Smurfit Kappa’s expertise in corrugated design has answered a demanding brief to provide a secure pack for RSL Steeper’s BeBionic microprocessor controlled prosthetic hand units.
The Leeds, UK-based assistive technology company required that the pack for its top of the range BeBionic prosthetic hand should have the feel, image and strength to reflect the quality of the product within.
The design team at Smurfit Kappa produced a high quality, Litho laminated box with a matt varnish, to reflect the high quality of the product, but also added specific design features including one-hand opening and tamper evident strips.
Paul Lowes, the Smurfit Kappa designer who led the project comments: “Our corrugated pack, with its high quality finish, gives the product the distinction it deserves, whilst minimising the need for non biodegradable materials.
“By working closely with RSL Steeper we were able to create a box that incorporated effective design elements that hadn’t previously been considered by them.”
The highly technical design features of the BeBionic hands mean that it was essential for the packaging to eliminate damage to the hand during transportation, as well as reflect the premium quality of the product in a way that the existing simple brown box failed to do.
RSL Steeper had originally requested an entirely plastic box including plastic fittings to support the product.
However, early in the development the Smurfit Kappa design team was able to demonstrate that a predominantly corrugated solution would deliver an enhanced effect, as well as dramatically reducing the customer’s use of non-biodegradable materials.
With a large proportion of RSL Steeper’s market in the USA, Smurfit Kappa also introduced a tamper evident strip for international shipping.
The company says this feature means that end users can be reassured that the product has not been removed from the box or tampered with during shipping – an issue that RSL Steeper highlighted had been a problem.
Dean Cowan, mechanical design engineer at RSL Steeper, says: “From the tactile nature of the box finish, through tamper evident aspects and an ability to be opened one handed, the box has revolutionised the way we pack our high value products, and present our company in the market place.”
Smurfit Kappa UK is one of the country’s leading manufacturers of paper-based packaging, providing innovative solutions in all sizes, shapes, finishes and strengths.
Smurfit Kappa's corrugated-based pack for RSL Steeper's BeBionic prosthetic hands
