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The vocabulary of post consumer

packaging waste in the built
environments: A qualitative study

Arulmalar RAMARAJ1, Jothilakshmy NAGAMMAL2

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t Final Acceptance: September 2017

Abstract
Innovative applications of post consumer packaging units in architecture are
traced from the Hellenistic period. Interpreting the Romans’ eco sensitivity, post
industrial revolution era witnessed the development of ‘eco-centric ideal’ and
‘prospector’s, cook’s and nomad’s approaches’. The primary objective is to study
the unique strategies and techniques developed by architects, artists, technocrats
and environmentalists in reusing the primary, secondary and tertiary packaging
waste in the built environments. For the study, thematic analysis is adopted to
investigate and consolidate the diverse practices in today’s context. The summa-
ry of findings reveals the embedded design processes, the vocabulary created by
such structures in the environment portraying the current use of post consumer
packaging waste as building blocks in load and non load bearing components,
doi: 10.5505/itujfa.2018.32704

techniques developed in erecting ephemeral spaces creating a dialogue with the

environment, offering a variety of spatial experiences to the viewers, visitors and
the users. We posit that a comprehensive understanding of such approaches and
concepts give new directions to evolve and develop ideas with the used packaging
materials in open ended prefabricated systems.

Keywords
Architecture, Design process, Packaging waste, Vocabulary.


1. Introduction Table 1. Classification of packaging materials.

According to the council directive


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tain, protect, handle, deliver or present
raw materials and processed goods’.
They are classified as primary, second-
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er perspective. In addition, corrugated
board, crushed paper, foam netting,
bubble film, loose fill and air pouch
cushion are classified as cushion pack-
aging, which are used along with the
secondary as well as the tertiary pack- Table 2. A chronological applications of packaging wastes in built
aging. Based on the commodities, clas- environment.
sification of primary and secondary
packaging keeps interchanging. With
respect to agricultural goods, baskets,
barrels, jute bags and polymer bags are
used which fall under the primary as
well as tertiary packaging.

1.1. Origin of packaging waste use in

built forms
The innovative application of post
consumer packaging wastes can be
traced from the Romans’ era. They de-
vised techniques to use the ‘amphorae’
in the built forms. Reuse A is using the
packaging unit for the original purpose
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using it for an altogether purpose with
and without modification. The former
revolves around use of broke pieces of
the earthenware in facades and pave-
ments as paving materials, whereas the
latter is about reducing the self weight
of massive structures by placing the pot
in inverted positions.
In the current scenario, post con-


sumer waste is used in construction is
in the nascent phase. The primary rea-
sons for such applications are exhaus-
tive use of natural and virgin materials
in packaging industry, an alternative
use to the materials which becomes a
waste after the primary use, address the
shelter crisis through developing ap-


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propriate construction techniques, to



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create an awareness to the public, use
technology to develop the waste in to

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novel building materials, components
etc.
The primary objective of this study
is to explore the ideas, approaches and

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methods adopted by architects, envi-
ronmentalists and artists in erecting
permanent and temporary structures
intuitively, poetically and as problem
solving strategy. The chronological ap-
plication of post consumer packaging
waste in construction, version to indi-
cate the range and time scales is sum-
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1.2. Architects’ paradigms on
packaging waste
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‘material’ as a source of inspiration is
identified as a tangible channel to cre-
ativity in architecture. Materials are
broadly classified as those that affect
the structural systems and functional
organisation followed by those that de-
termine the interior and exterior tex-
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of renewable or recyclable materials.
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tionary outcomes which are developed
through inductive process must work
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tulated the cook’s, the prospector’s and
the nomad’s approach. The cook’s par-
adigm is about incorporating the left
over products in building industry for

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Table 3. Interpreting the ideologies of packaging waste in built Ę


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Thematic analysis is the most com-
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the patterns and themes.
Data is collected and interpreted
from diverse secondary sources like
websites, magazines, articles, research
papers and interviews which is the
limitation of this study. The gath-
construction. The curiosity, persistence ered ideas, approaches and concepts
in locating the used materials, evaluat- are consolidated inductively like the
ing their potential, giving them new techniques adopted to construct the
life in architecture and portable struc- different components of the building
tures in relation with the climate and such as foundation, wall, roof, light
ecology are the prospective architect‘s diffusers, fillers in slabs etc in perma-
and nomad‘s approaches respectively nent structures for a comprehensive
addressing ‘form follows materials’. understanding. In addition, various
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findings.
The intent of this paper is to explore
the diverse approaches, consolidate, in- 3. Findings
terpret and find new directions to use The consolidation of the ideas and
packaging waste in architecture. approaches are through inductive and
deductive process are summarised
2. Method JO
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The primary objective of qualitative ry, secondary and tertiary packaging
research is to seek illumination, com- waste are used in constructing walls,
prehensive understanding and exten- roofs, structural elements, fillers, skin,
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The vocabulary of post consumer packaging waste in the built environments: A qualitative study


4. Discussion
A study on the design processes
and erection of temporary pavilions
or portable structures is interpreted as
in Figure 1. It is posited that they are
mostly ‘Do-it-yourself ’ activities for
awareness, academic ‘Design-build’
workshops or experimentation with
advanced software and fabrication in
academics as well as in construction
industry by professionals.
The study portrays that even though
the ideals, design processes and ap- Figure 1: Design processes and temporary pavilions.
proaches are diverse, the ultimate goal
of is to reduce the use of virgin build- *O
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bricks’ curtain wall glazing by Arthur 
Huang, which are either interdisciplin- )PFQĘ .$


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