Design Cognition are proud to announce that we have now partnered with the world leading barcode verification solution provider Axicon.

Barcoding is evolving and increasingly being used in more imaginative ways – to find out more about the future of barcoding and how we can help you read the Full Barcoding Article or just give us a call on +44 (0)115 8461914

I just wanted to let you know that I will be speaking at Easyfairs NEC
Birmingham next week on Thursday 17thFebruary and I would like to invite to come along and listen.

I will be talking about the growing effect, implications and opportunities
of the internet on the packaging design process and on ways of working (HOW we design).  I will discuss the trends and convergence of Web, technology and materials and the effect this is having, and will have in the future, on WHAT we design in packaging, to enable better consumer & patient interaction and personalisation.  As well as highlighting some possible ‘fads’. I will also take a sneak preview at some great examples of emerging & leading-edge
packaging design.

This promises to be a really interesting presentation and  will begin at 11.00am in the International Brand Summit LearnShop and I’ll be available afterwards should you wish to chat.

It would be great if you could make it.  I look forward to seeing you there!

Chris Penfold

Plastics are a crucial component of many products and packs these days and their selection can have a significant impact on a products performance, quality, cost, shelf life and even stability, so it’s vital to make the correct selection.

This one day introductory course is intended to give delegates a greater appreciation and understanding, of what you need to consider when working with plastic components – whether they be actual product or packaging.

This great interactive course is being held THIS MONTH, so don’t delay in booking your place.

For further information on this course visit Plastic Materials in Packaging   or email training@designcognition.com

Alternatively give us call on +44 (0)115 8461914

New nanotechnology provides exciting opportunities for packaging

We came across this story today and are excited about the possibilities & opportunities that this could present to the packaging industry, especially in the area of ‘added-value’ electronic & ’smart’ packaging. At it’s heart is the discovery of a new way of splitting layered materials to give atom thin “nanosheets”. This has led to a range of novel two-dimensional nanomaterials with chemical and electronic properties that have the potential to enable new electronic and energy storage technologies. The collaborative* international research led by the Centre for Research on Adaptive Nanostructures and Nanodevices (CRANN), Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, and the University of Oxford has been published in this week’s Science. The scientists have invented a versatile method for creating these atom thin nanosheets from a range of materials using common solvents and ultrasound, utilising devices similar to those used to clean jewellery. The new method is simple, fast, and inexpensive, and could be scaled up to work on an industrial scale.

For decades researchers have tried to create nanosheets from layered materials in order to unlock their unusual electronic and thermoelectric properties. However, previous methods were time consuming, laborious or of very low yield and so unsuited to most applications.

“Our new method offers low-costs, a very high yield and a very large throughput: within a couple of hours, and with just 1 mg of material, billions and billions of one-atom-thick nanosheets can be made at the same time from a wide variety of exotic layered materials,” explained Dr Nicolosi, from the University of Oxford.
These new materials are also suited for use in next generation batteries – “supercapacitors” – which can deliver energy thousands of times faster than standard batteries, enabling new applications such as electric cars. Many of these new atomic layered materials are very strong and can be added to plastics to produce super-strong composites. These will be useful in a range of industries from simple structural plastics, through packaging, medical devices and even to aeronautics.

Source: Trinity College Dublin via www.nanowerk.com

You can read more Design Cognition related packaging stories in Technology

Chris Penfold