A Major Week 1

• The jug itself is HDPE but blow-molded, so it can be recycled
• The lid is also HDPE but injection-molded, so it should NOT be recycled with the jug (they have recently changed the colours of these to be white, so it is a lot easier to recycle)
• The label is a different material that can NOT be recycled
• The label has glue applied to stick, which can NOT be recycled (or removed properly)
• Because the label is essentially a sticker, this needs another layer before it is applied so it doesn’t stick to itself – plastic, most likely NOT recycled
• This backing of the label will need to have a silicone or other layer so the sticker can be easily peeled off – again, because it will be a composite material, this can NOT be recycled
• Below the lid there is a topper which you need to remove, which has at least 3 more materials within it, and it will go straight to the landfill

This is 9+ materials just for a plastic milk jug. Which is quite atrocious. 

My project will be around “designing out the problems” and “finding a new approach to packaging”.

I’m quite happy with this approach – I won a Starpack competition before with my gin packaging design, so I think I will have a lot of fun with this.

The 6-7-people atelier groups we were put into are an excellent way to be honest and social, to encourage and inspire each other, but not be bombarded with 30 other people’s opinions, or sit alone at my desk all day. 

For next week I have to find 10 products to “hack” – products that create issues but could be fixed. I need to think about what we would be losing, and what we would gain from the new designs.

Here are some overarching problems I have found: 

• Sticky labels (often unnecessary, difficult to remove, not recyclable)
• Coloured materials (difficult to recycle, often unnecessary)
• Composite materials (often impossible to separate, non-recyclable)
• Shapes that do not save space (waste space when transporting, cost energy, time and money)
• Long transport channels (sourcing materials, manufacturing different parts, wholesale, retail, user purchasing, user throwing out, curbside bin, recycling facility, possibly landfill – all often in different countries)
• Hard to compress when throwing out (compression might make it difficult to recycle, but if not, it would save a lot of space in bins)
• Packaging which lie about how much product they contain (such as shrinkflation)
• Excessive, unnecessary use of packaging (too much protection, unnecessary extras – multiple layers, individually wrapped, plastic spoon in every protein powder packaging)
• Packaging which cannot be fully separated and cause endless frustration to the user (not composite materials – cardboard boxes with plastic tape, microwave meals)
• Hostile architecture, like uncomfortable benches (to deter the homeless from sleeping on them, make shoppers get up and continue shopping), or pigeon spikes (to stop pigeons from entering spaces, and end up maiming their feet and often killing them)
• Products where money was the main concern and ergonomics was not thought of at the design stage (taps your hands don’t fit under, double taps in the UK, attractive but uncomfortable chairs/desks, not enough legroom on airplanes)
• Scissors/knife packaging that needs scissors or knife to open
• Inconsistent book series covers
• Useless barriers/fences (can walk around them easily)
• Watering plants makes the water drip all around the plant
• Styrofoam/bubblewrap void fill (cannot be recycled – many new, better materials 
• Items which break after a few uses (weak plastic, cheap clothing
• Single-use merch items (plastic pens, silly toys with large branding)
• Plastic bottle shrink-wrap (beverage, medicine, jars etc.)
• Raw meat packaging (difficult to clean, often impossible to separate, dangerous
• Glass jars that are hard and dangerous to open (specifically for elderly, young, disabled)