A New Paradigm for Packaging Design in Web-Based Commerce

E-commerce is one of the most importantfeatures to have emerged from the presence of theInternet. It allows people to exchange goods with lowtime or distance barriers. E-commerce creates newopportunities; meanwhile, it also presents newchallenges in terms of supplying chain management,particularly regarding the packaging system.Packaging functions have had to develop along withthe new requirements enforced by e-commerce (i.e.,increased amounts of packaging materials for eachproduct, an increased need to protect items, end-lifemanagement, environmental sustainability, etc.).In this paper, the authors propose an original referenceframework for the design of a product packaging systemthat can be applied to e-operations. According to theframework, the authors have developed a mathematicalmodel for evaluating the cost that a company has tosustain when partaking in e-commerce business. Inconclusion, the paper discusses the application of boththe framework and the mathematical model to a casestudy in order to develop an innovative packagingsolution for e-commerce