Final Designs

Prototype (front)

Seeing the label mocked up to the correct dimensions on a prototype shows that it is a viable design, with good shelf stand-out qualities due to the boldness of the logo and bright colours which would also reinforce the historic brand identity.

Prototype (back)

The back of the bottle contains the same important information as the current Lea & Perrins design, and traditional elements, such as the '18 months matured' and autograph but removes aspects linked to recipes and use as these can be found on the supporting website. The message of sustainability is clear and large at the top of the label, while the rest is legible in black-on-off white.

Label

The label remains mostly unchanged since the redesign after the peer assessment, with just a few elements moved to give it a cleaner look. As visibility of sustainable issues is the main aspect of the design, these parts take precedent with bright orange and bold iconography, while necessary information remains but is muted in comparison.

If manufactured for real, the paper would be recycled and compostable like that of Harmless Packaging and the details would be added with vegetable based inks.

iPhone mock up

 The added web element accessed via the QR Code retains the colour schemes used on the bottle packaging, with the iconic orange and black again combined with the rough paper style background. The homepage features a button for recipe ideas, which Lea & Perrins were keen to involve with the redesign of the packaging, a button for 'go green', showcasing issues of sustainability, and a button directing the user to a page where the Heinz Corporate responsibility guidelines would be explained. I used icons similar to that of the logo in order to reinforce the environmental objectives of my design and there are social media links at the bottom of the screen to allow the user to share their experience with their friends.

Again, my main argument in favour of my designs is visibility, and I feel that the environmental issues are at the forefront of this web element, which could both increase the use of Lea & Perrins in everyday cooking and increase the knowledge of ecological issues.

iPhone mock up

The recipe ideas page is intuitive, showing an overview of the meal and an option to show the full recipe if wanted, which were taken from the Lea & Perrins official website.

iPhone mock up

The 'go green' section would feature tips and facts taken from reliable sources (in this case from the World Food Programme) to highlight global issues around sustainability which again could be shared via social media platforms. As well as this, it could also persuade recycling or reusing of the product, to ensure that the amount of waste sent to landfill would be minimised.

Mount board to present

These final elements are laid out on black mount board to clearly display the designs to clients who may not have seen the work in progress.

The design of the title and text boxes around the side of the images follow on from the design of this blog, using the same typeface and colours to give a feeling of continuity and professionalism. The two text boxes describe the two main elements of the redesign, the label and the added mobile site accessed via the QR code, briefly outlining the selling points.

The Label:

• Recycled paper with vegetable-based inks
• Iconic black and orange colour scheme
• Logo re-designed to appeal to the eco-conscious
• Environmental credentials highlighted
• Retains traditional elements
• Features QR Code for further web content

The Mobile Site:

• Provides recipe tips and ideas
• Includes environmental tips and facts
• Explains corporate responsibilities

Conclusion

I feel that my response to the brief tackles issues of sustainability, but in terms of promoting the ideas and furthering information and knowledge of the subject, though perhaps not by creating a ground-breakingly environmentally-friendly product. I found it hard to find a way to improve the ecological impact of the design whilst still remaining to Lea & Perrins' stringent mandatories, such as keeping the same bottle shape and colour scheme. Therefore, by adding the mobile web element I feel I can in some way bring in these new ideas without affecting the traditional design too much, and can also include the recipe cards that Lea & Perrins were keen to add to the design.

Main Project: Label

I decided to mock-up my label design with all the information needed as my previous prototype was stripped back to just the front label and the QR code on the back. I used the dimensions from the original label and have laid out much of the information in the same way, as a way to analyse the aesthetics and see if there are any areas I can simplify.

I have used a darker orange than in previous designs to bring it more in line with their current colour scheme, and have enlarged the orange area. The 'Worcestershire Sauce' subtitle on the front is out of the orange square to show that it is a different entity, as it could be changed for other products such as the garlic sauce.

The QR Code and recycling information are also featured on an orange background to make them stand out against less visually important information such as ingredients and customer care elements. As visibility has been a major factor in sustainability schemes I feel this is justified and also makes the QR Code stand out more as that is the main selling point of my design.

I have included all the elements from the back of the label except the recipe ideas and a little on the history as these can be included on the mobile app or website and give more room to promote that and the sustainability themes. The rest of the data is less expendable and some is required by law and must remain.

Main Project: Peer Assessment

This week was the peer assessment, and I received some positive feedback on my design and research work to date. On the whole my work was well-received, and the following areas of achievement were highlighted:

• 'Incorporated recycling and green design together'
• 'Good research in design'
• 'Great design ideas'
• 'Thought about sustainability a lot'
• 'Modern, as in it's current and fashionable'

It seems that the group liked my designs for the reasons that I have chosen them, the eye-catching nature of the logo which incorporates sustainability into the heart of the company and the modern and youthful style to attract a younger generation of consumers. I also received some useful pointers to help develop and improve the design further:

• 'Show some completely different idea alternatives - two & symbols are a bit confusing'
• 'Research more in sustainable things'
• 'I liked some of your initial ideas more than your final design' (shown below)

• 'Possibly generate a couple more initial ideas'
• 'Show how it developed to final'

These opinions showed concerns that I had perhaps chosen my final design to develop too early in the design process and didn't consider many alternatives at an initial stage. This is a correct assessment of my work as the ampersand was at the forefront for the design process, because I thought it could become an eye-catching symbol of the sustainable redesign and incorporated into advertising strategies. I should have considered more design options earlier on, but the fact that the design I'm working with is well liked gives me encouragement that I settled on a viable design. One point mentioned that they preferred the style of logo shown above to the one featured on the bottle.

Both of the logos are to be used in the campaign, but maybe I could make better use of the more linear design on the bottle packaging too. The reason I plumped for the simplified version is it's simplicity and visibility from distance but I will mock-up some more alternatives and try out other permutations.

Sustainability at the University of Worcester

We received a talk about how sustainability issues are dealt with at the University of Worcester, which provided a useful insight into how a large organisation sets about working environmentally for the future. Some of the points covered include:

• The World Resource Institute's emissions classification:
• Scope 1: direct emissions
• Scope 2: emissions of purchased electricity consumed by organisation
• Scope 3: all other indirect emissions
• These show the large amount of data that the organisation has to collect and measure and then set about trying to change, which can be a long and difficult process.
• UW started to measure this in 2006, and re-examined their targets in 2010.

The University intends to achieve:

• 5% per annum reduction in scopes 1 and 2 from 2010 to 2015
• 3% per annum reduction from 2015 to 2020
• reductions in scope 3 to match

Relevance to the Main Project

The majority of the university's carbon footprint comes from commuting of students and staff, and therefore publicising their aims and encouraging co-operation is paramount to their aims. Visibility of schemes and alternative transport choices is vitally important, and I feel this ties in to my designs for Lea & Perrins, using the environmental imagery to be the eye-catching part of the packaging. The materials could all be widely recyclable and sourced sustainably, but if the consumer doesn't know then the product will still end up in landfill.

Main Project: Lea & Perrins Factory Visit

Factory Exterior

Iconic Orange Doors

I was fortunate enough to be able to visit the Lea & Perrins factory in order to gain a valuable insight into workings there and increase my knowledge of the product and its history, which I felt would be of great benefit to the design process.

The factory was purpose-built in 1897, and you get an impression of that history from the architecture of the building, and the striking doorway featuring the autograph over the bright orange doors.

Barrels

This image shows the barrels in which vegetables are pickled in the first step of creating the sauce, of which there were hundreds. Onions and garlic are pickled whole for over a year, and the whole vegetable is used, even the skin. As Lea & Perrins are moving to adhere to the Heinz Corporate Responsibilities, they are aiming to become a zero waste to landfill company and using whole garlic and onions is a part of that.

Once pickled, the concentrated liquid becomes the base of the sauce while the residue is composted or made into powdered flavouring, and the same is true of the anchovies that are processed to extract the fish oil. Old cold sauce is also used to cool the hot sauce.

Loose labels

In terms of packaging design, we were talked through the way that the cap is pushed down onto the glass bottle with force and not screwed to make it tamper-proof. Loose labels are attached to the bottles in the factory using a thin coating of adhesive, and so alternative labels could be substituted and attached with no change to the labelling system. Bespoke caps and packaging, such as the special edition bottles, can be packaged in another facility.

Main Project: Alternate Materials

Since I started the design process, I've wanted to create a rustic, natural look for the label and I want to find a second use or environmentally beneficial usage for it once used. The 'Twist' packaging is inspirational, using post-consumer waste but also including a net to create a bird-feeder  which I feel is an example of design going the extra mile.

As Lea & Perrins is used in cooking, creating an equivalent of the bird-feeder for the kitchen was an option. However, the packaging in this case won't be much more than a label, and due to the paper I want to use, I don't feel that it will be sturdy enough to create anything long-lasting or used outdoors.

Case Study: Harmless Packaging
http://www.harmlesspackaging.co.uk/

Harmless create a range of fully compostable packaging, sourced responsibly and sustainably. Their products are derived from potato or corn starch which absorb carbon dioxide as they grow and can be industrially composted to re-enter the life cycle. The EN 13432 standard is a series of checks that a product must go through to ensure that it will compost fully and won't leak toxins into the ecosystem. This includes the fact that the product must bio-degrade into water, carbon dioxide and biomass rather than just breaking into pieces.

Relevance to the Main Project

I would want my product to meet these specifications, and maybe be beneficial to the environment once used, so perhaps could be infused with added nutrients and minerals. Using technology such as the QR Codes to encourage people to start their own vegetable gardens, the label could be composted at home and so help improve peoples' own environments and encourage healthy eating.

I toyed with the idea of adding tomato seeds to the paper, so that people can just add it to the soil and water it to grow their own tomatoes, which I felt linked to one of Lea & Perrins main uses, cheese on toast. However, I found out that the seeds would probably die before they were likely to be used in that way and so I scrapped that idea.

Session Task: Sustainable Packaging Case Studies

A research task was set which has led to my exploring another avenue in terms of materials. The case study I looked at was 'Twist' (http://www.twistclean.com/), a manufacturer of environmentally-friendly kitchen supplies based in Boulder, Colorado. They use renewable natural loofah and renewable pine cellulose to make their sponges, which will disappear completely when buried in the soil within seven weeks, and wanted equally environmentally-friendly packaging.

Designer Teresa Forrester used post-consumer waste and soy-based ink to create the packaging, but Twist wanted to include a second use to minimise landfill waste. Therefore, the inside of the packaging when folded out reveals a net which can be used to create a birdfeeder. Both the product and its packaging are miles ahead of the competition in terms of sustainability and have set the benchmark for the rest of the industry to follow.

Relevance to the Main Project

This inspired me to think of another use of my packaging, as I liked the idea of using materials to interact with nature and actively benefit the environment, instead of merely minimising pollution. I will look into compostable materials that will add nutrients to the soil, and perhaps wormeries or vegetable seeds.