by Megan Plaksiy

A recent intern at PeakBiety branding+advertising, Megan Plaksiy, wrote her thesis at the Art Institute of Tampa on sustainable packaging. We found the information interesting and valuable and wanted to share it. Here’s an excerpt.

BACKGROUND

Packaging in the modern world has changed the way companies focus on sustainability in an effort to minimize their overall carbon footprint. Companies are following the demands of stakeholders and investors, looking to “be green” and “do green,” by decreasing pollutants, lowering their carbon footprints, producing eco-friendly goods, reducing energy use, exploring alternative energy sources, and creating processes that augur for a long-term sustainable enterprise. The term “sustainability” has spilled over to the consumer world, leading to a global movement in reducing carbon emissions and preserving the planet. When searching for a potential company to do business with, consumers will often research the company’s green efforts, selecting the “greener” brand. This is the leading reason why corporations have begun to choose their materials wisely, constantly making sure that their products are as environmentally positive as possible. Eventually, every aspect of modern packaging ends up being impacted by one of the many sustainability precepts. Designers often collaborate on defining the best way to create an environmentally sustainable package.

Traditionally, packaging designers contemplated technical performance, expenses, presentation and regulatory compliance with national and international law when designing a package. Modern designers must now also consider what type of packaging the product will use right down to the materials and their ingredients. What sounds like a simple choice is not an easy task. Just because the designer thinks a certain material would be ideal for a particular product, it does not mean that when the development phase rolls in, the manufacturer will have the necessary resources to purchase such a material or if its attainability is even possible and sustainable at all. To distinguish the significance of design-phase decision-making, packaging professionals measure the environmental effect of their package designs against other common uses and agree thereafter on the best possible solution. Creating a completely and perfectly sustainable product can be very challenging. Every single phase must be considered right from initial idea to final distribution. The challenge of sustainability is that there are so many pieces to the puzzle of what makes a product or material sustainable.

PROBLEM

Communication and informational flow play a great role in packaging. Not only does the consumer need to be informed, so do the warehouse and the distribution chain. However, due to the lack of information known about sustainable packaging by designers and businesses, many misconceptions exist. Packaging is considered to be a part of the product through the whole entirety of the supply chain, meaning the design of the packaging influences the information, features, functions, and cost aspect of a product. With this, packaging is an essential part of the product-selling process and is responsible for bearing information to consumers. There is an overload of recycle/sustainable symbols in the industry that are specific to either one particular subject or material. There needs to be a simple approach for designers, businesses, and consumers to differentiate a package’s sustainable metric between countless packages on the shelf today.

SOLUTION

Purpose: To educate and inform designers, companies and consumers about the materials and frameworks which are currently in the industry for sustainable packaging, so that designers, companies and consumers are able to clearly distinguish sustainable metric for packaging.

Solution: Produce a manual informing designers, companies and consumers about the sustainable options that are currently available within the industry to educate them about the options available. Include the top sustainable and traditional materials to allow designers to be informed of selection available to them before the implementation stage is encountered. Present case studies about current sustainable packaging solutions that are being developed and implemented in the industry today, to show designers possibilities available to them. A framework for sustainable practice would allow the designer and consumer to quickly acknowledge the sustainable metric when comparing packaging. Showcase sustainable packaging through various advertising platforms such as iAd, will allow information to expand to an increasingly diverse body of users.

Megan Plaksiy, an award-winning student at The Art Institute of Tampa, describes herself as a creative professional with a passion for graphic design and its development and execution. With experience in package design and brand development as well as special skills in illustration and digital photography, Megan will be a valuable addition to the PeakBiety creative group.

James Ferrell is a multi-talented student with the Zimmerman Ad Program at the University of South Florida’s School of Mass Communication and will be graduating in May. With interests ranging from account management to music, he describes himself as design conscious, detail oriented, a team player, reliable and occasionally ridiculous. We welcome James and some occasional comic relief.

PeakBiety welcomes art interns, Triston Thomas and Maria Boutzoukas, this fall.

Triston Thomas attends The Art Institute of Tampa and is majoring in Graphic Design. He describes himself as “a passionate designer with knowledge of editorial, packaging, and branding design, one of humble temperament, and having an unmatched enthusiasm for creating new things.”

Maria Boutzoukas is a student at the International Academy of Design and Technology. Born and raised in Clearwater, FL, Maria enjoys expressing her creativity in many ways—including graphic design, photography and DJing. Maria is also very active in the community, and has designed logos and T-shirts for a variety of organizations.

PeakBiety is pleased to welcome three art interns this quarter.

Lisa Cox is a senior in Graphic Design at the Art Institute of Tampa with past responsibility for all major college marketing materials including flyers, brochures, billboards, posters, email blasts, identity design, and more. Talented, employing both sides of her brain, Lisa is an IT wiz assisting students and faculty with computer software and troubleshooting. In addition to being an awesome designer, she maintains and repairs video, audio and photography equipment for the school. And she’s an active student member of Ad2 Tampa Bay. Is there anything she doesn’t do? We’re trying to figure that out.

Liz Hyler comes to us with a BFA in Graphic Design having graduated May, 2009 from Kansas State University. With extensive freelance design experience under her belt, she is a valued contributor to logo design and brand identity projects. Her award-winning talent has garnered 1st place in K-State’s Forever Proud Young Alumni logo design, runner-up for the K-State Olathe Innovation Campus logo design, and runner-up for K-State’s Center on Aging logo design. Liz is also an AIGA member since 2008 and was an officer in 2009. She’s also a proud member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood. With her many accomplishments, accolades and associations, we are honored to have her working with the PeakBiety creative team.

David Miller is a senior at the Art Institute of Tampa working toward a BA in Web Design and Interactive Media. His accomplishments include building a learning assessment tool for The 50 States, constructing an interactive video player component with Adobe Flash and developing a movie trailer titled, The Combo Kid, using Adobe After Effects. David also assisted in the production of a short documentary about Ybor City titled Cigar City. If that’s not enough, David is an IT department associate maintaining equipment rentals, conducting print services for students and faculty, and monitoring computer labs.

PeakBiety is pleased to welcome three art interns this quarter.

Josue Franco is a senior in Graphic Design at the Art Institute of Tampa, and compares himself to an octopus: “Ever changing, shifting and wafting in accordance to its environment, the octopus has a great ability to adapt to its surroundings meticulously. My designs are flexible and adaptable to various approaches, media and styles.”

Alejandro Valdivia is also a senior in Graphic Design at the Art Institute. Alejandro describes himself as a creative problem solver, decision maker and team player, and has several years of freelance experience. He says “I’m a firm believer that simplicity is key. The attention span of the target audience is limited and finding a way through the maze of advertising that is already out there is challenging to say the least. That is why, usually, less is more.”

Nick Brower graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design with a BFA in Advertising Design in November. He is eager to gain real-world industry experience and strives to create ads that not only solve problems but are also works of art.

PeakBiety welcomes graphic design interns, Hemi Shimizu and Meghan Buchanan.

Hemi (pronounced emmy), attends the International Academy of Design and Technology in Tampa and is majoring in graphic design. Hemi considers herself not only a graphic designer, but a diverse, persistent and creative illustrator. In the future, she plans to work at targeting Hispanic markets as well as the general market. Diversity not only runs in Hemi’s designs, but in her family, too. Her father is Japanese, her mother is Venezuelan and her husband is American.

Meghan Buchanan, a student at the Art Institute of Tampa, comes with freelance design experience and is a member of AIGA and Ad 2 Tampa Bay. She has worked on numerous projects, including rebranding, advertising campaigns and web site development. Her work was featured in the Design Futures Showcase of 2009. Megan has always had a passion for creative thinking. She strives to be a citizen designer, concerned for the betterment of society and is focusing on the necessity of design.

Both Hemi and Meghan have hit the ground running and have participated in branding research and conceptual illustrations. We are looking forward to what they will bring to the table in the coming months.

by Haris Silic

Finding an internship with an advertising agency in Tampa is not an easy task, to say the least. Hence my uncontrollable joy when Amy Phillips, PeakBiety Creative Director, offered me a summer internship position back in July.

I am a senior at The Art Institute of Tampa, pursuing a BA in Advertising. This degree is quite different than the BFA in Graphic Design, since the focus is more on strategy development and less on creative. However, in order to stay competitive in the industry, I have had to work hard on advancing both my creative execution as well as my strategic skills.

At PeakBiety, I have been able to apply both of those skill sets. I’ve worked on design solutions for their Tampa and central Florida-based clients and created a comprehensive SEO strategy for PeakBiety itself.  I really feel like I have been exposed to all functions of an advertising agency.

Haris giving a presentation on SEO strategy

My advice to anyone looking for an advertising internship in the Tampa Bay area is to stay flexible. Try to obtain as many different skill sets for your tool belt as possible through your education and be able to apply them. Internships at premier advertising agencies in Tampa, such as PeakBiety, are very limited and competition is strong, but it was definitely worth the fight.

Good luck future interns of PeakBiety!

PeakBiety is pleased to be working with Haris Silic, summer intern and student on his way to a Bachelor of Arts degree in Advertising from the Art Institute of Tampa in 2009.

He describes himself as a “global, strategic thinker, definer, persuader, curious visionary and storyteller.” His focus on graphic design, logo design and brand identity have made him well-suited for an advertising agency such as PeakBiety with a strong focus on strategic branding.