The 2015 DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation will be remembered as the year of design as 77% of the winners are being honored for design excellence in enhancing the users’ experience.

Canada-based IPL, Inc., earned the Diamond Award, the program’s highest honor, for SkinnyPackT Technology. This mono-material package combines flexible and rigid packaging to create a thin, light, strong structure that uses less material, enables recycling and allows more message space.

“This year’s winners stand out as leaders in packaging innovation,” said William J. Harvey, president, DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers. “They exemplify how collaboration, innovation and packaging excellence converge to generate game-changing solutions that positively impact our lives.”

The DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation is the industry’s longest-running, global, independently judged celebration of innovation and collaboration throughout the value chain. An independent panel of packaging experts evaluated nearly 140 entries from more than 25 countries before awarding one diamond winner, five gold winners and seven silver winners based on “excellence” in one, two or all three categories: technological advancement, responsible packaging and enhanced user experience.

“The winners demonstrated the power of integrating precision engineering, design and technology in a way that brings multi-sensorial yet functional packaging to delight consumers,” according to Yasmin Siddiqi, DuPont Packaging Awards program leader.

“The novelty this year lies in the fact that we saw packaging designs that added intuitive functionality in a way that was both simple and meaningful for the user,” said David Luttenberger, CPP, global packaging director, Mintel Group, Ltd., USA and lead judge. “There’s frequently a lot of technology behind seemingly simple designs, but when you can design packaging in a way that resolves an issue and is intuitive to use, that’s value.”

WINNERS

DIAMOND WINNER
Salsa Container Blends Rigid and Flexible for a Myriad of Possibilities 
(IPL, Inc. – Canada; Ana’s Foods – USA)

GOLD WINNERS
Squeezable Mascara Tube Ends Product Dispensing Frustrations (AmorePacific – Korea)

Deodorant Can Engineered to Combine Complexity with Simplicity 
(Unilever – UK)

“Travel-Size” Truly Becomes “Carry-Size” with New Ultra-Slim Spray Bottle (MiiSTS Int’l., Inc.; HotPot Design – USA)

Slider Technology Re-Engineered to Keep Children Out of Easy-Open Packaging (Pactech Packaging; Reynolds Presto Products – USA)

Medical Package Plays Vital Role in Surgery Preparation (Medtronic CardioVascular; Prent Corporation – USA)

SILVER WINNERS
ORS Package Provides Simple, Life-Saving Solution (Mix Pak System S.L.; Interapothek – Spain)

Super-Sizing Peel-and-Reseal Technology for Club Store Cheese (Bemis Company, Inc.)

Razor Package Captures Senses with Multi-Dimensional Graphics (The Gillette Company – USA; think4D, Inc. – Canada; Placon – USA)

Transportation Packaging – Now Stronger and More Responsible (Compadre, LLC – USA)

Conditioner Container Combines Functionality with Aesthetics to Embody Premium Brand (Godrej Consumer Products Ltd.; Classy Kontainers – India)

Sampling Lipstick Puts Color on Lips and Confidence in Minds (Grupo Boticario; Ycar Artes Gráficas – Brazil)

Moisture-Proof Bag Protects India Cement Industry (UFLEX LIMITED – India)