Industrial Aluminum Bottle – Weight Advantages

Since I’m in the business, I often take for granted the advantages of using industrial aluminum bottles vs. other packaging alternatives.
One of the most basic and overlooked advantages is physical weight. I took four 1-gallon bottles and weighed them. Here are the results:

  • Glass : 2.95lbs
  • Tin : 0.97lbs
  • Aluminum : 0.64lbs
  • Plastic HDPE : 0.36lbs

The glass bottle was 4.6 times heavier while the tin can was 1.5 times heavier than the aluminum bottle. The closest competitor in terms of weight was the plastic HDPE bottle which was 56% of the aluminum bottle’s weight. However, the more limited recycleability of plastic vs. aluminum is well established, hence it certainly is less “green”.

Physical weight is one of the more basic considerations when it comes to physical distribution. There are clear economic advantages in using industrial aluminum bottles.

The weight advantage of aluminum bottles can also be seen in retail packaging. Beverages packaged in aluminum bottles are lighter and easier to carry in party and picnic situations. This in part accounts for the growing popularity of aluminum bottles in wines, beers, juices and other consumer beverages.