O-I “Ideation Center” Focuses on Glass Benefits

O-I recently opened the doors to its new “Ideation Center,” a product concept and development hub for its engineers, designers, and marketers to work alongside customers to concept innovative packaging and show clients the benefits of glass.

The Center includes exhibits on recent glass innovations, O-I products from around the world, how glass is made, and O-I’s history as glass innovators. The grand opening of O-I’s Ideation Center took place at the company’s global headquarters in Perrysburg, OH, on January 22nd, where members of the innovation team provided tours to O-I employees, suppliers, and local media.

"O-I wants to really revisit the consumer as far as the benefits of glass, and that's something that we haven't done in a long time," said Kevin Stevens, O-I's vice president of sales and marketing for North America. "These are new things for O-I. We've been traditionally an old-line manufacturer, and there was not a lot of effort on marketing, innovation, or new product development."

The approximately 3,000-square-foot Ideation Center consists of three main parts: a product display area to show off the company's worldwide glass products and processes, a "tasting room" to allow clients to relax and continue their meeting in a more casual atmosphere, and an interactive conference center with "smart screens" that will allow image manipulations and more by engineers and designers to collaborate with customers on new designs.

The Ideation Center reflects the significant investment O-I has made in bringing innovation to the glass industry. For decades, glass packaging manufacturers have essentially made the containers their clients requested. O-I’s innovation initiatives, of which the Ideation Center is a major part, intend to take on the status quo and introduce new, more creative and increasingly sustainable packaging into the marketplace.

In the past year alone the impact of O-I’s investments in innovation has been felt. Last year, O-I had nearly 1,000 new products in active development, with 1,906 active patents around the world. The company also has nearly tripled its product research and development team and doubled its North American marketing group in the past two years.

In addition to product innovations, the company is continuing and expanding its investment in manufacturing technology, exploring new, cost-effective and sustainable manufacturing methods. In fact, O-I’s roots are in technology innovation. Company founder Michael J. Owens invented the automatic bottle-making machine, which not only improved the efficiency of the glass-making process but helped usher in child-labor protection efforts. Read article