Pack Development

Yes and same with granola but still there is a lot of air

Remember that with that the recipient where you could store the powder is as important as the main block.

OK – so here is a revised RTD design I worked on based on some of the comments and feedback on this thread. Starting out by creating some basic profiles for the TD and opting to replace the screw cap with a RipCap instead to reduce height and plastic.


By modifying the profile slightly, making the sides flush, using a RipCap and adjusting the neck to be more dome shaped, the overall height from the first version reduced by around 15mm.

I added a liquid ‘wave’ effect around the collar of the bottle to add some design differential to the bottle.

RipCaps also give the option to easily use favour variant colours instead of the usual matte black.


Overall – I think the new shape represents a much more compact and cohesive design but as always – would appreciate your thoughts and feedback. @Tim_Huel any thoughts on version no.2? :slight_smile:

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Is a RipCap resealable?

I love it, really good work.

I like how the height is way smaller to be optimised, the space gained is enormous.

Could you put the bottle in perspective, like in a kitchen? I think the bottle is too wide, it seems like a 3 gallons bottle, too bulky, rather than a 500 ml hahah. It even reminds me to the Soylent/Mana Powder bottle.

I think it would fit better shape like, taller and slimmer, but reducing drastically the neck like you did.

With regards to the blocks, if you sold Huel branded storage “Tupperwares” that were opaque so as to keep the product from sunlight exposure I would purchase blocks. Maybe this sort of design with a slanted flip lid for easy access/less messy scooping? You already sell branded water bottles/shakers this would be an excellent addition! I would need two - one for each flavour - and they would stack so nicely in my cupboard :wink:

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Are RipCaps resealable? No. They are usually made of aluminum or steel and act as a closure, tamper proof seal and pouring spout all in one. I figured that as these drinks are technically a small portion meal, the majority of consumers would drink it all in the same sitting however, reusable silicone bottle stoppers could be used separately if people wanted the option.
Untitled

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The new bottle version design is just 3.5mm wider on either opposite side than the current narrow RTD bottle so not a major difference at all and is slightly smaller than a 500ml tetra carton but easier to handle due to the rounded edges. I’m not sure how anyone would confuse it with the Soylent tub which is cylindrical and 200% bigger…

I’m not going to do any additional iterations on this as I’m happy the solution I have now satisfied my original objective to minimize the freight requirements of the packaging. However, if anyone would like the source files for the bottles, logos etc - I’m happy to put a download link up for them to play around with or create new variations/lifestyle images. The source files are a mix of .obj structural data and Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and Dimensions files.

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Wow, the difference is huge between the current RTD

Interesting ideas here looking good, one person who might like to see this thread is @Julian

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I haven’t tried RTD yet, but I really like this proposal. Brick and branded Huel storage is an even better idea. I dislike the current packaging as it creates a lot of waste and is also hard to use. Whenever I open it and scoop Huel out a lot of powder flies around and the top of the bag closes so I have to open it again. A container with a wide enough mouth would solve this problem and would also look great.

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You can reduce the mess somewhat by emptying a pouch into a container like one designed for cereal. Doing this can get messy though if the pouch wants to be awkward.

Compressed bricks of Huel with a tear off strip for opening and a container like the example above would work very well in my opinion.

It would be good to try and get some market data on how many Huelers keep the Huel in the pouch because from my experience opening and closing the pouch everytime is by far the messiest way to use the product. Maybe some kind of middle ground solution would work? Compress the Huel at the factory but ship in a resealable brick style format which could also contain a tear off strip so people can easily rip it open inside your perfectly designed dispenser without creating any mess.

If anything, compressing the powder first would drastically cut down on the amount of material each pouch would need. It may also eliminate spoiled pouches during delivery because that format is far less likely to split than the current format. This then may open up avenues for weaker but recycable packaging as it doesn’t need to be as strong anymore.

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Just some updates on recent advances that also offer new solutions and enhancements – like Sidel’s new SteadyEDGE. It’s designed to meet the challenge of producing flat, oval and rectangular containers in PET and delivers the optimum material distribution of PET.
The new base technology offers the possibility to create innovative and attractive designs to differentiate brands while ensuring bottle stability and cost-efficient production. Previous PET moulding could not sustain details, edges or creases smaller than 3mm – the new process can go down to 1mm. this allows for greater structural strength and a 500ml PET bottle lighter than 10g.

Bioplastics are also becoming a big thing – Austrian company Naku use biopolymers to produce film and bottles. Biopolymers can be produced from many different raw materials. All starch-containing plant products can be used as resources for natural polymers, including corn, potatoes, sunflowers, grain or sugar. NaKu use corn-based starch and sunflower compounds to produce their biopolymers. These originate from European agriculture and are GMO-free.

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Definitely like your version 2 Profile - not so easy to knock over on a picnic and lose half your Huel!

@Phil_C I really like a design like this, even with a shorter cap, 600 ml

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the problem I can see with that is the shape of the neck would mean you can only really drink it comfortably out of the bottle from two sides - you would need a rounder neck all the way around. for me, the bottle edges look a little too angular to grip effectively. this is more a design you would have for decanting into a glass rather than drinking out of directly. As the drinks are 500ml it would be shorter and end up looking similar to the v2 profile anyway.

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@Tim_Huel @Gulliver_Huel - a good example on the news this week of switching bottle shapes to a square / rectangular format:

switching to a flattened square sided bottled allowed for single bottles to be posted through letterboxes and wine cases that can fit 10 x 75cl bottles into the same volume box that could only take 4 regular 75cl bottles. As the bottles are rPET instead of glass, they are stackable and 87% lighter.

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Some time to spare so went for a 3rd round on ideas for a new RTD bottle. This time, I used a Tetra Pak design from their Top range using a 500ml Base pack.

This gives the same format as I was originally going for (a stubby ‘sqround’ bottle) but this time has gotten a little wide but shorter than v2.

The Top range of bottles incorporates two elements – the main body which is made of conventional Tetra board and a neck and closure that can be selected in a number of styles and types of plastic including, sugarcane based PLA (bioplastic) which is compostable – even at home in the right conditions.

When the drink is finished the plastic top and neck can be easily torn off of the carton body and the two separate parts recycled or composted depending on the spec. Most councils in the UK now have dedicated Tetra recycling programs and Tetra Pak themselves have their own bespoke recycling plants in the UK and around Europe.

PLA plastic breaks down into water and carbon dioxide but it won’t disintegrate or degrade while stored on shelves. PLA bottles are inexpensive to produce because they’re made from biomatter rather than petrochemicals, so production requires significantly less energy.

It is compostable in approximately 6-12 months in a home composter. It will be unrecognizable from the rest of the compost. The plastic is freezer-safe and can handle hot items up to 90 degrees Celsius.

I also updated the designs to incorporate the Black Edition bottles as well as a (probably) random take on a Japanese market bottle.

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I dont even but the RTD but that matcha bottle is doing things for me… Can i have one for personal research reasons? :stuck_out_tongue:

I like those designs, but love the current slim RTD bottle because it fits in my MTB camelback rucksack. Regular bottles don’t fit.