Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
A simple soultion has existed for a long time in Denmark (and other Northern European countries). A square container made of 20% plastic (LDPE, soft polyethene) og 80% cardboard. The square containers typically have two ways to open up (One, Two) and their colour-coding reveals what kind of milk there's in the container. Simple, affordable, environmental-friendly and 'stackable'. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=30898 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
Excuse me. I wasn't aware of the fact that you couldn't embed links in your posts, therefore the cryptic entry before. May I suggest a small No HTML in posts text next to the form? ;-) The links should have been: One: http://bp0.blogger.com/_1iwL_QddcwI/R42x30XuHYI/SwQ/Ak4R9aUmAJs/s1600-h/mælkekartoner 006.JPG Two: http://bp1.blogger.com/_1iwL_QddcwI/R42x3EXuHXI/SwI/UJ_sfhVfxsE/s1600-h/mælkekartoner 004.JPG colour-coding: http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billede:Mælkekartoner_MilkContainers.JPG Sorry. I hope this actually works. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=30898 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
We have those types of cartons in the U.S. in the Quart (liter) and Pint (1/4 liter) sizes. How do you do the Gallon, or 4 liter size? I think the designers sought to scale up this rectangular cardboard/plastic container and made it less awkward to use with a handle. The spout on the new design probably should have been somewhere on the side (or an angled corner) to make the pouring easier. Perhaps with a pull-out valve? Now I'm making this thing expensive ... - N Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
Ah, the gallon. Oh we actually do not have this size, only in two or three litres at the maximum as far as I know. And that's not even milk - I think we had a two-litres version once but people thought it was too heavy and cumbersome to handle no matter the design. People usually just buys more single litres instead. I can understand the dilemma if the demand is for a gallon-sized container. How European of me not to take this into consideration. But (an expensive and not particularly environmental-friendly) pull-out valve might work - it works with wine... :-) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=30898 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/30/business/30milk.html (Free registration required) Interesting article on a redesign of the common milk jug, its environmental impact, and the reaction of the consumer. I'm again reminded that change management is a fundamental part of Interaction Design. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
Sustainable design alone isn't enough of a motivator to change behavior (outside of our hip, chic circles), but its collateral benefits may be: this jug saves 10 to 20 cents in price and fits better in refrigerators. It's great that Sam's did a bit of validation before doing a huge launch. I do wonder if they just did the focus group thing (sigh) or did real tests with each iteration of the design. - N Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
Funny you should say square watermelons. Actually, the do already exist. http://www.financialhack.com/2007/12/04/10145_lessons-of-the-square-watermelon.html cube watermelons to be precise. And they too came about to solve very similar concerns - with stacking, shipping, storing etc. -Peyush -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Jeff Howard Sent: Monday, June 30, 2008 5:44 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug The red flag for me: The jugs have no real spout, and their unorthodox shape makes consumers feel like novices at the simple task of pouring a glass of milk. I noticed some square jugs at the supermarket the other day and dismissed them. What's next? Square watermellons? But skepticism aside, this would probably have been a good opportunity to switch US consumers over to metric measurement since the odd shape would have helped mask the change. You know, get people used to the idea of buying 37 deciliters of milk instead of an antiquated gallon. ;-) // jeff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=30898 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
In 1969 and 1970, if I remember correctly, milk was sold in the Netherlands in plastic bags. The bags flopped about like dying fish when you tried to handle them--not exactly designed for mess-free pouring. But everybody had a hard plastic jug with a handle and no top. You'd sit your milk-fish in the jug, snip off the top corner on the side opposite the handle, and it poured just fine. For all I know, they were an environmental disaster and housewives hated them, but I loved the whole thing--the floppy bags, they way they sat up straight in the jug, the newness of it, the way they just got themselves out of the way when empty. Perhaps there's nothing that can be done for a gallon-sized cube of milk, but in principle a reusable attachment could be provided to make the thing pour ok. If I were a consumer of gallons of milk and I were aware of the discount and the environmental benefits, that might fly for me. marijke Marijke Rijsberman http://www.interfacility.com http://landfill.wordpress.com Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
They still have plastic bag milk in northern Canada, as they did when I was a child. We used to get Milk in these bags, cut the top off and slip the bag into a pitcher that was designed to hold them properly. This allowed for easy freezing of Milk for the long transport to the North woods. Perhaps similar to your experience in the Netherlands. dave Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
My in-laws recently visited and made a run to Costco for us, bringing back several gallons of milk in these odd rectangular jugs. The diameter of the opening is much larger than a standard gallon container, and the mechanics of pouring are quite tricky; I spilled the first couple times I poured. You really do have to use the tip and pour method; it's not even a question of upper-body strength. The whole mechanics and geometry is really bad. Also, it's worth noting that most refrigerators have a framed-in space for the standard milk jug, so the additional space (not much) is wasted anyway. It makes a lot of sense for the stores and dairies, but really the only advantage to the consumer is cost, and does that adequately offset the inconvenience? Not for me. Just you try to tip and pour while holding an infant and trying to refill the cup of an impatient toddler! Dante Murphy | Director of User Experience| D I G I T A S H E A L T H 229 South 18th Street | Rittenhouse Square | Philadelphia, PA 19103 | USA Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.digitashealth.com -Original Message- Sustainable design alone isn't enough of a motivator to change behavior (outside of our hip, chic circles), but its collateral benefits may be: this jug saves 10 to 20 cents in price and fits better in refrigerators. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
On 6/30/08, Sarah Kampman [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/30/business/30milk.html (Free registration required) Interesting article on a redesign of the common milk jug, its environmental impact, and the reaction of the consumer. Fascinating but depressing... *Wal-Mart Stores is already moving down this path. But if the milk jug is any indication, some of the changes will take getting used to on the part of consumers. Many spill milk when first using the new jugs.* Seriously. How many times do companies have to learn this lesson? If you make easy things hard, people will not buy your crap! Kudos for the effort toward sustainability efficiency, but how hard would it be to employ a good designer to work on that spout? *Demonstrations are but one of several ways Sam's Club is advocating the containers. Signs in the aisle laud their cost savings and better fridge fit. * Okay, let's do some math. Let's say this jug rolls out at 500 SC stores. Let's say that each store has someone doing demos for 6 hours per day. Let's say that person makes $7.00/hour (This is Wal-Mart, after all). So in one day, these demonstrations cost the company $21,000. Two days of demonstrations could get you a rockstar designer to produce a rockstar design that would cost $0 to tell people how to use. Sheesh. I'm again reminded that change management is a fundamental part of Interaction Design. Yes, but this isn't the sort of change we should be managing. We should be accommodating human behavior rather than changing it. People don't like to change the basic, simple everyday things that they do. Now, if we were working with a dysfunctional corporation who designs on a whim, yes, we'd have to manage that change. There have been discussions on this list about how IxD *can* change human behavior for the better, where sustainability is concerned. But many of these methods rely on *influencing* our behavior rather than *forcing* it. Dave's example of people driving more mindfully when the mileage is displayed is a good one. But look on the bright side... if companies keep doing crap like this (and they will), we will never, ever be unemployed. : ) F. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Redesigning the milk jug
Yes, but this isn't the sort of change we should be managing. We should be accommodating human behavior rather than changing it. People don't like to change the basic, simple everyday things that they do. There must be a point at which we say that the experience isn't the problem, but the very behavior itself: buy fresh milk from a local source, rather than industrial milk from a megamart, and there won't be such a terrible environmental impact. -JA On Mon, Jun 30, 2008 at 5:43 PM, Fred Beecher [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: On 6/30/08, Sarah Kampman [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/30/business/30milk.html (Free registration required) Interesting article on a redesign of the common milk jug, its environmental impact, and the reaction of the consumer. Fascinating but depressing... *Wal-Mart Stores is already moving down this path. But if the milk jug is any indication, some of the changes will take getting used to on the part of consumers. Many spill milk when first using the new jugs.* Seriously. How many times do companies have to learn this lesson? If you make easy things hard, people will not buy your crap! Kudos for the effort toward sustainability efficiency, but how hard would it be to employ a good designer to work on that spout? *Demonstrations are but one of several ways Sam's Club is advocating the containers. Signs in the aisle laud their cost savings and better fridge fit. * Okay, let's do some math. Let's say this jug rolls out at 500 SC stores. Let's say that each store has someone doing demos for 6 hours per day. Let's say that person makes $7.00/hour (This is Wal-Mart, after all). So in one day, these demonstrations cost the company $21,000. Two days of demonstrations could get you a rockstar designer to produce a rockstar design that would cost $0 to tell people how to use. Sheesh. I'm again reminded that change management is a fundamental part of Interaction Design. Yes, but this isn't the sort of change we should be managing. We should be accommodating human behavior rather than changing it. People don't like to change the basic, simple everyday things that they do. Now, if we were working with a dysfunctional corporation who designs on a whim, yes, we'd have to manage that change. There have been discussions on this list about how IxD *can* change human behavior for the better, where sustainability is concerned. But many of these methods rely on *influencing* our behavior rather than *forcing* it. Dave's example of people driving more mindfully when the mileage is displayed is a good one. But look on the bright side... if companies keep doing crap like this (and they will), we will never, ever be unemployed. : ) F. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
