Advancing ReeR Safety’s sustainability goals with award‑winning packaging for safety light curtains

ReeR Safety Light Curtain Packaging Awards

Smaller, smarter, sustainable packaging wins ecodesign award

ReeR Safety’s longstanding commitment to protecting people in industrial automation extends well beyond the design of its safety devices. The company has increasingly turned its attention to the environmental footprint of its own operations, examining everything from materials selection to logistics. By rethinking how its bestselling safety light curtains are packaged and shipped, ReeR demonstrates even incremental changes can deliver meaningful environmental benefits.

The Challenge

ReeR’s safety light curtains are narrow, elongated devices that can reach up to two metres in length, making them difficult to package securely and sustainably. Traditional packaging relied on multiple materials including plastic components, complicating recycling and increasing environmental impact. The challenge was to maintain full product protection, traceability and durability while significantly improving recyclability and reducing logistics inefficiencies.

The Approach

Smurfit Westrock partnered closely with the ReeR Safety team to redesign its packaging using a single, fully recyclable corrugated material. Plastic straps were replaced with paper‑based fitments, and internal structures were optimised to protect the units’ fragile components securely. In addition to the more sustainable material choice, the packaging footprint was reduced by 45%, improving pallet density and lowering transport‑related emissions across the supply chain.

The Result

The new packaging is lighter, easier to handle and more efficient to transport, reducing shipments and emissions. Most importantly, it proves that thoughtful engineering choices can deliver measurable environmental benefits while upholding the highest industrial safety standards. The initiative earned industry recognition with an award at the CONAI Call for Ecodesign 2025.