Project Overview

First designed in 1970 by PepsiCo and improved into the 1990s, the two-liter bottle is getting another makeover.

Organisation

PepsiCo

 

Project Innovation/Need

The new bottle was redesigned to make it easier for soda drinkers to use. PepsiCo believes consumers will get used to—and then expect—an easier pouring experience from big bottles. To determine the size of the new bottle, PepsiCo checked out hand size: The average hand measures between 7 and 8.6 inches, according to PepsiCo's research. The new bottle is "more manageable" to grip because it has a 10.4-inch circumference, compared to 13.4 inches for the old 2-liter bottle.

Design Challenge

The design team, coordinating with the business team, analysts, and R&D, began to dream up alternatives. That meant sketching thousands of designs, and rapidly prototyping hundreds of designs with 3D printing. It’s a process that’s far more complicated than just coming up with a new silhouette. Because these bottles need to be durable while also consuming as little plastic as possible, the plastic thickness varies through the entire bottle, reinforced where it’s necessary and removed where it’s not. And because they hold liquid that’s pressurized, they are managing forces ballooning their way from the inside out.

Sustainability

PepsiCo said the new bottle uses the same amount of plastic as the old two-liter flask, but there is less plastic in the label. The company has goals of using 35% less virgin plastic in its beverage business by 2025 and making 100% of its packaging recyclable, compostable or biodegradable, up from almost 90% in 2019.

Tags

• Elevate
• ElevateNYC