Belcorp Blog How Green is my Package ? posted by George Van Lieu on May 11, 2010 at 2:15pm The latest focus in packaging today is the strong emphasis toward "sustainable packaging". Large corporations such as Wal-Mart, Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola and others are making strong efforts in changing their expectations and requirements of their packaging suppliers.
While the use of recyclable materials is growing, there is still a gap in providing incentives to invest in collecting, processing and establishing end-markets for the new materials being generated by recyclers. The consuming public has apparently now realized that green is "mainstream", but, they are skeptical about green claims and are not necessarily motivated to go green to save our planet !
In a recent issue of Packaging Digest, Anne Johnson - Director of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, stated that there is no clear definition of "sustainable packaging". She also points out that at some point, human demand for bio-based resources will exceed earth's bio capacity by 40% ! (That is the ability of land and water to produce crops, timber, fish and to process CO2 in forests.
While this is an alarming statistic, it points out the need to push forward in all areas of sustainability. A major obstacle to rapid acceptance by the public is the consumer's "three c's". Primary motivation remains "Comfort" "Convenience" and "Cost". We must develop an efficient,reliable and economical chain of comprehensive industries to : 1) produce basic materials for packaging that are environmentally acceptable. 2) Design packages that are light,efficient and fully recyclable and, 3) provide profitable markets so that companies will provide the means to reclaim most waste packaging materials for other end uses.
Again, quoting Anne Johnson, Director of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition : "Sustainable packaging is an aspirational concept driven by a clear vision. We realize this through small steps that will transform the packaging industry."
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Z Automation - Case History posted by George Van Lieu on February 26, 2010 at 1:34pm  Many times an order for packaging equipment is primarily placed to solve a major production bottleneck problem. This is a perfect example of that circumstance.
A high volume printing,collating and binding company had a serious speed limitation problem due to a bottleneck in the final packaging process. The product was a 172 page wire saddle stitched booklet which required packing the finished booklets in a number of different configurations and quantities.
Z Automation engineers examined the production requirements and existing limitations and designed a high speed packing system that increased packing speeds from 200/min. to 500/min. This system also provided stacking flexibilty to turn stacks 180 degrees to minimize bulk issues with stapled booklets. This also allowed for maximum stack count flexibility from 60 to 160 per stack packing in either closed shipping cartons or open top display cartons.
The new Z Automation system allows the customer to change configurations and stack counts in 15 minutes compared to the previous system which required 4 hours. The increased time, labor and productivity savings provided by this unique system has allowed the printer to:
1) Maintain high speed printing and binding.
2) Cut labor costs dramatically due to flexibity and quick
changeover improvements.
3) Double the speed and thereby double the throughput.
4) Realize payback in a very short time.
Z Automation specializes in solving unusual and difficult problems for customers. So - Whats your problem ? |
The True Cost of Complaints posted by George Van Lieu on February 25, 2010 at 2:41pm  No product or installation is perfect. A good manufacturer or processor does everything possible to achieve perfection, but it doesn't always happen. "Making it right" is a major focus of every good company. The situation that keeps company managers awake at night is the possibility that something may go wrong in their process that results in sub-standard product(s) being sold and then breaking down, equipment failure, customer sickness, injury or a product recall. Add to that scenario a customer who becomes irritated or angry and just decides not to use your product any more.
If you are "fortunate" enough (not the best word!) to receive an actual complaint, depending on your sales volume, you might expect:
- for every "nuisance" complaint, there may be 50,000 similar incidents. (ex: your packages are hard to open).
- for every health concern complaint, there may be 1,000 more not reported. ex: child got an upset stomach after eating your product)
- for every actual injury complaint, there may be 2 more unreported.(But legal action may be on the horizon !) Based on the seriousness of the complaint, a customer is not likely to buy your product or brand again in the following estimated percentage of probability.
* Perceived poor value - 2% loss.
* Health concern - 10% loss.
* Injury concern - 25% loss.
* Actual reported injury - 50 to 60% loss
There is a final HUGE cost implication to consider. A product recall can be a catastrophic loss to any manufacturer. Remember the Tylenol poisoning case in 1982 ? This led to tamper resistant packaging standards. The Firestone tire recall resulted in 7 million tires being replaced and costs were close to 2 billion dollars !
Simply put - the best product inspection available is the cornerstone of any manufacturing and processing operation. We represent one of the leaders in product x-ray detection companies on the market today.
SMITHS DETECTION - COMMERCIAL SAFETY AND SECURITY GROUP. High speed check weighing and x-ray detection is the hallmark of excellence in packaging production today. Contact us for more information.
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