Bubble Wrap
OwnerSealed Air Corporation
Introduced1960[1]
Websitewww.sealedair.com/products/brand/bubblewrap-brand

Bubble Wrap (originally Air Cap)[2] is a trademarked brand of Sealed Air Corporation that includes numerous cushioning products made from bubble wrap.[1][3] The brand is produced by the Product Care division of Sealed Air.[4][5] Both the Bubble Wrap brand and product were introduced in 1960, with the launch of Sealed Air.[1] Although the brand was originally used for the packaging of IBM computers, Sealed Air now does most of its Bubble Wrap business in the food packaging industry.[6]

History

Bubble wrap was invented in 1957 by engineers Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes in Hawthorne, New Jersey. Fielding and Chavannes sealed two shower curtains together, creating a smattering of air bubbles, which they originally tried to sell as wallpaper.[6] When the product turned out to be unsuccessful as wallpaper, the team sold it as greenhouse insulation.[6]

Although Bubble Wrap was branded by Sealed Air Corporation (founded by Fielding and Chavannes) in 1960, it was not until a year later (1961) that its usefulness in protective usage was discovered.[7] As a packaging material, Bubble Wrap's first client was IBM, which used the product to protect the IBM 1401 computer during shipment.[6] Fielding and Chavannes were inducted into the New Jersey Inventors Hall of Fame in 1993.[7] Sealed Air celebrated Bubble Wrap's 50th birthday in January 2010.[8]

Uses

The Annual Bubble Wrap Competition For Young Inventors was hosted by Sealed Air from 2006 to 2008,[9] in which children were encouraged to design products made out of bubble wrap that had uses outside of the packaging industry.[9] Inventions included a "Bubble Wrap Car Door Cover", a "Bubble Wrap Cushy Wheelchair", and "Transformable Bubble Wrap Kite".[10]

Popping Bubble Wrap is sometimes used as stress-relief, and Sealed Air's corporate offices have "stress relief boxes" that are filled with Bubble Wrap for the employees to pop.[11][12]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Inflatable version of Bubble Wrap". FoodProductionDaily.com. 22 May 2002. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
  2. ^ "Bubble Wrap Brand Cushioning Facts & Figures" (PDF). Sealed Air Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 September 2010. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
  3. ^ "Sealed Air Selects 10 Semi-Finalists in Inaugural Bubble Wrap Competition for Young Inventors". Business Wire. Elmwood Park, New Jersey. 18 December 2006. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
  4. ^ "Form 10-K (2012)". Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved 21 November 2013.
  5. ^ Michael Burke (16 October 2013). "Sealed Air CEO sees higher profits in next three years". Journal Times.
  6. ^ a b c d Burke, Monte (5 August 2006). "Wrap Star". Forbes. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
  7. ^ a b Fernandez, Don (27 December 2004). "Betcha can't pop just one". Toronto Star. Toronto, Ontario. p. D13. Retrieved 29 September 2010.[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ "Bubble Wrap celebrating its 50th birthday". NBC News. 24 January 2010. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  9. ^ a b "Sealed Air Announces Fifteen Semi-Finalists in Third Annual Bubble Wrap Competition For Young Inventors – International Business Times -". International Business Times. Elmwood Park, New Jersey. 24 November 2008. Retrieved 2 October 2010.[dead link]
  10. ^ Newmarker, Chris (25 November 2007). "Young inventors get creative in Bubble Wrap contest". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. Trenton, New Jersey. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  11. ^ Fernandez, Don (24 December 2004). "Bubble Wrap: A pop-culture sensation that packs endless pleasure". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  12. ^ Loeffler, William (23 January 2009). "Bubble wrap is a pop-culture phenomenon". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2 October 2010.[permanent dead link]
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