
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Inform the groups about the activity and particularly putting emphasis on the use of eco-friendly materials for their packaging materials. I decided to choose bamboo as base materials since it is indigenous and cheaper to work with.
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3
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Assigned 2 weeks to formulate and design their packaging for the product they created.
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4
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Conduct dry run for the packaging—consult a fellow marketing teacher particularly packaging expert/experienced to have short lecture/input on packaging the groups presented.
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5
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Conduct of the actual presentation—final presentation for all 3 groups regarding their developed packaging. Take pictures as evidence for the said activity. Each group is required to make a brochure for their presentation.
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6
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Evaluation—computation of the scores for each group – see table for result of groups
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7
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Summary
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Criteria
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Group 1
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Group 2
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Group 3
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Materials Used
(Bamboo & other indigenous materials used in packaging their products)
(30 pts)
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29
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26
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26
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Economic Value of the Packaging (30pts)
· Creativity (10pts)
· Uniqueness (10pts)
· Value/Marketability (10pts)
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28
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25
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25
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Presentation (language, dress code, mannerisms, Q&A) (20 pts)
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17
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17
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14
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Materials (brochures, backdrop, output/product) (20 pts)
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18
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15
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17
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Total (100 pts)
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92
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83
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82
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Some of the more popular eco-friendly packaging products:
The most eco-friendly aspect of these materials are not about the materials it is made of but how much materials it uses. There are many types of eco design for packaging but the pinnacle of eco friendly product packaging design is being waste-free packaging. It has to be inventive, reusable and less waste produced. Example for this are:
Prime Functions for Effective Packaging System:
1. Permit sterilization of the package contents.
2. Maintain sterility of the contents until the package is opened.
3. Permit aseptic presentation of the package contents.
Essential Performance Characteristics
a. Ability to withstand physical conditions of the specific sterilization process
b. Adequate air removal
c. Free of toxic materials or dyes and be low-linting
d. Adequate barrier to microorganisms and environmental contaminants
e. Durability to resist tears and punctures
f. Removal of the contents without contamination
g. Easy to use
h. Cost effective
Origin of Bamboo
Bamboos have been around since time immemorial. It is the strongest growing hardy grass on Earth. It is a versatile plant from grass family grown in Asian countries and used for paper making fibers. Records dating back from seven thousand years
There are a lot of uses as evident in the first experiment of the first light bulb as used as carbonized filament by Thomas Edison and used as rebar for the reinforcement of his swimming pool. Also, Alexander Graham Bell used bamboo as the first phonograph needle. Other uses are paper, scaffolding, diesel fuel, airplane “skins,” desalination filters, musical instruments, medicine, food. It has survived amidst death and destruction—in Hiroshima atomic blast—which provided the first re-greening in that place.
Bamboo grows faster than any commercialized plant. It grows up to 24 inches per day and reaches full harvesting maturity in 3-7 years. It has strong, tensile or cellulose fiber strength is similar to that of steel, 28, 000 per square inch versus 23, 000 for steel. It is non-porous when processed as cardboard making it a reliable material for protecting technology equipment in transit. It is a viable replacement for wood, considered as strongest packaging materials available today for sustainable packaging. It is also a critical element in the balance of oxygen-carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It has the fastest growing canopy for re-greening of degraded areas and generates 35% more Oxygen. It can be used in creating the balance of wind direction and erosion.
Bamboo has been known for its tensile strength superior to mild steel which can withstand up to 52, 000 pounds of pressure psi. It’s weight-to-strength ratio surpassing that of graphite. In India, home to about 130 species of bamboo, is in the process of being “rediscovered.” It is the symbol for long lasting friendship—amongst Indians. Its blossoming flowers have been considered as a sign of impending famine because it attracts the rats wherein it also infested the neighboring farm fields (http://indiacurrentaffairs.org/adding-value-to-bamboo-a-mission-for-the-21st-century-sitanshu-kar/).
In China, Bamboo is the symbol of good fortune in Asian culture for over 4,000 years. Its ability to grow quickly and strongly associates it as a symbol of success and healthy sustenance. Chinese used it as symbol of longevity. It has been used as musical instruments, drinking cups, buckets, fishing rods, walls, structural posts, wicker furniture, rafts, carpets, phonograph needles, cuisine ingredient (shoots), arrows, books, palace buildings, and many more. It was discovered amongst it excavation sites a bamboo slips which contains 13,000 ancient Chinese characters.
Bamboo, an amazing plant, surprisingly a member of the grass family, provides the ultimate conditions for being a sustainable and renewable resource. It continues to flourish even after it is completely harvested without the need for re-planting and some varieties can grow over 45-inches in a single day with an ideal climate. This rapid growth trait, present in almost all varieties, allows the plant to reach maturity within 3-6 years rather than 30-60 years, making it the quickest growing vegetation on earth.
Dell, a computer company, has recently been using bamboo to protect certain products. It helps reduce environmental impacts and promote healthier environment. It is found and available locally. It also grows quickly, fastest growing woody plant and can be harvested in just 3-7 years which makes it highly renewable and great alternative to foams, corrugate and molded paper pulp. It is also strong and durable. It can withstand lots of stress while being stretched or pulled, which makes it ideal for construction scaffolding, boats and other items that requires strength and flexibility. It is ecological friendly because it helps promote healthy soil. The plant’s deep root systems protect against erosion. When harvested correctly it doesn’t require replanting afterward. (http://content.dell.com)
According to www.swicofil.com, the regenerated cellulose fiber bamboo fiber is 100% made from bamboo through a high technology process. The raw material bamboo is well-selected from non-polluted regions in Yunnan and Sicuan Province, China. It is harvested from 3-4 years old new bamboo from good character and ideal temper bamboo. The whole distilling and production process is relatively green process without pollution. The harvested fiber is uniquely biodegradable textile material, has natural cellulose fiber which can be 100% biodegraded in the soil by microorganisms and sunshine. Its decomposition process does not cause any pollution in the environment. It has natural anti-bacteria—known as Bamboo Kun—anti-bacteria and bacteriostatic agent.
Economic Sustainability
Bamboo has been used all throughout the history not only because of the strength of its material but also with its renewable prospects. Through history, wood is becoming scarce because it takes up to sixty years or so to produce a full grown tree and another sixty years or so for replacement. Species of bamboo equal to the height and width of a tree take as little as sixty days to mature completely. Bamboo is also easy to grow, because of the root systems. Running bamboo species are especially easy to grow, as they produce several shoots at a time, and will take over as much room as they possibly can. Bamboo is also difficult to get rid of, unless it is completely plowed under. The unknown building material and resource of the future, bamboo has had a long and rich history. It will be used for years to come in everything from housing to bed sheets, and even more as more information is learned about this amazing plant. (http://www.bamboogrove.com/bamboo-fabric.html).
Bamboo fiber has been used by companies as material for packaging. For example, Dell, a computer company, has been utilizing bamboo fiber as the materials for the packaging of their products. Its renewable material is utilized in ASUS laptops as an alternative to plastic casing and also serves as the packaging for Dell Inspiron Notebook computers. It is used as the outer protection of these computers because it has the strength of many metals and it is easy and quick to grow. It has a lifespan of about 20 years which means that it won’t biodegrade while you still own the computer (www.earth911.com/news.au/pdf/a-bamboo-future2.pdf).
Companies such as Starbucks and Nike are known for their use of eco-friendly packaging, but today, more companies are joining the movement. In turn, the amount of waste from product packaging has decreased, industries are reducing costs and the earth is — and will continue to — benefit.
A beverage manufacturer introduced a thinner plastic bottle, eliminating 2.45 billion pounds of packaging from 1999 to 2009. A canned food manufacturer redesigned its packaging to eliminate 700,000 pounds of PVC plastic. This has enabled the company to ship 25 percent more units per truckload, resulting in 150 fewer trucks on the road annually and saving 14,000 gallons of fuel. Another company reduced its landfill waste by 20.7 million pounds and its greenhouse gas emissions by 11 million pounds (http://www.mnn.com/money/green-workplace/stories/eco-friendly-packaging)
With Dell, they’ve pioneered the use of bamboo to protect their certain devices. They’re using it for Dell Streak tablet, Venue, and Venue Pro smartphones and many Inspiron and Latitude laptop models. By the end of 2011, they will ship two-thirds of their portable devices in bamboo. There are reasons why they’re using bamboo, few of those are:
1. Its local. The bamboos they’re using as packaging material are available locally and near the facilities that manufacture their products. It does not leave carbon footprint.
2. It grows quickly. It is the fastest growing woody plant and can grow 24 inches a day, harvested within 3-7 years.
3. It is strong and durable. Its tensile strength is similar to that of steel, making it a reliable protecting material for transit of products.
4. It is friendly to the environment. It helps promote healthy soil where the plant’s deep root system helps prevent soil erosion. When harvested correctly, it doesn’t require replanting after harvesting.
5. It is sustainable. Dell has been working with Unisource Global Solutions (UGS) to ensure all their processes associated with bamboo’s production meet with the highest standards. Their sources of raw bamboos from a forest that follows FSC principles and criteria, worked with UGS to secure FSC-certification for the bamboo’s full chain of custody, from the forest to the manufacturing facilities.
They have been using bamboos grown from the Jiangxi Province, China—away from the known panda’s habitat. (http://content.dell.com)
Bamboo fabric is one of the most economical and ecological products in the world today. Because of how it grows, there is only a fraction of the time and resources spent on producing bamboo for fabric as there is for cotton. Bamboo does not require the large amounts of water and pesticides that cotton does to be produced, nor does it require the attentive care of cotton. Bamboo fabric is also quite ecologically friendly. 100% biodegradable, the fibers used to make bamboo fabric don't need to be sprayed with chemical additives of any sort. There is also less water wasted for irrigation for bamboo, and there is very little surface runoff from chemicals that could be sprayed on the plants to keep them healthy, as these chemicals aren't needed. Economical, ecological, aesthetically pleasing, comfortable, and long-lasting, bamboo fabric is obviously going to be the way of the future. With soft fabric that is easy to produce, and has health benefits like being anti-bacterial as well as insulating, bamboo fabric will become the favorite textile of many in years to come.
In my class Entrep 10 (Entrepreneurial Integration), I have integrated ecological awareness with my business topics. I have selected an activity which utilized bamboo as the basic materials for packaging of the products. I have required my students to make packaging materials using environmental-friendly materials which will be presented in front of the 3-man panel of judges and rest of their class.
In my class Entrep 10 (Entrepreneurial Integration), I have integrated ecological awareness with my business topics. I have selected an activity which utilized bamboo as the basic materials for packaging of the products. I have required my students to make packaging materials using environmental-friendly materials which will be presented in front of the 3-man panel of judges and rest of their class.
I chose bamboo as the main or base ingredient for their packaging materials since it is the most convenient and indigenous. Bamboo has been used as building materials, as furniture and fixture, accessories.
Method
I have conducted an activity last March 11, 2012 in my Entrep 10 (Entrepreuerial Integration) class. In this activity I have divided my class into 3 groups with minimum of 5-10 persons per group. Each group presented their product featuring the packaging made of eco-friendly materials and bamboo as the base material. Their presentation is evaluated by 3-member panel of judges (chosen among teaching staff of the school). A criteria was provided to every member of the panel. Each group was given a 10-15 minutes to present their packaging/product. Each presentation is graded accordingly and questions/criticisms were raised by either member of the panel as well as the other groups.
Bamboo sticks Cardboard
Glue Varnish
Procedure:
2. Clean the bamboo sticks.
3. Lay-out the design you choose, a house, in a cardboard.
4. Cut-out the lay-out on the cardboard.
5. Assemble the cut-outs using the glue.
6. Paste on the edges of the assembled cardboard.
7. Allow the glue to dry for 15-30 minutes.
8. Apply varnish and let it dry.
Cost/Pricing:
Materials 50.00
Paper Lining 10.00
Food/dumplings 50.00
Total P200.00
Bamboo wooden nails
Bamboo sprouts/cut-outs (stand) varnish
1. Prepare the materials needed.
2. Slice the bamboo into 10-12 inches depending on your desired measurement.
3. Clean the sliced bamboos and wooden nails.
4. Design the cut/sliced bamboos according to your specification/design chosen.
5. Attach the stand to the prepared sliced bamboos using wooden nails.
Alternative: Use a “barina” to put holes on the sliced bamboos to fit in the stands.
6. Apply varnish to the finish bamboos.
7. Let it dry for 10-30 minutes.
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