Crown Honored for Innovation, Design Functionality and Sustainability at the MPMA Awards

Philadelphia, PA .- The European business units of Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCK) (Crown) (www.crowncork.com) have been recognized with fourteen ‘Best in Metal’ Awards from the Metal Packaging Manufacturers Association (MPMA).

CROWN Speciality Packaging was honored with several awards for a range of consumer and industrial applications:

* In the Sustainability category, Crown received the Gold award for a decorative container developed for Nestlé Quality Street chocolate. Crown decreased container height by 10mm and reduced the metal thickness of both the lid and end, saving over 200 tons of steel in the manufacturing process. Crown also helped Nestlé achieve significant energy savings by increasing the number of tins on each pallet for transportation and reducing the number of vehicles needed to deliver the annual volume of metal containers.
* Crown also won the Silver award in the Sustainability category for its new Marks & Spencer’s All Butter Shortbread package. The 650g rectangular tin offers a generous canvas to convey the brand’s identity. The lid is curled inward and sits flush on the container’s body, creating a modern and appealing image on shelf. Crown used approximately 2% less steel for the package as compared to previous versions.
* The cylinder-shaped flush lid container used for the Cadbury Collection Egg won the Gold award in the New Products/ New Market Applications category. A mix of dark violet and light purple tones gives the tin a smooth, satin-like look, intended to visually represent the premium chocolate’s taste. The container was also honored with the Product/Market Award in the Flour and Sugar Confectionery segment and received the Bronze award in the Consumer Appeal category.
* An exquisite black tin created for Tsarine Champagne’s “Cuvée Blanc de Blanc Millesimé” received the Silver award in the Consumer Appeal category. The package features decorative gold embossing, giving the tin an elegant, classy look and feel ideally suited for the prestigious, top–shelf drink. The container was also recognized with the Product/Market Award in the Promotional and Giftware segment.
* Crown’s Clipper Can™ System, used by Tikkurila for its decorative indoor paints, won the Silver award in the Functionality category. A revolution in the do-it-yourself (DIY) sector, the Clipper Can™ System features a combined metal & plastic lid with unique easy-gripping for safe opening, without the need for extra tooling. The Tikkurila package was also given the Product/Market Award in the Homecare and Industrial segment.
* In the Consumer Appeal category, the tins developed for Multi Vintage Bruichladdich, a trio of decorated whiskey containers received “Judges Highly Commended” honors. Featuring hi-resolution imagery of the Isle of Islay, the home of the Bruichladdich distillery, the containers have contrasting tones of black, brown and blue matte and glossy varnishes that complement the product’s high quality and prestigious image.
* A second “Judges Highly Commended” award in the Consumer Appeal category was given for Crown’s embossed steel tin developed for Sainsbury’s shortbread. The 165mm square package utilizes the inherent visual quality of tinplate with a simple but striking combination of a single color red lid and an embossed J Sainsbury’s brand logo on the body metal, reversed through a red background logo.
* The SNUS tobacco tin created for Philip Morris International received “Judges Highly Commended” honors in the Functionality category. The unique silver package with embossed brand logo features a press lid for easy one-hand opening and an underside recess for product waste. This provides complete functionality, while maintaining premium elegance.

In the New Products/New Market Applications category, CROWN Aerosols Europe received the Silver award for the paint canister component of the Hammerite Metalmaster® Electrostatic Paint Gun system. The 57mm x 207mm package uses Crown’s bi-compartmented (BICAN®) technology to consistently deliver the protective coating at the exact flow rate required to the electrostatic head for subsequent charging. A plastic inner bag keeps the metal paint and propellant completely separate. This ensures propellant is not emitted during dispensing and prevents product from coming in contact with the package itself.

Finally, CROWN Food Europe was honored with the Product/Market Award in the Food segment for the new 330g can size created for Schwartau, a leading German preserves manufacturer. The package incorporates Crown’s new 65mm diameter PeelSeam™ peelable foil end for added consumer convenience. Both can and reclosable metal lid are attractively printed with matching fruit displays using the steel material as an integral part of the design.

“Taking home this many awards in a single competition is truly an honor,” says Chris Homfray, President of CROWN Europe. “Helping our customers bring more sustainable and innovative packaging to the market has long been a key priority for Crown and will remain so in the coming years.”

Awarded annually, the Best in Metal Awards celebrate outstanding achievements in metal. Entries to the competition are judged by a panel of experts from across the packaging and retail sectors.