CASE STUDY No. 9611
KEY WORDS CORRUGATED PADS, "CORRUPAD," GREEN DOT REGULATIONS
IBM Corporation
8501 IBM Drive
Charlotte, NC 28262-8563
Contact: Nicholle Dutts, Packaging Engineer. Tel: 704-594-4397
Summary
The redesign of packaging for a new printer provides better product protection, requires less packaging material, saves storage space, reduces shipping costs, and is made of 100% post-consumer paper. Overall cost saving for this function: 70%.
Action
With the development of the new IBM 4772 banking printer, an updated packaging system was needed. Existing packaging schemes for a previous generation printer of similar size used foam cushioning and corrugated components, resulting in a large, bulky package to provide adequate shock protection during transit. IBM packaging engineers wanted to take an environmentally friendly approach. Their goals were to eliminate commingled packaging (foam + corrugated), provide equal or greater product protection, use more readily recycled materials, and reduce the overall cost of the process.
IBM selected a product called Corrupads (Corrupad Protective Packaging, 89 O'Leary Drive, Bensenville, IL 60106) to accomplish this purpose. Corrupads are corrugated cushioning pads produced from 100% post-consumer waste paper. Multiple layers "absorb impact and minimize the rebound that is often found in resilient foam materials, thus reducing the shock levels the printer is subjected to during handling and distribution," according to Packaging Digest:
"The new cushioning exceeds IBM test specifications for their required Packaged Product Test. For the weight of the printer, which is an average of 32 pounds, a drop height of 30 inches on a total of 8 sides (one critical corner, one critical edge) was required. The product also underwent sine sweep vibration from 2-200 Hz in each axis to determine resonant points. Each of the resonant points were then dwelled for 15 minutes in each of three axes. Finally, the packaged product was exposed to high assurance random vibration of 1.04 G's root mean square in each of its three axes. The product passed and was found to be both functionally and aesthetically acceptable."
Payback
There was an immediate saving of more than $20,000 because Corrupad does not require the tooling necessary to produce expanded polystyrene components. Since less packaging was required to produce the same cushioning effect of polystyrene or polyethylene foam, total package size could be reduced. This size reduction led to a 10% reduction in shipping expense and a 25% reduction in storage space requirements, including pallet load maximization. Additional savings were realized in shipments to Germany, for example, where "Green Dot" legislation requires the assessment of fees for packaging material based on the ease with which it can be recycled. Packaging in the paper category, which includes the Corrupad, is charged 9¢ a pound, or about 88% lower than the 72¢ per pound charged for plastics. Overall, IBM reduced shipping-handling costs for the new banking printer by 70%.
Additional waste prevented
Because the exterior corrugated box--the shipper--could be smaller, less corrugated
was required. The smaller package meant more packages could be loaded on a pallet, and
that reduced the need for pallets by 25%. The Corrupad product also provided a market for
post-consumer paper. The many benefits of converting packaging materials for the new
banking printer persuaded IBM to do the same thing with an earlier model of printer.