What is Packaging?

Packaging is an interdisciplinary field in which scientific and engineering principles are applied to develop and produce packages that contain, protect and preserve, transport, inform, and sell a product. Packaging engineering includes the study of products, packages, materials, containers, structures, methods, machinery, and transportation. It involves such diverse disciplines as chemistry, physics, materials science, mechanics, machine design, industrial engineering, electronics, materials handling, and other specialized skills. Packaging is an over $100 billion a year business and the third largest industry in the United States. About $450 billion worth of materials are annually used worldwide. Total employment in the packaging industry is estimated at over a million. Packaging engineers are employed in such areas as package engineering, development, sales, purchasing, structure design, production, research, and marketing.

Packaging @ CBU

In Spring 2001, Christian Brothers University began a packaging program with an elective course for engineering juniors/seniors in response to local and national industry needs. This elective developed into a certificate program with four courses offered by Fall 2002. The Packaging Lab was established in 2003 with almost $300,000 spent on packaging equipment, in addition to nearly $400,000 on related lab equipment in the Polymer Lab, Solid Mechanics Lab, and Manufacturing Lab. Since then, various packaging-related activities have been introduced, including the spring egg drop competition for high school students, a summer program for high school students, sessions at a regional annual engineering/science conference, and seminars for packaging professionals. In 2007 CBU announced two new packaging programs, i.e., B.S. in Engineering Management (Packaging Concentration) and M.S. in Engineering Management (Packaging Concentration). CBU’s packaging programs and activities have enjoyed support from industries and organizations, including the Institute of Packaging Professionals (Mid-South Chapter), International Paper, Ring Container Technologies, Barrington Ford Associates, Smith & Nephew, Kellogg, Wright Medical Technology, Clear Lam Packaging, Schering-Plough Healthcare Products, FedEx, Medtronic Sofamor Danek, Wurzburg, Plastic Ingenuity, the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation, and the Assisi Foundation of Memphis.

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