Designing Sustainable Packaging

by Scott Boylston

Rare book

Genres: Design, Environment, Nonfiction, Sustainability, Reference

192 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2009

Reviews

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book. It's definitely geared toward graphic designers involved in the packaging design process, but it gave me so much perspective into the packaging that we interact with every day and the way that packaging could be improved.

Key informal takeaways:

Most important questions for any project, including packaging projects - is this project necessary, and who is it serving? In what context will it be used and perceived?

Sustainable solutions do NOT have to be more expensive! Ex: the HP case where the overall size of the package was reduced and the company facilitates customers returning old ink cartridges, leading to savings in raw materials costs and transportation costs. However, they sometimes can be more expensive if you're using post-consumer recycled materials, using certain inks, investing in R&D, etc.

Good jumping off point for further learning (about industry organizations, certifications, materials, inks, etc). I had never considered how the ink on a package could impact packaging recyclability.

[Kirstin Morrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book on the subject of sustainable packaging. It has a couple of flaws, one being that the second half of the book uses far too many student case studies, which haven't seen any use in real-world packaging use, and the first half does not have enough real-world examples of successes. So theoretically these are usable packaging designs lacking flaws, but we don't know how well they stand up in use.

If you're looking for some great ideas and a little bit of the theory of sustainable packaging, which takes into account all aspects of the life-cycle, then this is a great book to check out. I only wish it had more information on sustainable packaging in commercial use, such as the compostable packaging of Sole Custom Footbeds or TaterWare plates and bowls, or recyclable paper-based packaging in many major brand computer components, printers, and printer supplies.

[Louise Wylie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is easily my favourite book that I've come across on packaging design and also indulges my slight obsession with paper and origami!

i love the case studies and it's great to get an insight into the design process. The tutorials are great and provide a brilliant springboard for starting to develop your own packaging designs.

[Gage · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this book was great, but I thought there was too much emphasis on student-work case studies in the latter half. Overall worth the read, though, and way better than other sustainable package design books I've read.

[Alisha Jodrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book, helped me a little when I one of my modules as university was about package design, I would only recommend to someone who has never looked at any set of packaging before, if you know bit (like myself) then this book probably wouldn't be for you as it is set for beginners

[Paola Madrigal · Rating 4 out of 5]

good

[Frances Foster · Rating 3 out of 5]

"We must design all things so that they feed our future needs rather than compromising them."