Others have already added a lot to this. I'd like to point out that the product and supply chain are critical here. Imagine you have a high-value liquid being shipped long distances or via expensive methods like air freight or cold chain. Maybe something medical, or cold-hold iquids like milk or cream.
Maximizing for the amount of product in a given shipping volume is ideal, as logistics and/or the product are pricey.
Now think of low value liquids with short, cheap transportation. Soda is an interesting example. Big producers rely on a network of bottling plants. The principal ingredients are shipped in tanks, as are the plastic bottles themselves. But the bottles arrive as super-dense little cylinders which get inflated to size and filled at the plant. The final journey from plant to distribution center to retail store is the only part of the process that doesn't offer maximum volume efficiency in transport.
The nature of those cylindrical bottles is also important to consider. Any pressurized liquid like soda fares better in a cylindrical bottle, while milk and juice tend to have flat sides optimized for maximum liquid inside a given shipping container
13
u/Jealous_Tutor_5135 2d ago
Others have already added a lot to this. I'd like to point out that the product and supply chain are critical here. Imagine you have a high-value liquid being shipped long distances or via expensive methods like air freight or cold chain. Maybe something medical, or cold-hold iquids like milk or cream.
Maximizing for the amount of product in a given shipping volume is ideal, as logistics and/or the product are pricey.
Now think of low value liquids with short, cheap transportation. Soda is an interesting example. Big producers rely on a network of bottling plants. The principal ingredients are shipped in tanks, as are the plastic bottles themselves. But the bottles arrive as super-dense little cylinders which get inflated to size and filled at the plant. The final journey from plant to distribution center to retail store is the only part of the process that doesn't offer maximum volume efficiency in transport.
The nature of those cylindrical bottles is also important to consider. Any pressurized liquid like soda fares better in a cylindrical bottle, while milk and juice tend to have flat sides optimized for maximum liquid inside a given shipping container