Packaging sustainability has become one of the most notable issues of this era. Many researchers have endeavored to characterize or compare the environmental burdens of a single level of packaging, such as primary, secondary, or tertiary packaging. However, goods are often handled, stored, and transported through the supply chain system in unit load form consisting of pallets, corrugated boxes, and load stabilizers. Hence, it is important to holistically understand the environmental impact of not only individual packaging levels, but also the unit load form. We can use the interactions between the unit load components to reduce the environmental burdens generated in the supply chain system. Past studies discovered that pallet top deck thickness has a huge effect on corrugated box compression strength. Using this knowledge, researchers were able to optimize the cost of unit loads by increasing pallet top deck thickness and reducing the board grade of corrugated boxes. This study (1) further discovered how different unit load design factors, such as initial top deck thickness, pallet wood species, box size, and board grade, affect the performance of the previously proposed unit load design optimization method, and (2) we investigated if the unit load optimization method could also enhance unit load sustainability. The study's first phase identified that the benefits of increasing top deck thickness were more pronounced as the initial top deck thickness decreased, higher board grade boxes were initially utilized, and smaller-sized boxes were used. The second phase of this study showed that increasing top deck thickness and reducing the board grade of corrugated boxes could offset environmental impacts by as much as 23%. Environmental benefits were mostly achieved by reducing the amount of relatively more-processed materials in the corrugated boards. This phase also provided preliminary unit load conditions as guidance for unit load professionals to estimate the possibility of optimizing their unit load design in an environmentally beneficial way. / Master of Science / Sustainability-minded individuals, industries, and policymakers recently recognized the environmental burdens associated with packaging as a critical concern to society. Many initiatives and studies have been conducted to prevent and reduce the environmental impacts of individual packaging systems, such as corrugated boxes, plastic bottles, and pallets. However, not many efforts have been made to enhance the environmental performance of a whole unit load, which is the most common distribution packaging form used to transport and store goods. It is essential to understand the physical interactions between unit load components, such as corrugated boxes and pallets, in order to improve a unit load's environmental performance effectively. The unit load optimization concept introduced in the past study, which showed that increasing top deck thickness can reduce the needed board grade of corrugated boxes, was further investigated and utilized in this study to offset the environmental burdens of a unit load by substituting different materials used. To assess the environmental performance of that unit load design optimization method, this study first endeavored to understand further how various unit load design factors could affect the result of unit load optimization, and second, we analyzed many different scenarios using a life cycle analysis method. The study found that the unit load design method that uses deck board thickness to change the amount of corrugated board needed had more potential for lighter pallets with thinner deck boards carrying heavier loads. The results also showed that increasing top deck board thickness and reducing the board grade of the corrugated board could improve the environmental performance of a unit load when the corrugated material is sufficiently substituted with a reasonable amount of pallet material.

In recent years, Internet-of-Things technology (IoT) has been the subject of research in a diverse field of applications, given its essential role in transitioning society towards a more interconnected paradigm of conducting manufacturing, logistics, services, and business, what is also known as Industry 4.0. Consistent with this line of research, this project addresses the application of IoT in distribution packaging as a way to better understand supply chain conditions. Specifically, this work presents an operational concept for a system that implements IoT technology in the pallets that are used to move products along supply chains and serve as a vehicle to gain insight into the conditions experienced by products and unit loads. The development of this operational concept leverages a systems engineering framework to discover user needs, and stakeholders, and apply model-based systems engineering to create system models that capture expected system behavior and the outputs necessary to create value for the user. A semi structured interview was conducted with eleven companies in order to discover user needs related to their packaging during distribution processes in their supply chain. A system operational concept was developed through use cases, concept of operations, and formal modeling using Cameo System Modeling Software. A review of sensor and communication technologies is presented, as well as a description of the challenges and future research opportunities for the proposed operational concept in distribution packaging. The application of systems engineering framework, and model-based systems engineering to the distribution packaging domain brings clarity to problem formulation in order to lay-out solid value propositions for the adoption of IoT technologies, and to ensure successful realization of systems that achieve customer satisfaction. This work offers three main contributions. First, it provides an identification and description of the needs that industrial companies have in relation to their product and packaging performance during distribution operations. Secondly, it shows how a systems-based approach, leveraging on model-based systems engineering can be employed to conceptualize systems that use innovative technologies like IoT in the domain of distribution packaging. Third, it provides an overview of open research challenges and practical considerations for the implementation of IoT technology in the field of distribution packaging. / Master of Science / In 2007, The World Bank published a study which states that "eighty percent of US trade is carried on pallets" (Raballand and Aldaz-Carroll, 2007). Furthermore, in the year 2015, a report estimated that there would be 2.6 billion pallets circulating in the United States by the year 2017 (Freedonia Group, 2015). Pallets are ubiquitous and a key component of distribution operations in supply chains, as they transport goods, and are the main interface that connects material handling equipment and packaged products (White and Hamner, 2005). Based on that distinctive characteristic, this study contends that pallet can be used as a window to gain insight into the realities of what is experienced by products and packaging during distribution. This can be done by using sensors imbedded in pallets to capture data of interest about the physical conditions in the supply chains, which opens the potential for more customized and optimized packaging design, supported by more reliable and representative information. This idea is particularly relevant, as established protocols for packaging testing are limited in their capacity to accurately simulate the real-world conditions that occur in the supply chain. This has resulted in suboptimal packaging design (Rouillard, 2008) that decreases the efficiency of logistics operations. This study found that industrial companies are most concerned with avoiding damage that their products can suffer during transportation as a result of temperature, relative humidity, shock, and vibration. Thus, it is necessary to gather data about these distribution parameters for product shipments. Using a model-based system engineering approach, an operational concept is proposed to show what is needed from a system to be able to track these parameters. Furthermore, a review of current available technology for IoT is presented, as well as an examination of the challenges posed to the realization of the proposed operational concept, including factors like cybersecurity, and energy resources constraints. This work offers three main contributions. First, it provides an identification and description of the needs that industrial companies have in relation to their product and packaging performance during distribution operations. Secondly, it shows how a systems-based approach, leveraging on model-based systems engineering can be employed to conceptualize systems that use innovative technologies like IoT in the domain of distribution packaging. Third, it provides an overview of open research challenges and practical considerations for the implementation of IoT technology in the field of distribution packaging.

Focused transit hazard evaluations of distribution environments have become increasingly important in the recent past. This is due to the realization by businesses such as those in China (Baird et.al.,2004) that pack design optimization can result in reduction of packaging and other related costs, ensuring safe delivery of products as well as enabling companies to comply with global statutory obligations that demand packaging waste reduction via optimal packaging of goods. This work involved focused evaluation of the distribution hazards in truck transport within the bulk packed tea supply chain in Kenya as a basis for establishment of a pre-shipment protocol for packaged goods in order to optimize package designs and protect the physical quality of tea in transit. The parameters addressed included vibrations, shock, and environmental conditions of temperature and relative humidity. The research further examined how above transit conditions may affect important black tea physical quality parameters of density, particle size distribution, colour, and particle morphology. The work also formulated a new a pre-shipment testing protocol for tea (and other goods) moved within this supply channel thus allowing businesses to optimize their packaging designs. Furthermore, such pre-shipment protocols would help in predicting possible failure in transit. The Lasmont’s Saver model 3x90 transit data measuring unit mounted on the truck bed was used to collect transit data while a programmable electrodynamics vibration table was used to simulate the measured transit conditions. Using the specially fabricated rig apparatus for the experiment, analysis of changes of the tea physical properties of particle size distribution, bulk, tapped and compact densities as well as particle morphology and colour were investigated. The results showed that truck transport transit conditions experienced in the Kenyan roads with a composite spectrum of 1.358 (Grms) for the routes measured are more severe than the test standards set by both American Standard Testing Methods (ASTM) and International Safe Transit Association (ISTA) for truck transport conditions of 0.242 and 0,519 (Grms) respectively. This shows Kenyan roads compared to those where both ASTM and ISTA data was derived from are poorer and further confirms that both ASTM and ISTA standard tests may not be appropriate for use in designing optimal packaging for the Kenyan distribution environment. In addition, vibration intensities experienced were relatively higher than average recorded from other similar studies carried out in other parts of the world such as Brazil (0.628 Grms), USA(maximum 0.89 Grms), Spain (0.194Grms) and Indian highways (0.161 Grms). The work revealed how poor Kenyan roads are and that they would lead to damage of delicate physical qualities of tea including particle size distribution for each grade of tea, particle morphology and density unless the right packaging is used. This therefore underpins the importance of carrying out focused pre-shipment testing for a given distribution environment as general test procedures will not allow optimization of packaging designs. Due to the prevailing poor road conditions in Kenya as shown earlier by relatively high vibration and shock impacts, results showed that these hazards together with load compression affected the tea particle integrity in transit leading to breakage of larger tea particles to give rise to smaller particles unless adequate protective distribution packaging has been given due consideration. Equally, particle density as well as the particle surface morphology was affected resulting in undesirable impact on tea physical quality. Consistency in density of tea is an important aspect for the blenders of bulk tea since packing machines often operate within defined density limits. Compressive forces within the pallet load led to the crushing of larger tea particles into smaller ones, thus undermining the desirable black colour tea leaving it greyish which is considered in the tea trade as poor tea quality. In addition, the results confirmed that the effect of compression load on the physical tea quality was more severe than the vibration/shock impact alone. Moreover, the change in physical quality was related to the transit time (vibration period) up to maximum equilibrium level. Density of tea increased with compression load up to a maximum of 350g. The same, however, declined at 400g static load due to resonance conditions of the simulation assembly. Tea morphology measurements indicated that the initial rounded shape of the tea particles gradually changed to an elongated shape with rugged surface. This had an effect of not only damaging the desired black colour but also altered the flow properties of the tea which is an important aspect for bulk tea buyers during their subsequent handling activities of blending and packaging. A new relationship called compact density and compact ratio was established that related elevated tea density in transit due to ‘jamming’ of tea particles upon application of static load pressure on the tea at the lower levels of the pallet load. In addition, a correlation of density against tea powder “stain” travel within the test container containing tea particles, further confirmed that force impulses from the static load on top of tea particles was being transmitted perpendicular down to the bottom of the pallet load. The correlation of both the distance moved by the static load inside the tea container and tea powder “stain” column height on the test tube below the static load with the compact density of tea, brought out further empirical data that could be used by researchers to accurately predict the tea density from both the above parameters. The research further revealed that compressive forces on the tea particles at lower levels of the pallet load had more impact on the damage of tea particles compared to vibration/shock impacts. Finally, there is need for the existing packaging standards for bulk packed black tea to be revised in the light of the newly developed pre-shipment testing protocols from this research.