Eco-Friendly Packaging

Packaging Design Challenge

A large knockdown furniture company contacted BoldtSmith to transition away from non-recyclable foam in their products. The furniture items are manufactured domestically and shipped through both small parcel and palletized supply chains.

Requirements

Prevent damage with eco-friendly materials
Avoid increasing packaging costs

BoldtSmith Actions

BoldtSmith engineers developed optimized furniture packaging designs with and without non-recyclable foam, completed transit testing and created a financial analysis comparison. What we determined is that for small parcel shipping, we were not able to cost-effectively transition away from foam. However, we were able to utilize 100% recycled materials for their palletized furniture products.

This was a great balance of remaining cost-effective while exploring sustainable packaging materials.

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Improved Sustainability

With packaging, freight and damage cost reductions

Reduced damage rateTo less than 1%
Nearly $800,000In annual savings in packaging material and freight costs

Learn more about the three Rs of sustainable packaging

Analyzing the three pillars of sustainable packaging: Reduce - Reuse - Recycle

When seeking a sustainable packaging solution, it’s important to determine which R is applicable to your packaging goals.

Some products and supply chains are a great fit for recyclable/compostable materials. For those that are not, we focus on providing optimized packaging solutions that reduce the carbon footprint. This is where Reduce and Reuse come into play.

Optimized packaging solutions lead to sustainable packaging practices because:

Material: Selecting the best materials results in less material
Freight: Eliminating air from master cartons leads to better freight efficiency which means less fuel burned

Sustainability is more than just a “feel good” marketing term that large corporations proudly display on their websites and packaging. Below are descriptions for each of the three R’s along with past project examples demonstrating the value of eco-friendly packaging.

Sustainable Packaging – Reduce

Reducing packaging materials has been a fundamental pillar in cost reduction. Reducing packaging materials also reduces the amount of corrugated, foam, aluminum, glass, etc. being thrown away, providing a more sustainable solution. Eliminating materials that cannot be recycled is not always possible, and open-loop supply chains do not allow for a returnable packaging system. In these scenarios, BoldtSmith looks to reduce the amount of materials used.

Sustainable Packaging Example – Reduce

A frequent customer was having damage issues with their toilet’s shipping through a small parcel supply chain direct-to-consumer. BoldtSmith engineers developed a packaging solution that would reduce damage from 12% to less than 1% while lessening material and freight costs.

Current Packaging

Packaging Material Cost: $16.90 per unit
Packaging Freight Cost: $383.76 via UPS Ground
Annual Volume: 10,000 units
Total Annual Cost: $4,006,000
Damaged Units Annually: 1,200

Optimized Packaging

Design #1 – Non-Recyclable Packaging Solution
Packaging Material Cost: $12.90 per unit
Packaging Freight Cost: $310.08 via UPS Ground
Annual Volume: 10,000 unit
Total Annual Cost: $3,222,800
Damaged Units Annually: 100
Cost Difference Annually: $783,200
Damage Reduction Annually: 1,100 units

Sustainable Packaging – Reuse

Closed-loop supply chains offer a great opportunity for reusable packaging solutions. Manufacturing companies who receive sub-assembly components from local companies commonly benefit from reusable packaging solutions. Common reusable packaging solutions can include:

Plastic or heavy-duty wood pallets
Plastic or wooden crates
Bulk containers such as drums, and IBC’s
Plastic totes and boxes
Dunnage

Sustainable Packaging Example – Reuse

A large door and window manufacturer contracted BoldtSmith to optimize packaging for all inbound components they use to build the doors and windows. This included frames, glass, locks, jambs, etc. received from domestic manufacturing companies.

Reusable Packaging - Project Steps & Results

Visit the assembly facility to review all packaging material and processes associated with unloading, handling, and storing the components
Brainstorm potential packaging solutions & develop 3D concepts with budgetary pricing
Present concepts to our customer and all component suppliers
Create packaging designs and specifications & send to packaging suppliers for pricing
Create financial analysis comparing current packaging to returnable solutions
Create packaging samples for line trials, lab tests and ship tests
Adjust design based on testing findings
Implement reusable packaging design

At the end of the project, it was determined that 10 of the 12 component suppliers would be transitioned into a returnable packaging solution. This transition saved on material costs and labor inefficiencies while eliminating expendable packaging from the supply chain.

Sustainable Packaging – Recycle

Utilizing recyclable packaging materials is great and we love presenting recyclable packaging options to our customers. Recycling plays a crucial role in minimizing waste and preserving the natural resources of the earth. When outlining our projects, we like to obtain the customer’s project goals. Often we are given the below objectives ranked by priority:

Decrease packaging material costs
Decrease freight costs
Decrease labor costs
Decrease product damage
“Oh and make it recyclable”

Transitioning from non-recyclable packaging materials that are effective and cheap to 100% recyclable materials can be a cost-effective change depending on the product and packaging. However, there are situations where these recyclable materials are not a great fit. This depends on who the customer base is, the product type, the supply chain, the budget for packaging, etc.

Sustainable Packaging Example – Recycle

BoltSmith engineers developed optimized furniture packaging designs with and without non-recyclable foam, completed transit testing and created a financial analysis comparison. What we determined is that for small parcel shipping, we were not able to cost-effectively transition away from foam. However, we were able to utilize 100% recycled materials for their palletized furniture products.

This was a great balance of remaining cost-effective while exploring sustainable packaging materials.

Contact BoldtSmith Packaging to discuss what we can do for you!

Industries Served

Military

BoldtSmith packaging engineers design, implement and audit military packaging following stringent testing standards with documented precision.

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MFG Assembly Lines

In a world of high-speed manufacturing and assembly lines, packaging must be designed to match the line's efficiency.

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Food & Beverage

Whether the customer is a brand on the store shelf or private labeling a product at a co-packer, we have experience in executing solutions at all levels within the food & beverage world.

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E-Commerce

Our Amazon A-pass certified consultants utilize modern technology in data recording devices, allowing us to create a testing protocol that is custom to our customers' specific supply chain.

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Industrial

Reducing product damage, freight and material costs are common goals we are tasked with when optimizing industrial packaging projects.

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Furniture

BoldtSmith Packaging works with assembled and knock-down furniture companies creating optimized packaging designs to drive down damage and packaging costs.

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