Prospect and challenges of glass container industry in Bangladesh: an empirical study on selected glass container industry of Bangladesh

Abstract

Glass is a hard, brittle substance, typically transparent or translucent, made by fusing sand with soda and lime and cooling rapidly. It is used to make windows, drinking containers, and other articles. Container glass is a type of glass used for storing various liquid and solid materials such as bottles, jars, drinkware, and bowls. Container glass has a lower magnesium oxide and sodium oxide content than flat glass, and higher silica, calcium oxide, and aluminium oxide content. Its higher content of water insoluble oxides imparts slightly higher chemical durability against water, which is required for storage of beverages and food. Most container glass is soda-lime glass, produced by blowing and pressing techniques, while some laboratory glassware is made from borosilicate glass. Glass Container is a very widely used component, its applications ranging from small vial to large Jar. In spite of its versatility in application, Glass is a significantly underused in the Bangladesh market. There are so many different types of glass containers and jars, and their properties differ with the type of processing it undergoes. Glass is also an eco- friendly product and clocks a signification contribution towards the protection of the environment. Using glass container has so many advantages, but glass has been continuously overlooked for cheaper alternatives non-renewable products like PET or Plastic products. My study aims to explore the reasons for this situation and determine how and to what extent the Bangladeshi market would be benefitted by a more visible glass industry. It seeks to inform the reader about the advantages of glass containers (stressfully, environmental) in comparison to other packaging materials like plastic, PET etc., so as to aid in future decision making processes. This survey reveals that Glass Container has significant positive impact on quality of the product and sustainability of the environment. For the quality of the products, survey observes that ‘to maintain the quality of the product inside the packaging, glass container has contributed the highest assurance compare to any other kind of packaging’. Glass container is 100% recyclable and thus environment friendly and it is sustainable. The survey also revealed that about 60-65% people do not have proper knowledge on the impact of product quality due to the packaging of the foods and beverage.