Halfords Classic motor oil is sold in a metal tin, reminiscent of packaging from a bygone era. In a world of plastic oil packs, this stands out as something of an anomaly. For the past two decades, oil brands have erred towards colourful plastic packs with anti-glug technology that leave rust-prone metal packs confined to the back of the garage.
"If you were buying cans and putting oil in them your company was also making plastic packaging, so it became a bit of a no-brainer for the oil companies," says Metal Packaging Manufacturers Association director Nick Mullen. According to Mullen, both Crown and Impress still have lines capable of manufacturing metal packs for oil, but he agrees that the material is now used primarily for promotional or novelty packs.
It was in the 1980s that brands in the sector started to look at packaging as a way to differentiate their product. RPC's general sales manager David Baker says that some refill packs had already moved to composite cans by then. "Marketers realised they could differentiate their product by shape as well as colour and print. Some of the first plastic containers were versions of the tins," he says.
"At the time, all the designs were very clunky, square and mannish," adds Baker. "Over the years, this has changed and they are now smoother and sexier."
HDPE has turned out to be the plastic of choice for oil packaging. Its robust qualities and compatibility with blow-moulding mean it can be used to create some interesting designs. Handles, for instance, are an integral part of the design of oil packs as they help in pouring the product.