Z-Box

Inspiration and problem identification

Many countries around the globe nowadays have online delivery. This form of ordering is comfortable and simplifies the stressful process. However, amidst the surge in orders, the cardboard boxes being used are barely recycled. More than 72 million metric tons of boxes are produced every year, and most of them turn into single-use waste. Considering that these cardboard boxes are derived from trees that are crucial for both the environment and humans to stay healthy, a solution must be found to this quickly spiraling issue.

There is also a high demand for valuable products, such as iPhones and laptops, which are fragile. The delivery company could be incapable of delivering it to us safely by using a normal cardboard box. These boxes are easy to break, especially when they get wet. Not only that, but they porch pirates are always lurking and may steal packages from unsuspecting people. Many high-end brands are obligated to refund their customers, causing them to lose substantial revenue.

Solution and Features

Z-Box is a reusable e-commerce parcel box that saves the environment while deterring thieves. It is made from recycled polypropylene plastic that gives it a hard shell which cannot be broken from crushing and hitting. The recycled rubber coated on every side of Z-box makes it safe for delivering valuable products, ensuring that they don't break. Z-Box also offers a fiber net instead of bubble wrap, an LED identification screen instead of a paper shipping label, and a zipper instead of plastic tape. It can be folded for storage, just like any regular box. For the safety aspect, the zipper has a lock that cannot be ripped apart, and a hidden GPS tracker.

This box is connected using IoT to a mobile application. For shops to pair a box with a customer, they scan the QR code on a box and fill in the customer details. Then, they put the items into the box and close the zipper. An SMS message is sent to the customer to open the app and track their box’s exact location in real time. The zipper will be completely locked. To open the box after delivery, they must press on a button on the app to verify their identity.

The reason why we have security features is that there must be some direct benefit to incentivize them to change. People won’t be bothered to buy a product only because it is better for the environment.

Any difficulties you encountered in creating your project (or any further potential problems that might occur when implementing it in the real world)

The problem we ran into is it’s complicated and costly to return the box. Thankfully, we made this process simple by offering users 3 methods to return. We have a point system where customers can receive points based on their option. The first option is they can take the items out of the box and return the box immediately, which works if they’re at home, giving them 3 points. The second option is if they’re not home, they can schedule through the app for a truck to come pick their box up, giving them 0 points. The third option is going to the drop-off point to return the box, giving them 2 points. We will partner with 1-2 local stores in each community who have adequate storage space. Not only will this help us lessen transportation costs, but it increases the chances that customers will go to buy at these local stores. The points can be redeemed for coupons at the partner stores too.

Finances of your project

Our box contains high-security features with multi-step verifications. So, it wouldn’t make sense to employ this for mass-scale orders. Our product actually targets luxury online shops because they have the highest incentive for investing in their transportation security and damage safety. We will help these stores minimize losses from lost items refunds.

After some research, we found that large luxury brands want to buy this wholesale, so have a price for them to buy it, so they only pay once. However, smaller shops want to reduce their investment cost, so we have a way to rent it. Shops that rent will pay each time they use the box. The more they use, the less the fee will be. In fact, it becomes cheaper to rent Z-box than to use regular cardboard boxes after around 50 uses of renting. We want to encourage renting because it causes a continuous cash flow for our company.

Future places your project could be taken with additional work

In the future, it will be possible to scale Z-Box internationally. As we have a business model, this innovation will be financially sustainable. The more customers use it, the more cities it will be well-known in. We can also partner with large e-commerce platforms like Amazon which decreases their revenue loss from parcels being lost or damaged. In addition, it is possible to allow large buyers to customize their boxes by printing a logo on it or having unique patterns and designs. This even opens an additional revenue stream for us.

Built With

• canva
• photoshop