EcoChallenge - Replacing single use packaging with reusable transport packaging
EcoChallenge - Replacing single use packaging with reusable transport packaging from Drew Stroud
EcoChallenge - Replacing single use packaging with reusable transport packaging

In the Fall of 2018, I participated in EcoChallenge led by the Robe Leadership Institute, Honors Tutorial College, and the College of Business Strategic Leadership program. In this challenge, I was assigned to a random 4 person, multidisciplinary team. We had two months to develop and pitch a solution which lowered OU's costs and carbon footprint. The team focused on reducing the non-reusable packaging (mainly cardboard) used by OU's Central Food Facilities. We conducted numerous meetings with our customer, obtained vendor quotes, and found online resources to validate our claims and estimations. Our proposed solution was to replace the cardboard boxes used to ship meat products with reusable plastic crates. The result was an estimated 104% return on investment and a reduction of 22 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year. We received 2nd place for our pitch and our idea will be implemented by the university.

Snap of brainstorming session when faced with an obstacle. After meeting with our customer, we had to determine which out of two ideas was the best going forward. We wanted to consider what was involved in each idea and determine the best based on time and feasibility. We could either purchase new bins to be used on the pallets our customer uses, or use plastic bins they use for produce to also ship frozen meat products.
Picture of a dining hall on campus. Our goal was to reduce cardboard consumption. Through stakeholder meetings, we identified an opportunity to replace the boxes they use to ship frozen meats with reusable transport packaging. Challenges revolved around storage and reverse logistics.
Showing the boxes previously used to ship frozen meats.
Showing the loaded pallets where the meat products used to be loaded on to. Another opportunity for cost savings and increased sustainability would be to replace the plastic wrap with rubber bands (seen on right pallet).
Showing the bins our customer currently uses for produce. We recommended purchasing more of these and integrating the frozen meats.
Our predicted ROI for switching from cardboard to reusable plastics. With a one year payback period, it is a low-risk project to implement. We hope the results from this project spur future projects which reduce cardboard consumptions in other areas of the university.
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EcoChallenge - Replacing single use packaging with reusable transport packaging

In the Fall of 2018, I participated in EcoChallenge led by the Robe Leadership Institute, Honors Tutorial College, and the College of Business Strategic Leadership program. In this challenge, I was assigned to a random 4 person, multidisciplinary team. We had two months to develop and pitch a solution which lowered OU's costs and carbon footprint. The team focused on reducing the non-reusable packaging (mainly cardboard) used by OU's Central Food Facilities. We conducted numerous meetings with our customer, obtained vendor quotes, and found online resources to validate our claims and estimations. Our proposed solution was to replace the cardboard boxes used to ship meat products with reusable plastic crates. The result was an estimated 104% return on investment and a reduction of 22 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year. We received 2nd place for our pitch and our idea will be implemented by the university.

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Drew Stroud
Mechanical Engineer Focused on Environmental Solutions Indianapolis, IN