I suggested to Alexander (8) that he and his father invent a pencil maker for home use. I lose and use so many pencils that I would like to be able to make them. The story about the guys who invented bubble wrap, Al Fielding and Marc Chavannes, is fascinating. They designed it for home décor.
From interestingfacts.com -
“The pioneering duo hoped their creation — which trapped air between two shower curtains run through a heat-sealing machine — would serve as a textured wallpaper marketed to a younger generation with ‘modern taste’. The initial idea was a flop, however, and Fielding and Chavannes soon pivoted to promoting Bubble Wrap, then called Air Cap, as a greenhouse insulator (another idea whose bubble would quickly burst).
“It took another invention of the time — IBM’s 1401 model computer — to seal Bubble Wrap’s fate as a packing material. Under the company name Sealed Air, Fielding and Chavannes approached IBM about using the air-filled plastic in shipping containers, replacing traditional box-fillers like newspaper, straw, and horsehair. After passing the test of transporting delicate electronics, Sealed Air became a shipping industry standard....”
From interestingfacts.com -
“The pioneering duo hoped their creation — which trapped air between two shower curtains run through a heat-sealing machine — would serve as a textured wallpaper marketed to a younger generation with ‘modern taste’. The initial idea was a flop, however, and Fielding and Chavannes soon pivoted to promoting Bubble Wrap, then called Air Cap, as a greenhouse insulator (another idea whose bubble would quickly burst).
“It took another invention of the time — IBM’s 1401 model computer — to seal Bubble Wrap’s fate as a packing material. Under the company name Sealed Air, Fielding and Chavannes approached IBM about using the air-filled plastic in shipping containers, replacing traditional box-fillers like newspaper, straw, and horsehair. After passing the test of transporting delicate electronics, Sealed Air became a shipping industry standard....”
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