I can't think of many industries which wouldn't be brought to their knees if all of a sudden, we no longer had luxury and convenience of cardboard boxes. Think about it for a moment. We bring most products home in them. Goods are shipped up and down the country and around the world in them. Manufacturers have their components delivered in them and the producers of those components have their manufacturing materials delivered in cardboard more often than not.

Cardboard is the most cost effective packaging material we have. It's cheap to manufacture and easy to make it into all different sizes. It's lightweight, sturdy and strong. And more importantly today than ever before, it's easy to recycle, turning old boxes into new. The humble cardboard box has a lot to offer and I guarantee each and every one of you would miss them if they were gone.

Of course we have packaging boxes made from plastics, but the costs involved in their manufacture and eventual recycling is significantly higher than the costs associated with the cardboard box. Having studied design and specialised in product design, part of my remit is to consider getting a product from the manufacturer to the buyer in one piece. This can turn into an obsession as I have developed a dreadful habit of studying the packaging of almost every product I buy. Have they over used polystyrene and underused cardboard? Could they have used a smaller box and less packing foam? Is the product at risk due to insufficient packaging?

There's a lot more to packaging boxes than meets the eye and optimising the design of your cardboard boxes, specific to each product can deliver considerable savings on other packaging materials such as polystyrene and foam packing. Using 'standard' boxes bought in bulk may also force one to compromise on packing materials (i.e. there's not enough room left for adequate packing), which could mean revenue is lost due to products reaching either the seller or buyer in a damaged or unusable condition.

In many ways cardboard boxes are the body armour of many industries, yet many industries overlook the potential of this humble device. By taking a closer look at each and every cardboard box used for each of your products could decrease damages, save money on extra packing which may not necessarily be required and therefore increase profitability. Stay ahead of the game by getting box clever with your packaging.