All about packaging boxes

Have you ever thought how an unimportant and insignificant peace of material such as cardboard packaging boxes has such a wonderful and dynamic history. Most of us must have seen our grandfathers dragging those heavy and wooden boxes when moving places. There was not a lot of repacking done during those days. Packaging as we see today is the result of long developmental process. Most of the things related to packaging changed around 1st and 2nd world war, the packaging scene changed dramatically with the view of protecting soldiers food in battle zones.

Cardboard packaging boxes were discovered by Robert Gair who had the idea of precut cardboard panels when folded form a box. This was the birth of modern packaging industry.  Its cost effective price and ease of transportation made it the most widely used method of packaging in the start of the century. As times changed more sophisticated methods of packaging were discovered. Transparent  cellophanes invention in 1920 were the next major step in packaging and then came Aluminum foils which made it possible to seal sensitive products. Large number of technical innovations followed. In the 1940s, packaging was developed for frozen food. In 1952 the aerosol came onto the market. Cans, available from the 1960s, heralded the explosion of the soft drinks market. Aseptic cartons, invented in 1961, have been used for preserving long-life milk ever since. (

Source: The European Organization for Packaging and the Environment)

In modern times packaging boxes have become more of an art form.  You need to find specific box for a specific task. You decision to choose a packaging boxes is usually governed by:

-will your items in the package need protection from heat, shock or vibration
-for perishables, what type of packaging can be provided to stop decay
-would you like optimal efficiency when you group your objects together in one package
-do you need communication to the end user on your packaging
-do you require your packaging to have particular security measures
-would you need to re-pack your products into smaller units
-is it vital that your packaging be easy to open, pack or store

Packaging boxes have played their small role in the evolution of modern human society. It has allowed us to conserve our resources and minimize loss of precious little we have.  With the help of these boxes we have learned to manage our resources well and can now plan for long term instead of thinking about the very next day. Modern packaging has completely changed the logistics industry and affected the supply chain of all modern organizations.  They have allowed us to transport precious works of art to long distances and make sure they reach in one piece.

So, next time when you have time just look around and see how many of these packaging boxes you have in your room, won’t be surprising if you can’t count them on your fingers. Well packaging boxes have become such an integral part of our life that we don’t even notice them anymore.