REAL PROJECT · INDUSTRIAL DESIGN AND LOGISTICS

From a basket to a modular system

Modular basket design for Cargill

The brief was to prepare baskets containing representative products. The real challenge emerged when we asked how they would be transported, stored, stacked and assembled before delivery.

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DEVELOPMENT CASE STUDY

A basket that became a logistics solution

The requirement was to present a selection of representative products in a basket. At A1Pack, we examined what happened before delivery: transport by van, office storage, stacking and assembly by reception staff. This approach led to an interlocking modular system designed for the entire operation, as well as the final presentation.

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01 · The challenge: what the brief did not reveal

The initial brief seemed straightforward: design baskets for presenting representative products. Before sketching, we asked how they would reach the delivery location, where they would be stored and who would prepare them. The answers changed the problem: they would travel by van, be stored in an office and be assembled by reception staff.

  • Initial requirement: present different products as an attractive gift set.
  • Actual conditions: van transport, available office space and a need for stacking.
  • People involved: assembly by administrative staff rather than a manufacturing workshop.

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02 · Concept and interlocking modular system

We reconsidered the set as a modular system, addressing more than the basket’s appearance. The proposal needed to organise its components for transport and storage, then form a presentation ready for delivery. The interlocking connections between modules became a central design decision.

  • Modularity: parts conceived as elements of one system.
  • Interlocking connections: connections between components to facilitate assembly and organisation.
  • Presentation: bringing different products together in a clear, coherent set while considering logistics.

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03 · Construction development and assembly

A modular system must work in actual use, beyond its appearance in an image. The interlocking sequence, handling of the parts and their stackability were decisive in enabling reception staff to prepare the sets easily. The development connected gift presentation with actual working conditions.

  • Assembly: defining a clear sequence for the people preparing the baskets.
  • Organisation: compatible parts that could be stored and moved as a system.
  • Stacking: a key criterion for reducing storage and transport difficulties.

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04 · The solution: designing the logistics too

The development resulted in an interlocking modular system that could be transported, stored and stacked before assembly. A1Pack addressed the complete product journey, from preparation and transport to presentation to the recipient. The value lay in discovering that the central problem was logistical.

  • Developed system: interlocking modules to organise the set.
  • Operation: joint consideration of transport, storage, stacking and assembly.
  • Key insight: industrial design can resolve the complete system as well as an object’s form.

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Explore other A1Pack projects where design begins with understanding the actual need and defining manufacturing solutions.

Designing a basket also means designing the system

The client came to us with a basket in mind. Our questions revealed a wider issue involving transport, stacking, storage and assembly. At A1Pack, we seek to understand that complete journey to develop objects that work in actual use as well as in a photograph.