Duncan K. Anderson did not begin his career as a designer. He was a logistics assistant at Stacktheme Ltd, Dollar, Scotland from 2007-8, an inventory & logistics manager at Solgar Nordic Ltd, Ringsted, Denmark from 2008-10 and inventory & logistics manager at -Nordic Premium Group, Espoo, Finland from 2010 to 2012.
“In 2012, I left a comfortable job to study at the Lahti Institute of Design as I wanted to follow my dream of having a career in a creative field,” he said. He will graduate in 2016. Meanwhile, he is working on a portfolio of designs that are racking up awards.
Discover is a 3D printed telescopic golf club and balls. Its packaging functions as the goal (do you have a goal in golf??). The project was created for entry into the student Starpack 2014 competition. The brief was to create a promotional tool for design agency, Webb deVlam. The task was to pick a product that symbolises the company and design the package accordingly. The project won the Starpack Gold Award, Webb deVlam Sponsored Award and the Nampak Champion Award.
Reloaded was his entry into Recreate Packaging 2014. The challenge was to recreate travel packaging using renewable fibre-based materials from Stora Enso. Anderson's design won 3rd place.
The Prototyping Encyclopedia wasa prototyping kit designed for new students to the packaging design department at college. It contains all the basic hand tools for making packaging models plus some extra compartments for bits and bobs. “It fits neatly into a locker and makes it easy to take all your tools to wherever you want to work. It's made from cardboard so it's protective but cheap and simple to make and is easily recycled at its end of life,” Anderson explained.
Self-Watering Herbs is Anderson's newest creative idea - packaging for ready grown herbs whose second function is as a self-watering system for the plant. The self-watering system takes all of the guess work out of watering so that it is easy to keep fresh herbs in the kitchen for longer.
Different methods for self-watering were tested to find one that works with herbs and this was then developed into the packaging. The cardboard stand folds to become the stand for the pot and is constructed without any adhesive. The bag tears along a perforation in the centre and the bottom part is then used as the reservoir for the water. The top part of the bag has ventilation holes for the plant when it's packaged on the shelf. The corners are also cut to let out the herb's aroma to create product appeal. A piece of jute twine is attached through the bottom of the pot and is placed into the reservoir. This soaks up the water and provides moisture to the soil and roots. The twine is 100% biodegradable and so can be put into bio-waste with the plant at the end of its life.
