Sinar Sosro Teh Botol Adopts New Plastic Packaging

If you live anywhere near Indonesia then you must have tried or at least know about Teh Botol, which literally translated to English means Tea Bottle. And that is exactly what it is, pure Jasmine Tea naturally flavored with Cane Sugar and packaged in glass bottles. Or at least that's what is was. I cant say exactly how long Teh Botol has been around in Indonesia but I can speculate that it is probably the highest selling non-alcholic beverage in the country. It is available at every restaurant and warung (street vendor) all over the country. Growing up in Jakarta there was not a day which went by that we did not pull over on the side of the road for a cold Teh Botol to quench the thirst.

Teh Botol is owned by Resko International who operate a variety of other businesses in Indonesia. They have experimented with a variety of different packaging for Teh Botol over the years including Tetra Pack and some versions of hot fill PET bottles we well. This is obviously to reduce cost of distribution. Having spent extended periods of time away from Indonesia I was relying on family and friends to supply me with all the goodies from home when visiting. I sampled some of the varieties in flexible packaging but none of them ever really hit the spot. The Teh Botol just did not taste the same.

But recently a friend supplied me with the latest edition of Teh Botol packaged in plastic PET bottles and I was super impressed. The bottle design first of all is a fantastic testament to the traditional glass bottle. They have not deviated from the original design but have made subtle changes which make the transition to plastic well balanced and attractive. They have also added a new variation with less sugar which is great because Teh Botol can be overly sweet for some people. And having tried them both, they taste equally good.

The label design however leaves something to be desired. Teh Botol has a gorgeous natural color so I do not see the value of having a full printed sleeve that is designed to look like the natural contents of the bottle. Also they have not introduced any modern elements to the logo or layout which is a conscious decision but not one I would completely agree with. Nevertheless, I am super stoked that SOSRO has dropped this new product for us which will allow them increase distribution, possibly boost export, and reduce their carbon foot print but shifting over to plastic from glass. Great product from a great company.

Invest in Dreams

The Ramune Type Japanese Carbonated Drink Experience

Our designer Eric brought in a couple of old school RAMUNE Japanese soft drinks into work the other day. If you have not seen one before, it is a sweet carbonated beverage in a glass (or PET) bottle with a pinched off bubble in the neck that contains a small glass marble.This one looks a bit like a face to me. But its actually there to prevent the marble from rolling up the neck, to the mouth of the bottle and sealing up against the rubber washer. 

We had a little fun opening them at the office and brushed up on some beverage history. Our director who caught notice reminisced about soft drinks in India that used to be packaged the same. It turns out that they still manufacture the brand BANTA in India the same way. 

We followed the instructions but still managed to make a mess. We got it all on video and put together a short clip to document 'The Experience'.

The Codd-Neck bottle was designed and patented in 1872 but Hiram Codd.

source: Wikipedia 

FAB Awards 2013 - Winner for Packaging Design goes to....

At PanAsia HQ we always have our eye out for new and unique packaging design to inspire our projects. The International Food and Beverage Awards is an event we look forward to every year where the best of the best are showcased and rewarded for their excellent efforts.

This year the award for Best Packaging Design 2013 has been awarded to Absolut Vodka. Although the brand was first established back in 1879, it was not until the 1980's that they launched flavored vodka and the unique bottle we know so well. The distinctive print ads which followed solidified Absolut Vodka's iconic status around the globe.

Absolut has consistently pushed the envelope with effective advertising campaigns and is recognized worldwide for their work with famous designers creating collectors edition bottles which are picked up and stocked by connoisseurs. But what has Absolut done in 2013 to trump all other brands in the category for Best Packaging Design?

Absolut Unique

• Category: 
  Packaging Design, Sales Promotion
• Sub-Category: 
  Alcoholic Drinks
• Title: 
  Absolut Unique
• Client: 
  Absolut Vodka
• Agency: 
  Family Business, Stockholm
• Award: 
  FAB Award (Packaging Design) & FAB Award (Sales Promotion)

Check out the short video clip below with comments from the CEO and creative heads at Absolut. Rather than reach out to well known designers, they have relied on the bottle printing machines to create 4 million absolutely unique bottles that were shipped world wide, each numbered and printed by machine with a random algorithmic program. What we love about this is that they have utilized equipment that is available to all other brands and applied existing technology to create something new, attractive, and awesome!!

Star Wars x EVIAN Bottled Water

Being a huge Star Wars fan myself, I would love to see a collaboration between George Lucas and Evian water. But alas this is just a concept design by an art student . Awesome work though.

"If watching the complete Star Wars saga on Blu-ray has taught us anything, it’s that the classic films’ beloved characters would look great as design concepts on special bottles of Evian water. Fortunately for us, art student Mandy Brencys took the fanciful notion and made it into reality by actually designing glass bottles of Evian to resemble C-3P0, Chewbacca, R2-D2, Darth Vader and a Storm Trooper. Part of a student design project, these Evian bottles sadly won’t be coming to a store near you, nor to ones in galaxies far, far away. We just hope Mandy’s instructors at Hamburg’s Miami Ad School gave her extra points for not including any characters from the prequel trilogy."

Source: Freshness

3D Printer for Plastic Products

3D printers have been on the market for some time now but have only recently been better adapted for personal use. Units are also less expensive now and more affordable for individual hobbyists, not just manufacturers or corporations.

3D printers can be used to build small plastic machine parts, sculptures, toys, models, etc. There are numerous brands and models available that use either plaster or resins to print 3D models from AUTO-CAD or other 3D rendering software. These models are not made by cutting away materials as a CNC machining tool would do, rather the models are printed or extruded in layers. The printers can print complex designs.

This model from UP! costs only $2000 in China and the material for printing casts about $50 per kg. This video demonstrates how simple it is to make a small container with a threaded closure in only 45 minutes. The system utilizes the extrusion method.

3D Systems has a very impressive range of printers for personal and commercial use. Personal printers start at about 10K USD. The ProJet HD 3000 prints precision, durable plastic parts ideal for functional testing, design communication, rapid manufacturing, rapid tooling and more. It features selectable resolution choices for speed and quality. This is for commercial use and 3D Systems also offers great after sales support and raw materials for printing.This machine is much larger than the model from UP! As you can see in this video, the 3D printer can be used to make compex parts with moving elements like hinges, gears, and even bearings.

Z Corporation offers color 3D printers and scanners for commercial use. In a higher price bracket, these machines are much faster and larger than the less expensive brands.The finishing of the product is also far superior and the details are mind blowing. Z Corp has by far, the best 3D printer on the market with the largest printing bed for larger or multiple prints.

Rapid Prototyping

Leading product designers use our prototyping machines to accelerate the design process and bring products to market sooner. Applications include:

• Concept Models - Get early design feedback, improve communication, and test ergonomics
• Functional Testing - Verify designs for form, fit and function prior to full-scale production; plus reduce costly modifications to production tooling
• Finite Element Analysis - Produce prototypes displaying color finite element analysis data right on the part. Improve collaboration among project teams, and identify design flaws earlier
• Presentation Models - Communicate clearly with peers and clients, and perform focus group testing
• Packaging Development - Streamline the design process for glass and plastic packaging used in consumer products, healthcare, chemicals, beverages, and automotive products

3D printers have reduced the cost and make it so much easier to generate product prototypes. The finish of the products on the cheaper models make be slightly rough and require to be sanded down but technology is moving fast across the board insuring more accurate, faster, and cheaper machines will soon be on the market.

321 Tap into Water

An Australian company called 'Half a Teaspoon' is dedicated to creating and introducing new products to to their market that would make it easier for consumers to make more environmental choices. Their latest product is the 321 Water Bottle that can instantly purify tap water with a plunger built into a portable bottle. Their website claims that one push will remove 'any chlorine, unpleasant tastes, and odors' from the water.

While the product design is interesting and the concept is commendable, I do not see this product surviving outside an urban environment. Firstly you would require access to fairly well treated tap water, and secondly it is just not as convenient as throwing a carton of bottled water into your car when you are heading out onto the road. Plastic waste is an issue we must contend with but new concepts must consider the function of the plastic bottle. Not only do plastic containers allow us to drink good quality water on demand, but also allow us to transport large quantities of drink water to locations where none is available.

Salve Water x Social Business

“I will not spend the money for myself. I will rather spend it in special business on a no-profit-no-loss policy.” – Muhammad Yunus

The quote from Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Prize laureate and the developer of the term “social business”, summarizes well the process which guided the concept behind Salve (”Save” in Portuguese), a product conceived and branded by À La Carte Design and developed in joint with Acqua Incorp.

We’re living in an era in which philanthropy, eco-consciousness and well-being are increasingly present in each aspect of our daily lives. And the “Generation G” – G for “generosity” –, as pointed out by Trendwatching website, moves and is moved by this urge in doing the good, not only for the self, but for everyone else. And is precisely in this desire to do the good that “Salve” makes a call, turning the simple act of buying a bottle of water into a collaborative movement that helps to transform lives.

The identity follows this concept, of collectiveness, compounded by a mosaic of icons representing positive attitudes which, albeit small, form a greater picture; the importance of small acts that realize great things together.

And to kick off this project, Instituto Criar will be the first institution to be benefited through the “Salve” water, with your donation. Take an action, take “Salve”.

Source: Lovely Package

9000 Years Dagu Glacier Spring Water

I stopped in at a convenience store in Guangzhou (CHINA) yesterday and came across this bottle of mineral water. The first thing I noticed was the foil pack. The print claims the introduction of this new outer packaging seals of light and prevents the introduction of electromagnetic waves that would effect the water quality.

Dagu Glacier Spring Water is Nine Thousand Six Hundred and Ten years old. The company pledges that all their products are bottled at source and even go as far as to offer a 1 Million RMB (US $147,000) reward to anyone who can offer proof that the company has manufactured and filled the product in a plant outside the place of origin or any engagement in contract production to produce and bottle the product.

While most 500ml PET water bottles are priced around3 RMB, this bottle of Dagu Glacier Spring Water was selling for 10 RMB (US $1.47). This is the first time I am seeing this water in the market which makes me curious as to how effective their marketing campaign will be. Chinese consumers are generally quite conservative and I can't imagine too many people would pay over 3 times the price of competitors brands to enjoy the purity of 9000 year old glacier water, no matter how good it tastes.

The bottle design is simple, yet attractive. They have utilized a 1.9g HDPE 30/25 water neck closure and a 19.5g preform. It is refreshing to see that they have not gone for a heavy preform simply to make their bottle feel more expensive as some artesian brands do, but the foil pack does seem quite wasteful.

NAYA Spring Water x 100% Reycled PET Bottles

Naya Spring Water said it is the first bottled water company to use 100 per cent recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) in its containers, as it prepares to roll out the product in the United States.

The Canada-based company said it had overcome a number of challenges to bring the bottle to market after investing seven years in its development.

Finding a supplier to develop the technology to make a container of partial and then total recycled plastic had been the first hurdle, a Naya spokesman told FoodProductionDaily.com. Ensuring sufficient supply once the technology was in place and obtaining health certification from various Government agencies had been two more challenges. The final test had been to secure enough retail orders to make the product commercially viable, he added.

Daniel Cotte, president of Naya Waters, said: “We are proud to be the first major spring water brand to introduce 100 percent recycled plastic bottles, which is a win for the environment as well as for consumers who enjoy bottled water and want to reduce their impact. This innovation is another demonstration of our commitment to put the environment at the heart of Naya's company strategy."

While there is an ever growing need for packaged beverages, it is good to see that companies are finally taking the initiative to source more environmentally friendly packaging. The main problem is that there are few cost effective alternatives to PET.

Kabbalah Vodka x Christian Infants

A short time ago the company “EZ Protocols” announced a start-up of vodka brand that is called “Kabbalah vodka – with Christian infants” – the newest quality benchmark on the super premium segment of the Russian market. The vodka is expected to have a distinguished wheat flavor. Special water, enriched in silver, gold and platinum ions along with neat and stylish design will bring anyone back to the best traditions of a ritual table. As a present, every bottle has a unique handmade infant inside, which is made of fortified glass.

In its first day of launch KABALAH vodka set a record selling 13,000 5L cases of Vodka. The 'Christain Infants' have also very quickly become collectors items. To keep them exclusive each design does not see more than 3 production runs.

What is the connection between this Vodka and the Kabbalah? I have not idea, but the type for the logo is set to Kabbalh Sefirot and the back of the bottle features some text excerpts from the Kabbalah.

Q Tonic - A Superior Tonic Water

Check out the new packaging for Q tonic water, targeting the more sophisticated pallets of gin drinkers. If you are going to drink premium liquor then why dilute with lesser quality mixers. I would like to see this concept spread accross the board with innovaative mixers being manufactured for the whole spread of premium alchohols from Patron Taquila to Grey Goose Vodka and more. Cheers!

Source: Lovely Package

1/2 Project

The 1/2 (half) Project developed by Kim and Jiwom Park is designed to offer people buying bottled beverages to purchase half the quantity they want at full price, with half the money going to a designated charity. The design would tentativly allow varoius brands of beverage manufacturers to tie in and sponsor thier own charities. While the concept of using a social adenda to boost sales or draw attention your brand is a good one, the cost of the new packaging should logically be half of the normal packaging.

Unfortunatly, as most people in the industry will tell you, this design will be more costly. Firstly a new preform mould would need to be developed for a bottle that would cost almost the same to manufacture as a normal PCO one. You might save a few grams on the weight of PET material in the preform. A normal PCO twist on cap would not be suitable for this design so a new flip top cap would need to be developed. This would surly require more material than a normal cap as well. More material equals more expensive.

It would just be a whole lot easier to sell a 500 ml bottle for the price of a 1L bottle and donate the difference to charity. I doubt too many people would reach for a smaller bottle though. I like giving to a cause, but this design in my opinion is totally off the board.

Source: Yanko Design

The Best Water Bottle Designs... EVER!

With evermore brands of drinking water entering the market every year, it is imperative for industrialists and designers to come up with attractive and original packaging for their products. Some brands have even gone as far as releasing limited edition bottles to generate hype about their brands. Here are a few of the more interesting designs we have come across recently. Truly inspirational!

Flavored water with enhanced vitamins. PET bottles. The packaging gives the bottles a pharmaceutical look.

Malmberg flavored water.

Standard Lanjaron PET bottle. Notice the mountain cap inside the bottle. Very cool.

Lanjaron special edition release in a glass bottle.

HINT vodka. Not water, but still an awesome bottle.

Gleneagles bottled water. This is a super sleek and clean design.

Font Vella limited edition bottle. From accounts we have read online, the continous print around the back of the bottle distorts the overall appearance of the design. A for effort chaps.

Jean Paul Gaultier and Evian team up for this limited edition release. There is no limit to what collaborations can achieve.

DRY soda. Nice, clean, and simple. Notice the print on the bottle neck.

70 Degrees North, it does not get more basic than this when it comes to bottle design. But when you have a kick ass product like pure Alaskan water, you just let it speak for itself.