Clemson packaging science students win in design competitions

Three teams from Clemson University’s Packaging Science program used their knowledge to capture international awards for projects ranging from a skin care package to quarantine survival kits for shipping and gifts on the go.

The students were in Andrew Hurley’s Packaging Science 3200 class – Packaging Design Theory — during the Fall 2021 semester. This class covers human psychology as it relates to product and package development. 

One of the teams won first place in the United States/United Kingdom division at the PIDA (Packaging Impact Design Award) competition. They traveled to Monaco along the French Riviera to present their Golden Bee Skin Care package design during the Grand Finale at Luxe Pack Monaco.

The PIDA contest theme was “Awaken the Senses.” When designing the package, the team focused on design thinking and exploration, marketing strategy, sustainability life-cycle, supply-chain and materials analyses. Samantha Johnson, a senior in packaging science from Williamston, Michigan, helped create the winning design. 

“The packaging industry’s focus on sustainability was the main driving force for our design,” Johnson said. “We created a package without any plastic that contains a sustainable product. Not only will it look beautiful, but it will be gentler to the environment.”

The judges’ comments include, “The Golden Bee Skincare package delivers on innovation being delightfully inventive and original, while also achieving high marks for sustainability, and excellent user friendliness and functionality. The entry offers an extremely innovative structure that is not only highly functional, but also offers novel on-shelf, unboxing, storing and sharing attributes.”

In addition to Johnson, other team members include South Carolina students Jennifer Huynh from Charleston, Meliza Pascual from Newberry and Joshua Deandre Roberts from Walterboro. While in Monaco for the competition, the students were able to network with BillerudKorsnäs company personnel and student teams from other countries, as well as visit sites in Monaco and Nice, France. 

Two other Clemson teams won awards in the annual Student Packaging Design Competition held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by AICC, The Independent Packaging Association.

Each team had to create and design “Quarantine Survival Kit,” a self-shipper box that could be delivered during a quarantine. The task was to build a box that could safely ship a 10.75oz can of soup, a sleeve of crackers, a 12-ounce bag of coffee and an 8-ounce container of hand sanitizer.

Teams were instructed to design the exterior and interior of the box, including creating their own company name and logo, and give the customer a “wow” factor when unboxing. Logan Vinson of Union, South Carolina, Thomas Breslin of Columbus, New Jersey, Marcus Dodds of Belton, South Carolina and James Linenbrink of Lexington, South Carolina, won first place for their project “Trove: Quarantine Chest.” They received a $500 award to split evenly among the four team members, a plaque for each team member, and a trip for one team member to attend SuperCorr Expo in Orlando, Florida, in August 2024.

The Clemson team of Tucker Nelson of Columbia, South Carolina; Tyler Kirkland of Anderson, South Carolina, Will Gates of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina and Nick Miller of Cochranville, Pennsylvania, tied for third place with students from the University of Texas at Arlington. The Clemson team’s project was called “Gifts on the Go.”

Nelson said the experience he gained from working on this project has given him the desire to pursue structural design after he graduates.

“This project was an awesome experience,” he said. “We learned how to come up with an idea and structurally and graphically create an effective design. We also learned how to work together as a team. The most important thing was making sure everyone was on the same page.”

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