Packaging Design Issues - Essay Example

Running Head: PACKAGING DESIGN Packaging Design Packaging Design Introduction Packaging refers to the science, art and technology of enclosing developed products in a protective containment for the purposes of trade, storage and consumer utilization. Packaging process plays a pivotal role in the product development and is a design process. The major purposes of packaging are; Physical protection: products require safeguarding from vibration, shock, low or high temperatures. Packaging enables the protection of vital equipments used to provide functional operations. For example, the inner parts of a bulb are protected from the air and oxygen by a protective glass. Protection from foreign particles entry; the products are protected from entry of oxygen, dust, bacterial, viruses, water, chemicals and other harmful agents that may destroy or degrade the working parts. Agglomeration: through packaging, small objects are grouped together to form one package. Packaging eases the process of transport, warehousing and distribution. Products like liquids, powders, air and chemicals are easily handled when packaged. Transmission of information: labels contained in packaging materials communicate vital information to the consumers. Marketing: packaging materials contain information about the product. Security: packaging reduces risk imposed on materials. Packaging prevents goods from being tampered with. Convenience: packaging introduces convenience in stacking materials, handling, display, dispensing and reuse of these materials. There are many types of packaging materials that are commonly used. These materials differ from product to product and are also affected by the mode of transportation, costs, warehousing, customer's demands and many other factors. In the recent past, great concerns have been put forward by the environmentalist regarding the pollution by packaging materials. Most packaging materials are discarded once the product reaches the customer. This has significant effects on the dumping and pollution especially if the packaging material is made of plastic or glass or any other non degradable material. This has resulted to the introduction of recyclable packaging materials, materials reuse and use of biodegradable plastics. Consequently, symbols of quality, recycling symbol, the green dot symbol have all be introduced on the packaging materials. This papers studies packaging materials for lighting applications, their effects to the environments and also studies which of the materials are recyclable and environmentally friendly as well as the current techniques used to improve packaging to prevent dumping and accumulation of these materials in landfills. Types of lighting application There are many types of lighting applications these include; Incandescent bulbs Fluorescent lights Compact fluorescent lights (CFL) Metal halide bulbs Light emitting diodes (LED) Special lights (infra-red lights and X ray lights ) Lighting accessories such as sockets, switches and lamp bases There are various packaging materials for these different lighting. Incandescent bulb The incandescent bulb has several packaging materials. These materials include the glass bulb, that houses the internal parts of the bulb that is, the filament, the metallic base that aids in the connecting the bulb to the electrical supply. The outside packaging of the bulb includes a carton that carries the bulb. The outer carton varies from one manufacturer to another; some types of packaging are illustrated below. Single bulb color box packing that is used to house one bulb Figure 1: Carton for packaging a single bulb and double pack bulb packaging: (source: QML. 2009. Incandescent bulb. http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/200800532/Incandescent_Bulb.html) After packaging the bulb in individual small cartons, the bulbs are then packaged into a large carton for transportation. Large carton where incandescent bulbs are packaged Figure 2: large Carton for packaging bulbs: (source: QML. 2009. Incandescent bulb. http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/200800532/Incandescent_Bulb.html) Fluorescent Lights There are different types of packaging materials for Fluorescent Tubes. First the electrodes and circuitry are protected using glass tube housing and a metallic ends to aid in connection. Like the incandescent bulbs, a small carton packaging is used to protect each tube and then the packaged tubes are the housed on a single large carton. Figure 3: Fluorescent tube packaging (source: Keysan.2009. fluorescent bulbs. http://www.keysan.com/big/pic18667.html) Compact Fluorescent Tubes Compact fluorescent tubes resemble the incandescent bulbs and are mainly used due to their energy saving ability. Most of the CFL packaging includes a carton to protect the glass part of the CFL and then, the bulbs are then stacked in a big carton box. New packaging materials have been recently used. These new packaging involves stacking bulbs into box with hollow compartments. This saves on space, packaging costs and time. Another packaging material for the CFL is the plastic part that protects the electronic circuitry of this bulb. Figure 4: CFL packaging (source: Keysan.2009. fluorescent bulbs. http://www.keysan.com/big/pic18667.html) LED lights Light emitting diodes are currently being used as sources for light application. They are very economical sources and are comprised of a group of white light producing diodes that are assembled together to produce a beam of white light. Again, the main packing materials are glass tubes for housing internal components, the external carton for housing the bulb and a big carton for housing a stack of bulbs. Lighting application Switches, light base units, socket switches, cabling and other electronics are also used for lighting. These parts are mostly assembled from plastics. Thermosetting plastics which are hard and resistance to heat are normally used for the switches and sockets. These materials are non biodegradable and contribute to pollution of the environment. In addition, these materials are non degradable and contribute to the problems of landfill and garbage accumulation. Contribution of light packaging materials to solid waste accumulation Light equipment causes many damaging effects to the environment. Lighting products are mainly comprised of a light source and glass packaging and the final carton packaging. The effects of these packaging materials cause more pollution than the product itself, for example, the incandescent bulb may seem to cause more environmental damage as compared to the fluorescent bulb due to its consumption of more power. However in the real fact, fluorescent tubes may lead to more damage due to the glass materials and chemicals contained in them as well as the inability of the glass tube material to decompose. CFL have been found to save a lot of energy but on the other hand has mercury which is a heavy metal and damages the environment and affects human beings health (Hamner, 2004; European Environment Agency, 1997). Data collected from the Caribbean region show significant accumulation of light bubs packaging materials on the ocean shores. Data collected from United Nations environmental program shows that no light bulbs were deposited on Antigua and Barbuda coasts, 1408 on Bahamas coastline, 196 bulbs on Barbados, 631 were collected from Belize, 368 were collected from British virgin islands and 278 were collected from Colombia. The list gives details of other countries with shorelines. The total number of light bulbs in the litter was 47914 bulbs for the year 2005(UNEP, 2006). Glass materials found from light bulbs, fluorescent tubes and other lighting applications form a significant part of the land fills. This type of glass is not recyclable and does not decompose. This means that once dumped, it continues to pile up in the land fills and causes significant damage to the environment. Data collected by EPA gives the component of the total wastes materials found in the landfills. According to EPA data for 2007, the generation of wastes is as shown below; Figure 5 Components of Solid Wastes (EPA.2009. solid wastes. Retrieved 26 November 2009 from; http://people.hws.edu/Halfman/Data/PublicInterestArticles/Landfills.pdf) From the data provided by EPA, 5.3 % of the total wastes comprises of glass materials mainly drawn from bottles and light bulbs. Paper wastes contribute 32.7% of the total wastes. Part of this waste comes from the packaging wastes which results from light glass bulbs and bottles. The rate of recycling these wastes is also not very high as revealed by the EPA data. The graph below shows the rate of production of glassware's and the recycling rates. For glass and paper which are constituent of the lighting packaging materials, the amount is deemed to increase due to relative low recycling rates. Figure 6: Solid Wastes Generated against That Recycled (EPA.2009. solid wastes. Retrieved 26 November 2009 from; http://people.hws.edu/Halfman/Data/PublicInterestArticles/Landfills.pdf) From the above data, most of the paper materials and glass materials (more than half) end up in landfills. Light applications utilize to a great extent glass and paper material for packaging. Report by EPA in 2004 showed that a total of 670 million mercury containing bulbs were manufactured and only 23% of the total glass material was recycled. The remaining 77 % of the total packaging materials was dumped on the landfills (NJ department of Environmental Protection, 2004; Iowa waste reduction center, 2006). The actual data for number of wastes for the United States as published by EPA in 2008 are shown below. Data for waste papers, glassware's and plastics is outlined. Table 1 showing the total number of wastes paper generated. (Source: United States EPA.2008.Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, facts and figures. United States EPA, office of solid wastes) The actual wastes from each packaging materials are shown in the figure below (figure 7). From the figure below, it can be seen that the total number of wastes is greatly contributed by boxes. These boxes are used for packaging materials with some of them being used for packaging lighting applications. Figure 7 showing the components of wastes paper generated. (Source: United States EPA.2008.Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, facts and figures. United States EPA, office of solid wastes) Part of the wastes materials are recovered from the wastes. The proportions of the recovered materials are outlined in the table below. (Table 2) Table 2 showing amount of waste generated, recovered and discarded. (Source: United States EPA. (2008).Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, facts and figures. United States EPA, office of solid wastes) The table and figures represent the materials generated as wastes from 1960 to 2007. Some of the waste papers were however recovered. The graphical representation of the trends in waste production and recovery are shown in the figure below. Figure 8 showing paper wastes generation and recovery trend from 1970. (Source: United States EPA. (2008).Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, facts and figures. United States EPA, office of solid wastes) From the tabular statistics shown above, it is clear that nearly half of all paper packaging materials were discarded and not recycled. These materials can be recycled and be used as the outside packaging materials for the bulbs. The rising trend in the packaging materials garbage is a likely indication that packaging wastes will continue to rise and methods of reducing these wastes should be developed. Wastes from glasses Another lighting packaging material that contributes to wastes is the number of bottles discarded in garbage all over USA. Glassware's contribute significantly to the garbage problem in the United States. Statistics for the glassware in landfills is shown in the table below. Table 3 showing glass wastes generation and recovery in 2007. (Source: United States EPA. (2008).Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, facts and figures. United States EPA, office of solid wastes) The lighting packaging glass component in bulbs is the constituent of the durable goods which categorizes consumer electronics as part of the wastes. The number of glassware recycled is not so high. Glass has a major limitation in that colored glass cannot be recycled to produce clear glass. This means for bulb applications, only clear glass can be recycled and used for bulb applications. Alternatively, discarded bulbs can be sorted and recycled. The rate of recycling glassware's is significantly low. This is indicated by the graph below. Figure 9 showing paper wastes generation and recovery trend from 1970. (Source: United States EPA. (2008).Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, facts and figures. United States EPA, office of solid wastes) Mercury Production Most of the fluorescent tubes and compact fluorescent tubes have been found to have significant effects on the accumulation of mercury on the environment. Most of the glass protective cover of CFL and fluorescent tube break during disposal of these tubes and contribute to accumulation of this heavy metal. In line with this, the mercury leaks to the environment and eventually, it seeps to the sea and other water bodies destroying aquatic life. These chemicals accumulate in the bodies of these sea animals and fish which are eventually consumed by human beings. Accumulation of mercury leads to kidney problems and also results to diseases such as cancer (Iowa Waste Reduction Center, 2006). Methods of effectively packaging bulbs There are different techniques that have been proposed towards producing effective packaging materials for lighting applications. Some of these techniques are outlined below; Recycling papers First, recycling materials used to externally pack the lighting application plays a significant role in reducing the amount of packaging materials in the landfills. Wastes from packaging cartons, newspapers, magazines, office documentations can all be recycled to form cartons that can be used to package the lighting applications. If all the materials for packing lighting application can be made of disposed paper material, there would be significant reduction in the amount of paper materials that have accumulated in the land fills and garbage pits (Recycling Revolution, 2009). Recycling glass materials Glass materials can also be recycled to produce light bulb and fluorescent tubes. To avoid mixing of the ordinary glass and other colored glass, sorting needs to be done. All the discarded bulbs and fluorescent tubes should be sorted out and eliminated from other garbage. These materials can be used to make the glass outer packaging for lighting applications. (IOWA state university, 2009). Recycling of fluorescent lights and CFL Some states in the US require that all fluorescent lights be recycled after such lights burn out. The bulbs are safely removed and transported to recycling plants where they are used to produce new bulbs. EPA (Environment Protection Agency) greatly advises people and states to recycle the bulbs especially the fluorescent bulbs in order to cut on mercury contamination and accumulation on the environment (EPA, 2008; ECOFUTURE, 2009). Using Alternative Packaging Materials Alternative packaging designs have been proposed for use to package light products. One such design incorporates the use a packaging cartons with internal serrations to house individual tubes or a group of tubes. This means that the products packed inside are safe even though they don't have an outside cover. This reduces the amount of packaging and greatly saves on manufacturing costs and also reduces the amount of garbage produced by these packaging materials. Packaging bulbs in twin packs greatly reduces amount of packaging materials which reduces the amount of wastes in landfills. Use of safe packaging materials Most of the fluorescent bulbs and the compact fluorescent tubes have been found to emit mercury to the environment. To prevent leakages and contamination of the environment by these materials, new methods of packing have been developed. One such packaging incorporates the use of safe packaging materials that allows the safe disposal and transportation of waste lighting bulbs without any leakages. The packaging of these bulbs allows their storage until they can be transported to recycling plants (Cardpak, 2009). Use of biodegradable and photodegradable packaging materials Glass, plastics and some papers are not biodegradable. This means that when dumped in the landfills or spread on the ground, these materials don't degenerate into smaller mater that can eventually form humus. Some biodegradable and photodegradable plastics have been found to just degrade into smaller components that cannot be degraded further. To prevent accumulation, it is important to use packaging materials that are totally biodegradable. One such product is the ecoXpac lighting package (EcoXpac, 2009). This pack is 100% biodegradable and is used to pack bulbs and CFL. The pack is made of molded fiber that is highly degradable, cheap and available to customers. Since it is manufactured from molding, any design can be produced. The constituent materials used to manufacture this pack are fibers, recycled paper and other biodegradable materials. These materials have minimal effects on the environment and on packaging (EcoXpac, 2009). Use of Long Life Packaging Materials The use of long life packaging materials should also be encouraged. If the sealing of glass packaging for the fluorescent tubes and the bulbs is properly done, it can prevent any leakages or damages on the tube. Products with long life will reduce packaging costs and reduce the amount of garbage in the landfills. The use of Light Emitting Diodes, Compact Fluorescent Tubes and Metal Halide Lamps have long lasting life thereby reducing the product packaging needs and consequently reduces dumping (Greenwise, 2009). Use of plastic materials for LED lights Plastic casings for LED lamps are now being used for packaging LED lights. These plastics are biodegradable and easily recyclable. This saves on packaging costs and utilization of new materials and also encourages the use of biodegradable and photodegradable plastics as well as recycling materials. References Hamner, Burt. (2004). Technology, Pollution Prevention, Pollution A to Z. The Gale Group Inc. 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Municipal Solid Waste in the United States: 2007 Facts and Figures. New York: USA EPA Publication. Retrieved 26 November 2009 from http://www.epa.gov/waste/nonhaz/municipal/pubs/msw07-rpt.pdf NJ Department of Environmental Protection. (2004). Research Project Summary, Release of Mercury from Broken Fluorescent Bulbs. Retrieved 26 November 2009 from http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dsr/research/%20mercury-bulbs.pdf Iowa Waste Reduction Center. (2006). Light bulb facts. Impact of pollution prevention. Waste reduction center. Recycling Revolution. (2009). Paper Recycling Facts, Green choices. Retrieved 28 November 2009 from http://www.recycling-revolution.com/recycling-facts.html EPA.(2009). Storing, Transporting and Recycling/Disposing of Mercury-Containing Light Bulbs (Lamps) from Households. EPA publications. Retrieved 26 November 2009 from http://www.epa.gov/waste/hazard/wastetypes/universal/lamps/manage.htm IOWA state university. (2009). Management of unwanted materials. Environmental health and safety. Daley Drive, IOWA State University. Retrieved 26 November 2009 from http://www.ehs.iastate.edu/publications/manuals/mumm.pdf ECOFUTURE. (2009). CFL and global warming. Retrieved 25 November 2009 from http://www.thebulb.com/store/t-faq.aspx Cardpak. (2009). Fluorescent Light Bulb Packaging and Recycling Program. Cardpak Inc. Retrieved 27 November 2009 from: http://cardpak.blogspot.com/2009/04/fluorescent-lightbulb-packaging.html EcoXpac.(2009). Packaging in Molded Fiber. Denmark, ecoXpac. Greenwise. (2009). Guide to Sustainable Lighting. Hubbell Lighting. Retrieved 26 November from http://www.hubbelllighting.com/greenwise/PDF/GOVERNMENT_GreenWise.pdf United States EPA. (2008). Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, facts and figures. United States EPA; Office of Solid Wastes, EPA publication Read More