Net’s Play!
The packaging for table-tennis bats and balls with an integrated net comes from Pina Schmitz, Lara Thole, Sophia Reinecke and Wiebke Wendorff, who study at Fachhochschule Münster – Münster School of Design.
What impresses the jury: "With just a few movements, the packaging turns into a table-tennis net. The original packaging thus offers real added value and a convincing secondary or additional use. In this way, Net's Play makes spontaneous exercise and playing together easy – for everyone, anytime and anywhere."
What the students say: "The idea for Net's Play came about during our research into products with packaging that could be improved. In the process, we discovered table-tennis bat packaging that uses a lot of material, especially plastic, and where the net has to be bought separately. Through working on Net's Play, we discovered our enthusiasm for paper and cardboard. It's amazing how versatile and at the same time robust this material is. We're particularly interested in packaging and products that create positive added value beyond their actual function."
EASE
EASE is a functional pregnancy test that provides emotional support to the user from purchase through to use, thanks to a clear packaging design and visual design. It comes from Fine Kleipa, Siri Brockfeld, Lisa Bahlinger, Lilly Blume and Moritz Hegemann, who also study at Fachhochschule Münster – Münster School of Design.
What impresses the jury: "EASE completely rethinks the experience of taking a pregnancy test by turning the packaging into an intuitive companion. Through its properties and instructions, the discreet packaging conveys emotional reassurance. The cardboard packaging guides users through every step, serves as a holder while the test result is developing, and subsequently allows for inconspicuous storage. By integrating several functions into a single design, EASE reduces resource consumption while at the same time offering users guidance, comfort and reassurance in one of the most sensitive moments of life."
What the students say: "The idea for EASE came to us in a rather unexpected place: in front of the pregnancy-test shelf at the chemist's. In talking it over, we quickly realised that the existing selection completely overlooks consumers' emotional needs, whether that's in the purchasing situation or in the impractical handling. The packaging for EASE is made deliberately and exclusively from paper and cardboard, with no foreign materials whatsoever, thereby living up to our commitment to sustainability. From the very beginning, our aim was to understand the packaging not as a mere casing for a pregnancy test, but as an intuitive companion."
OpenUp!
The transformable and reusable six-pack for drinks was developed and submitted by Lena Peitzmeier, Michèle Brandt, Hanna Otte, Ines Dahlmann and Nicola Matuschak from Fachhochschule Münster – Münster School of Design.
What impresses the jury: "OpenUp! transforms classic drinks packaging into an interactive, social experience made of robust, reusable cardboard. The striking, triangular design combines two different additional functions to promote analogue interaction: a bottle-cap throwing game and a passive loudspeaker. A clear colour system and intuitive illustrations directly on the packaging make it playfully easy and straightforward to use. OpenUp reduces digital distraction from mobile phones and shows how packaging can equally promote genuine encounters and sustainability through a clever second-use concept."
What the students say: "During the development of our project, we asked ourselves how packaging can offer people not just a product, but also a shared experience.
In the process, we noticed that many get-togethers today are dominated by mobile phones. That was a problem that we could all identify with, and so could many people around us, and one we were keen to solve. From this came the idea of developing packaging that creates an occasion to play together, to talk and simply to spend time together. It was particularly important to us that people interact with one another consciously – and entirely without media. What excites us most are packaging solutions that are conceived creatively and don't simply end up in the bin once they've served their actual purpose."
EcoTrace
EcoTrace is software that provides an AI-supported CO₂ assessment based on a photo of the food packaging. The developer is Lennart Standtke, who is doing his Master of Science in Food Chain Environment at Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences.
What impresses the jury: "EcoTrace revolutionises the ecological assessment of food packaging: from just a few photos, a transparent CO₂ eco-balance is produced in seconds. The award-winning innovation combines artificial intelligence, scientifically validated life-cycle analysis and high practical usability into an affordable solution for small and medium-sized enterprises. In doing so, EcoTrace creates the basis for more sustainable packaging decisions and supports companies in meeting the rising requirements of the European Packaging Regulation."
What the student says: "The packaging already carries all the information needed for a CO₂ assessment – the list of ingredients, quantity details, packaging material. During my master's studies, I had the idea of simply reading out this existing 'data sheet' by photo, rather than recording it manually, and then automatically producing an eco-balance from it – the kind that small and medium-sized food producers can otherwise scarcely afford. As the next step, the automatic classification of packaging materials, including recycled-content variants and recyclability, is to be developed further. Alongside this, we want to improve the data basis with a full ecoinvent connection. I'm particularly interested in how strongly packaging decisions – choice of material, recycled-content proportion, composite materials – concretely affect a product's CO₂ footprint, and how little this has so far been made visible to manufacturers."
