Saving money by using cardboard packaging

Cardboard waste turned into a valuable resource and reused as packaging.

Sunshades Eyewear

Sunshades Eyewear is a luxe eyewear wholesaler, distributor and manufacturing partner for all things optical within Australia. The business is a global exporter, and has a strong interest in sustainability and innovation. Sunshades Eyewear was looking to develop a 100% recyclable packaging range.

How Bin Trim helped

staffer using the cardboard perforating machineThe business was keen to meet its target of recycled content and believed that reuse was the first tier of their recycling and reuse strategies.

A Bin Trim assessor visited the business for a free waste assessment. The assessor estimated the volumes of material in bins and provided an action plan recommending a cardboard perforator to transform dry cardboard into recyclable packaging.

With a Bin Trim rebate of $4,595, Sunshades Eyewear halved the cost of the perforator.

Results

staffer packing orders in the warehouseAfter arriving boxed on pallets, eyewear products  are unpacked and repacked to fill online orders. Bubble wrap and Styrofoam packing peanuts were previously used to protect the eyewear.

The cardboard perforator provides recycled cardboard packaging, avoiding the use of bubble wrap and packaging peanuts.

The numbers

  • Bin Trim rebate: $4,595.00
  • new equipment: cardboard perforator
  • approximately $6000 saved in waste management costs in the 2021-2022 financial year
  • approximaately 2.06 tonnes of waste to be diverted away from landfill annually
  • before the shredder was installed the business purchased approximately 10,000 litres of bio fill each year
  • savings of approximately $11,000 in packaging costs

The benefits

  • less waste going to landfill
  • ceased purchasing packaging peanuts, 257 large bags of packaging peanuts were purchased the previous year.
  • cost saving on packaging materials
  • company achieved a sustainability goal, and this was promoted to customers receiving products
  • more space in the warehouse