PETpla.net Insider 05 / 2013

BOTTLE MAKING 30 PET planet insider Vol. 14 No. 05/13 www.petpla.net Triangular PET water bottle for SEAB, designed by Sidel Noblesse oblige Working with the Société des Eaux d’Aix-les-Bains (SEAB) in France, Sidel designed and produced a new triangu- lar bottle in PET for SEAB’s still water product for the pre- mium catering sector. The bottle is without a conventional label: the product statutory information is engraved by laser, directly into the surface of the bottle. The whole develop- ment was managed in nine months. A market traditionally dominated by glass In France, 12% of all mineral water is sold through hospitality out- lets (cafes, restaurants and hotels): 47% of which is still water and 53% sparkling water. Also, 9% of custom- ers eating in French restaurants drink water - with two out of every three orders for drinks including a request for water. In response to these requests, water is traditionally served either in a glass bottle or a glass carafe. When SEAB decided it wanted to gain a share of this significant market within the French hospitality sector, the company again turned to Sidel. Its plan was to supply its pre- mium water in a uniquely stylish PET bottle, designed to rival the aesthetics of the glass water bottles and carafes normally used, to hold 75cl of water. Alpine water sources Located in Gresy-sur-Aix, a com- mune in the Savoy department in the Rhône-Alpes region, SEAB collects water drawn from the natural environ- ment of two springs, deep in the rocks of Aix-les-Bains, at the foot of the Alps in south-eastern France, where pre- mium spring and natural mineral water are produced. The balanced waters contain weakly mineralised versions of essential calcium and magnesium - and no nitrates. The mineral water was used for the first time as early as 1848. It gained official recognition as a natural mineral water in 1906 and industrial production eventually started only in 1986 when the Société des Eaux d’Aix les Bains was officially founded, fol- lowing an agreement with the mayor of the town of Aix-les-Bains, which owns the rights to the water. The source of the spring water was further developed in 2009. “During the heat wave in 2003, consumers naturally turned towards cheaper water,” said Philippe Germaneau, General Man- ager at SEAB. “Turnover dropped by 15% and it is at this point that we had the idea of developing our own water source. We obtained approval in July 2009 and we distributed the first bot- tles in September of that year.” Since then, bottled spring water has been distributed under the name “Source des Fées” (“The Fairies’ Spring ”). “The source of the spring water is 15m deep. However, the natural min- eral water is taken from the ground at a depth of 520m,” explained Mr Ger- maneau. The natural mineral water, which is distributed under the name “Aix-les-Bains”, is available along with the spring water in the supermarket chains of SEAB’s parent company Les Mousquetaires (The Musketeers) a French retail group. Design challenges The design brief for the new, 75cl bottle in PET was that it should be triangular in shape to differentiate it from other established brands and simple in appearance to convey the concepts of quality and purity. Also included in the brief was the require- ment for minimalist aesthetics to be applied to the new bottle, designed entirely by the Sidel team, particularly in light of the need to overcome the custom within restaurants and hotels of using only glass containers. Indeed, in Hotel Schools it is common practice