A two-part, easy-separation “box” for P&G’s Alldays FemCare Liners in Europe earned honors in the 21st DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation, where sustainability weighed heavily in the competition.
In the past, four Alldays cartons were packed into a printed corrugated box, designed with a bottom-edge perforation that allowed store employees to tear off the top and retain the bottom tray for handling and in-store display.
The new design includes an upgraded corrugated tray and a more streamlined detached corrugated “hood” that protects the product, can be removed quickly, and is unprinted. One end is open to allow consumers to see the primary packs inside. P&G says it has a proprietary relationship with its material supplier, saying only that the package is light-weighted compared with the previous box.
P&G reports that the new design saves 1,500 lb of paper, 375 truck trips, and $1.8 million annually. Ink usage is down 80%, the time for customers to restock is shaved 50%, and production line speed is up 33% through elimination of waste in equipment changeover time.
In a press release about the new packaging, P&G says, “This technology was launched to the trade in Western Europe starting January 2009. The tray-and-hood combination reduces the total material weight and only the tray is printed (instead of the entire corrugated shipper). The result is a ‘better, cheaper, and more sustainable’ offering. Better for the trade and more presentable to consumers, [with] lower material cost and reduced energy. FemCare Liners are the first brand to be taken through this development. No new burdens are created with this shelf-ready packaging execution. All the benefits with reduced burden to the environment.”
