The bubble wrap was originally supposed to become wallpaper. It was then tested in greenhouses. Eventually, two complete missions were found for it.
2.10. 2:00 | Updated 10.10. 16:12
One the numerous consequences of a pandemic are related to trade.
More and more purchases are being made online. That, in turn, means that more and more products are wrapped in bubble wrap, that incomparably shaking protective wrapper.
It is also incomparable in its birth story. Namely, in addition to penicillin, a microwave oven and a post-it patch, foam plastic is one of the numerous inventions that have been created by accident.
Initially, it was to become an interior decoration material. The idea was a new kind of textured wallpaper that would come off the wall easily.
In 1957, the inventors Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes did their experiments in a garage in New Jersey. They put two plastic shower curtains on the machine, which squeezed them together.
A membrane was formed that was filled with air bubbles.
It wasn’t an interior hit.
Had to come up with another use. Would you be interested in greenhouses? After all, the plastic was transparent and insulated from heat.
Still no sales success.
A few years passed. Technology company IBM then launched the 1401, the first affordable, mass-produced computer.
The company needed a way to protect the equipment during transportation. Until then, poorly functioning newspaper tolls had been used.
Bullseye. The perfect use had been found!
Or one of them.
Where would the goods be packed now if the inventors had understood to market their plastics first for stress management?
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