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Reusable package speaks loudly
As a future packaging engineer, it sometimes saddens me to think that most of my career will be devoted to creating things that have a relatively short lifespan and are usually thrown away with great vigor. Luckily, there are always times where packaging gets to live a second life. 
Returnable/reusable bins are a great example of this, but there aren't many packages that get reused by the consumers themselves. Sure, there are display cases that come with some higher end products. Other than that it's fairly limited. As I've mentioned before, there is a trend that calls for the creation of packaging that can live an alternate life, such as the POM Tea glasses. However, few companies do this with their packaging because it can be cost-prohibitive.
I have stumbled across a neat new product though that gives normally discarded packaging waste a new life. The product I am speaking of is a very neat little speaker kit for the Apple IPod Nano from a Japanese company called Bird Electron. (The site is in Japanese, but the pictures tell the story)
The idea behind the kit is that you are provided a piece that slips onto the package your IPod Nano came in and this acts as a cabinet for the speakers. While it's nothing ground-breaking, I do think it's a wonderful idea because the creators decided to reuse an item normally thrown into the trash bin This not only saves molding costs on their end , but makies the product a little more "green." It's not going to solve all the world's problems but if it keeps one piece of plastic out of the landfills I think it's a great idea.
Reusable package speaks loudly
January 4, 2008
As a future packaging engineer, it sometimes saddens me to think that most of my career will be devoted to creating things that have a relatively short lifespan and are usually thrown away with great vigor. Luckily, there are always times where packaging gets to live a second life. Returnable/reusable bins are a great example of this, but there aren't many packages that get reused by the consumers themselves. Sure, there are display cases that come with some higher end products. Other than that it's fairly limited. As I've mentioned before, there is a trend that calls for the creation of packaging that can live an alternate life, such as the POM Tea glasses. However, few companies do this with their packaging because it can be cost-prohibitive.
I have stumbled across a neat new product though that gives normally discarded packaging waste a new life. The product I am speaking of is a very neat little speaker kit for the Apple IPod Nano from a Japanese company called Bird Electron. (The site is in Japanese, but the pictures tell the story)
The idea behind the kit is that you are provided a piece that slips onto the package your IPod Nano came in and this acts as a cabinet for the speakers. While it's nothing ground-breaking, I do think it's a wonderful idea because the creators decided to reuse an item normally thrown into the trash bin This not only saves molding costs on their end , but makies the product a little more "green." It's not going to solve all the world's problems but if it keeps one piece of plastic out of the landfills I think it's a great idea.
Posted by Emilio Frattaruolo on January 4, 2008 | Comments (0)
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