Designing a Package that Works
Student teams act as engineers and brainstorm, design, create and test their ideas for packaging to protect a raw egg shipped in a 9 x 12-in envelope. They follow the steps of the engineering design process and aim for a successful solution with no breakage, low weight, minimal materials and recycled/reused materials. Students come to understand the multi-faceted engineering considerations associated with the packaging of items to preserve, market and safely transport goods.
Students design a package that worksCopyright Pixabay http://pixabay.com/p-389934/?no_redirect
Good packaging, in terms of minimal damage to the shipped item, is often wasteful and uses excess materials. Sometimes these materials are also bulky and difficult to recycle. Packaging designers are continually testing and implementing new ideas in order to overcome high cost and recycling issues. Engineers who work in this field include materials, environmental and chemical engineers.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Make decisions related to advantages and disadvantages of products and processes.
- Use resources (people, references, Internet) to gain knowledge.
- Consider environmental impact on design.