Carton/Box | Stellar Entries Earn PPC Awards

Published: October 19, 2012

Graphic Packaging Intl. takes top Paperboard Package of the Year award for Capri Sun carton with I-Beams

SPRINGFIELD, MA | A total of 143 entries from 34 Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC) members were honored in a special awards ceremony at PPC’s Fall Meeting and Leadership Conference on October 18 in Las Vegas, as part of the 69th annual North American Paperboard Packaging Competition.

Six packaging experts adjudicated this year’s competition, which took place over three days in July at PPC headquarters in Springfield, MA. They included package designers Luis Lee and Dick DePaul; retired packaging executive Gary Miller; associate publisher of Package Design magazine John Lyons III; executive director of the Packaging Education Alliance Jim Peters; and Bill Wynkoop, adjunct professor in packaging at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

“I was in awe of the judges’ commitment to examining, discussing, and scoring each of the 143 entries,” said Ben Markens, president of PPC. “Their fastidiousness in considering every facet of these packages reveals the depth of their expertise…and makes for a fascinating competition!”

Each of the 117 entries in the General category was first evaluated by considering the package’s development objectives and the types of materials used. The judges then considered the success of each entry’s structural design and how well the printing and converting processes helped achieve the stated objectives. The judges also measured the package’s impact on production, manufacturing, distribution, storage, and warehousing; economics (material substitutions, line efficiency, cost reduction); brand enhancement; and marketing. Finally, the package’s impact on the retail store shelf was carefully considered.

“The judges had a difficult time deciding which package should be awarded the top prizes amongst all the stellar entries this year,” said Kim Guarnaccia, director of marketing and communications for PPC and coordinator of the competition. “But after in-depth analysis and lengthy deliberation, I know they were well pleased with the results.”

PAPERBOARD PACKAGE OF THE YEAR

This year, the top Paperboard Package of the Year award was presented to Graphic Packaging International (Marietta, GA) for its new package design for the 10-Count Capri Sun carton for Kraft Foods. The new fridge vendor-style design features “I-Beams,” an extension of the carton’s end flaps that are folded in toward the carton. The new design is 20% lighter than the original carton, saving approx. 35,000,000 pounds of fiber annually. Moreover, a 60% increase in inbound pallet quantities was achieved, resulting in approx. 1,750 trucks eliminated from the inbound supply chain, thus saving 880,000 miles driven annually. A 7% increase in outbound cases per pallet resulted in a 2.5% increase in finished goods on outbound trucks and a 10% reduction in tertiary pallet packaging materials.

FOLDING CARTON OF THE YEAR

Everett Graphics (Oakland, CA) was awarded the Folding Carton of the Year for the design of the PureSpeed Protein Tip Box for Rainin Instruments. The carton’s internal platforms feature individual die-cut slots into which the cassettes are placed. Dual upper and lower platforms restrict side-to-side movement while the scored dust flaps fold under to hold smaller cassettes—or can be left long to accommodate the larger cassettes. Unlike nesting auto-bottom cartons, its manual, snap-lock bottom allows for easy, straight-line gluing and flatter, more streamlined case packing.

RIGID BOX OF THE YEAR

Designed to showcase seven of TNT’s top dramatic shows for voter consideration prior to the Emmys, the Rigid Box of the Year award-winner was DISC (Hauppauge, NY) for their For Your Consideration: Drama CD promotion. The patent-pending, lay-flat pocket design is composed of a single-substrate, fold-and-trim structure. These one-piece page spreads eliminate potential print crossovers, provide ample graphic space to seamlessly present commentary and photographs, and offer effective disc retention and pocket count flexibility. All of this can be assembled on automatic equipment for a fraction of the cost of standard dual-substrate pockets.

JUDGES' AWARD

The Judges’ Award was given to MeadWestvaco’s (Richmond, VA) Nanofil Twist-Off and Reclosable Natralock Card for Pure Fishing/Berkley. The blister’s flange is caught within the seal of the perforated cards so to access the fishing line, the user simply rotates the thermoform counter-clockwise until the perforation breaks, after which it twists off and on for easy accessibility and reusability. Moreover, the smaller package allows more cartons to fit in a shipper, pallet, and truck, as well as on store shelves.

ECO AWARD

This year’s 11 Eco category entries were appraised according to how paperboard replaced a less-sustainable substrate and/or utilized clean production processes, saved on energy or materials, or economized on transportation and fuel costs.

The Eco Award went to Beresford Box Co. Inc. (Ontario, Canada) for their “Lids-in-Motion” cup for Cup Techniques Ltd. This eco-friendly disposable cup features a paperboard lid that, for the first time, eliminates the need for plastic lids. Score lines between the body of the cup and lid form a double-hinged interface so that the lid can be easily opened and closed. The cup is fully stackable and the integration of the lid with the cup’s body means that now only a single SKU is needed, rather than two SKUs for the traditional cup and lid.

INNOVATION AWARD

The 25 entries in the Innovation category were assessed on how the package demonstrated a unique, innovative structural design or how it utilized cutting-edge materials such as substrates, inks, laminations, coatings, and/or converting processes.

The Innovation Award went to TPC Printing and Packaging (Chattanooga, TN) for the container they designed for Trinidad Distillers Ltd.’s Angostura Trinidad and Tobago Caribbean Rum. This tube-shaped package is comprised of two boards laminated together and is 25% less expensive to produce than convolute tubes, is shipped in the same compartmentalized corrugated container used by the filler, and to defray freight costs, is shipped fully assembled.

For more information on the competition and a complete list of honorees, visit www.ppcnet.org/CC.