In packaging, every gram counts. The lighter P&G can make its packs, the cheaper they are to transport and store; the less energy and raw materials they use for manufacture and distribution; and the easier they are for you to carry home.
However, there is a compromise to be made. We often see that 5 to 20 times as many resources are used for the production of the contents of P&G products as for the packaging.
Using packages which are too flimsy may lead to the product spilling or to uncontrolled dosing, which is far more wasteful than using too much packaging in the first place.
Over time, however, P&G has been able to strike this balance, while also reducing the amount of product the package has to carry, through compaction, without any loss in performance.
P&G's current packages are examples of lean design, requiring much less material than was previously needed. Yet with some of the best examples you might not even notice the difference.
Take the bottles of many of the best-selling P&G detergents, such as Ariel, Fairy or Bold.
P&G has a highly dedicated research and development organisation that relies on a whole universe of acronym-laden modelling & simulation tools: Bottle Optimal Weight System (BOWS), Computer Aided Design, Computer Aided Engineering, Finite Element Analysis, Least Energy Analysis and Virtual Packing Line modelling.
These are applied to everything from creating lighter weight detergents packages to coming up with new processes for bottle making.
In 2006 P&G started to use BOWS in a project supported by the UK's Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP UK) and was able to reduce the weight of a range of bottles by seven per cent less than was previously thought possible.
This equated to a material and waste reduction of about 400 tonnes a year across Western Europe. And it is just one example of how P&G develops its packaging and use innovation and customer input to help with its commitment to the environment and requirement for recycling.
Click on the links below to find out more about our packaging procedures:
How P&G develops packaging
Innovation
How P&G involves consumers
P&G's commitment to the environment: