Students shine in packaging awards

TERTIARY education students in the disciplines of Packaging Technology and Graphic Design celebrated their creativity in developing packaging solutions and concepts when the 2016 IPSA Student Gold Pack Awards were held at the Inanda Club in Johannesburg. They received their awards from category sponsors – Sappi, Propak Africa and the Institute of Packaging South Africa (IPSA), while additional special recognition prizes were presented by BMi Research, KB Labels, Kemtek, Nampak, PACKAGiNG & Print Media, Packaging SA, Shave & Gibson and Tetra Pak.

Although the judges don’t expect students to be packaging, design or marketing experts, they do recognise entrants who display an insight into the challenges of packaging and the interaction of the multiple disciplines.

Fourteen finalist projects went on to compete in the WorldStar Student Awards (results to be announced in the next issue of PPM). 

Packing a punch

Sponsored by Propak Africa (Specialised Exhibitions Montgomery), the Packaging Technology category is open to students enrolled in IPSA’s One-Year Diploma in Packaging Technology.

Project briefs required students to choose and develop one of three projects – to create specifications for sustainable packaging meeting the World Packaging Organisation’s Save Food criteria of addressing food waste along the supply chain from farm to fork; or to write packaging specifications for a very thin and fragile cut glass vase glass, needing protection from shock and pressure during transport and display; or to develop a gift pack of cosmetic personal care products for gym users.

Jubilant Gold winner was Jason Ricketts (IPSA Western Cape) for his stylish folding carton post-workout personal care gift set, which also won Project Three. Hot on his heels were Wayne de Kock (IPSA Western Cape) for his mushrooms in a corrugated pack – also the winner of Project One; and Sandhia Gounden (IPSA Northern Region) for her three-in-one, easy-to-peel cold meat pack.

As there were few entries and just two finalists for Project Two, no prizes were awarded, because of the difficult nature of this project.

Stylish, novel designs

In the Graphic Design category, sponsored by Sappi, students had three project choices – design packaging for a ready-to-eat breakfast brand that communicates its unique and appealing differentiator; redesign the graphics and packaging of an existing pack that’s weak/poorly designed, turning it into a big brand look; and design a promotional item’s packaging to promote its recycling or that of the substrates used for the packaging.

This category is open to design students enrolled at any tertiary institution, studying any form of graphic or communication design. They were judged primarily on mock-ups and design concepts submitted to indicate their design skills.

Overall winner in this discipline, and Best in Project One, was Lhente Strydom (Stellenbosch Academy of Design & Photography). Her expandable Futurelife carton was lauded by the judges for its well-executed ‘big idea’ that was carried through in the graphical elements and construction of the pack. Silver and Best in Project Two went to Tashalie Vorster (Design School SA, Pretoria), while Stephanie le Roux (Stellenbosch Academy of Design & Photography) received Bronze.

The Thinking Differently Award, sponsored by Nampak, went to Cherrie Olwagen (Greenside Design Centre) for her all-in-one Bokomo Weetbix cereal and bowl carton.

The Best in On-pack Communication, sponsored by Kemtek Imaging Systems, went to Tiffany Schouw (The Red & Yellow School, Cape Town) for Quarter Past Ate breakfast on the go.