Global Bottled Water Awards
Now in their 10th year, the Global Bottled Water Awards are an annual awards initiative designed to recognise a range of categories within the industry. Established by Zenith International - the consultancy that advises the industry on business and technical issues - the categories include product innovation, packaging, and marketing, as well as sustainability. They are presented at the Gala Awards Dinner of the Global Bottled Water Congress, a three-day event for those involved in the bottled water industry worldwide. This year's event took place in Nashville, USA from 12th - 14th November.
Optimum rightweighting with maximum stability
The StarLite design was developed by Sidel as a shape to optimise the resistance and stability of the bottle base, which can also help improve overall bottle rigidity. The base design is especially suited to bottles containing water and juices and, under certain conditions, can be used for other still beverages.
To achieve the final design, Sidel's experts analysed many different possibilities, carried out numerous computer simulations and then followed those up with actual physical tests.
In those tests, the resulting StarLite design showed an increase of up to 30% in top-load dent resistance when the bottles were loaded on a pallet. The chosen design also exhibited up to a 55% increase in side-load resistance, which will prove a particular advantage, for example, when the bottle is on a conveyor or in a vending machine. Overall pallet integrity also increased by up to 50% during transportation. The design helps to cut the amount of material used and therefore lowers energy consumption during production. The end result is a PET bottle that will cost less to produce, yet offer greater bottle integrity and improved pallet stability throughout the whole supply chain. Importantly, it does so without compromising the hygiene, safety and integrity of the beverage inside.
Commenting on the award, Vincent Le Guen, Vice President for Packaging & Tooling at Sidel, said - "Sustainability is a real focus for the beverage industry. It is also at the heart of our research and development into new approaches to packaging liquids in PET, along with providing ways to take cost out of the production process while ensuring that the integrity of the package is not compromised. We are delighted that with this award an international panel of judges has recognised the contribution that StarLite can make."
Used on Sidel's RightWeight™ bottle
The StarLite base is an important and integral part of Sidel's new RightWeight™ concept bottle, which is a design for 0.5 litre still water bottles in PET. The RightWeight bottle weighs just 7.95 grams yet, using standard 26/22 caps, offers top-load performance of 33 kilograms without nitrogen dosing. Its increased resistance helps eliminate the 'over squeeze' problem experienced by some consumers when using ultra-light bottles, which often results in the unintentional spilling of the bottle's contents. Increased resistance also makes it easier to unscrew the cap and open the bottle. In addition, the RightWeight bottle is more likely to retain its original appearance when placed on a supermarket shelf after undergoing the transportation processes of the supply chain.
"Beverage producers are increasingly striving to unlock the value of a PET bottle across their entire supply chain, from concept to consumer," explains Christophe Bunel, Head of Packaging Care & Development at Sidel. "To achieve this, a bottle must be lighter, of course, but also stay attractive, protect the beverage and ensure high consumer satisfaction. It's no longer about simply reducing the plastic content. At Sidel we call this rightweighting."
