Problem 1.
I work for a small wholesale business where we pack and ship boxes of goods all over Australia every day. We use about 40 to 50 cardboard cartons every day. Our problem was the expense and waste of purchasing new cardboard cartons.

Problem 2.
In our town there is a pizza restaurant where they receive more than 50 cardboard cartons of pizza ingredients every day. Their problem was the expense and inconvenience of disposing of all that unwanted cardboard.

One Solution for Both Problems
For the last ten years (or so) the wholesaler and the pizza restaurant have been successfully cooperating to solve both their problems. Here's how...

• The pizza guys take care of the boxes that come in. They open them without damaging them when possible. They sort them and stack them at the back of their building on trolleys supplied by the wholesaler. If space is a problem they flat-pack the boxes. This process takes no more time than packing them into a rubbish skip.
• The wholesaler collects the boxes twice a week and takes them to his warehouse where they are stacked ready for packing. He also collects any unusable cartons and includes them with his own recycling every week.
• When packing goods for dispatch the wholesaler uses packing tape with his brand printed on it so his customers know where the boxes are from.

This system has worked beautifully for many years, and in that time has saved both businesses a considerable sum of money, and has made both operations much more environmentally friendly.

If you are involved in (or know of) a business that uses or receives cardboard cartons, I'm certain you will be able to find a compatible business in your area to cooperate with in order to save money and the environment. It's just a matter of setting up a simple system that works for both parties.

I hope you liked this simple instructable. I really hope this will inspire others to do similar things in their own communities. If you have any comments or suggestions please feel free to post them.