2024-05-31 11:03:00
A bottle that’s each versatile and light-weight, luxurious and economical in supplies? These are the sorts of challenges that the groups of engineers and designers who make up the L’Oréal Packaging Lab, positioned within the group’s Saint-Ouen (Seine-Saint-Denis) places of work, tackle. « That is the place we invent the packaging of the longer term and work on its desirability and sustainability” introduces Jacques Playe, vice-president of World Packaging & Improvement. 
Six hubs are devoted to packaging within the group, positioned in France, the US, Brazil, China and India. However how does the packaging of a L’Oréal product come regarding and the way does it enhance over time relying on the assorted constraints it should meet?
A number of instruments on the service of creativity
To seek out inspiration, head to the UX Design Studio. There, but additionally in the US, India and China, a crew of 17 designers is engaged on the makes use of and packaging of tomorrow with a purpose to develop practical, artistic and sensory packs, with fascinating and sustainable designs.
« Our materials library permits us to detect and encourage the studio groups in colours, supplies and finishes », remarks Sanam Viseux, answerable for these points throughout the UX Design Studio, and who beforehand labored within the automotive sector throughout the Renault Nissan group. 
For instance, we discover molded cellulose in numerous pastel colours, utilized in specific to create a second pores and skin for the fragrance La vie est belle. 
Or to wrap the bottle of Lipikar cream composed solely of a skinny plastic movie and neck throughout a restricted collection. “ We’re engaged on the impermeability of such a bottle in order that it may face up to a moist environment with out lowering its recyclability. » explains David Guérin, knowledgeable in cellulose packaging.
« L’Oréal goals to cut back the load of its packaging by 20% by 2030 », recollects Olivier de Lataulade, a glass specialist whose analysis outcomes should reconcile materials discount and premium look.
AI on the service of refinement
To seek out good concepts for high-end packaging, the groups of designers on the UX Design Studio additionally use synthetic intelligence. It permits them to create “moodboards”, development boards, primarily based on key phrases and fashions, which can encourage them for brand spanking new packaging. 
« We’re simply launching new packaging developed by our crew for City DK. It is a basis bottle with a drip dispenser tip product of 100% PET which has 4 patents », Specifies Jordan Molinié, studio supervisor.
His crew is at present engaged on totally different shapes of bottles and ideas for different manufacturers, which they’re testing utilizing 3D printed prototypes in-house.
L’Oréal has 9 3D Labs. The one in Saint-Ouen is provided with additive manufacturing applied sciences by wire deposition and stereolithography. “ This permits us to acquire the specified prototype throughout the day to validate the best grip or clipping or to print gripping instruments or conveyor buckets which can be used within the manufacturing unit for the large-scale manufacturing of packaging. », explains Anne Debauge, head of digital transformation. 
10,000 prototypes are made annually and every launch provides rise to round 100 assessments earlier than being provided to the buyer.
Packaging scrutinized
Testing is exactly the specialty of Patrice Barre, answerable for packaging qualification Lab.
« Right here we examine the resistance of the packaging, check it with the formulation with an increase in temperature to simulate a lifespan of three years for instance. », Specifies Mr. Barre. His division lately acquired a tomography machine which permits the within of packaging to be considered with out dismantling it. “ That is the case for instance on pump bottles for which the metallic spring disrupts recycling and which we should change with all polypropylene alternate options with equivalent plastic springs or tubes. The pace of return of the push button and the power required to ship the components are necessary issues in creating the substitute answer », explains Patrice Barre. 
Inside scoring software program additionally makes it doable to kind between totally different doable choices and enhance the ultimate impression of a product. “ High quality, safety, agility and economic system are the 4 axes on which the engineers in my division should work », notes Cyrille Lemaire, Fragrances packaging and engineering director. 
This intelligent combine of knowledge then permits sure selections to be made, reminiscent of marking the brand within the cowl and on the bottle of YSL Beauté’s Myslf males’s fragrance, relatively than adorning it with a plaque. “ Because of the usage of rheology, we’re additionally extra environment friendly on the injection half », continues Mr. Lemaire, who labored on the fragrance cowl with the plastics producer Texen.
Digital simulation software program, on this case Abaqus from Dassault Systèmes, permits us to work on the form of the product from the outset. It’s used throughout the technical packaging design division headed by Luc Maelstaf, who acts as a design workplace for all the group’s manufacturers. For the renovation of Garnier’s Ultradoux shampoo cap, 30% plastic was saved on the load of the capsule. “ We have now additionally added a twist perform to the capsule in order that the bottle might be refilled utilizing refill pockets », specifies Luc Maelstaf, regretting that solely 0.5 grams might possibly be saved on the load of this recycled PET bottle, with out altering its maintain. “ Our aim is to have the ability to use the identical mildew for a 14g bottle. And on this case, it’s the geometry of the bottle which can enhance the rigidity with the identical weight. As it’s a query of blowing, the query is to know the place to place the fabric to have one of the best rigidity, and right here, it’s the transformers who’re greatest in a position to assist us », continues Mr. Maelstaf. The software program utilized by L’Oréal doesn’t keep in mind the issue linked to the usage of recycled materials. That is the place the plastics specialists’ instruments and their know-how come into motion.
©Photographs : Eric Mercier
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