The British Pint just got safer!

Finding a current live issue on the Design Council's website i was intrigued at how dangerous the British pint had become! Current news reports inform us of crime rates and alcohol related injuries etc, but here the issue has been stripped right back to the route of the problem. Not only are there increasing debates on the level of binge drinking but the fact of the matter is, there is a problem with the item that holds the drink, as well as the consumable fluids.

The Design out Crime project is tackling many different areas with experts in design, technology, consumer affairs and crime working to solve many increasing problems facing the nation. The 87,000 glass related injuries due to alcohol every year is currently costing the NHS around £2.7 billion every year. This has thrown up a huge issue and as said earlier has resulted in a project that looks clearly at the basis of this and ways of improving the typical 'British Pint Glass'.

Not ever having been involved in any way with glass crime i am still aware of the fact that, even out with intentional crime, glass, of any description can cause problems in busy nightclubs/bars. As a student having been to a fair few, i have often come home with slight injuries due to broken glass on floors, or people having a slip of the hand and the glass shattering. This initiative, although looked at from the perspective of glass crime could be the start of a much safer environment all together when out and about socialising.

The developments of new pint glasses appears to have taken the direction of having fine layers of resin on the inside of the glass to stop it shattering, or having two layers of glass, held together using a fine layer of bio-resin, which is a concept similar to that used in car windscreens, even if dropped the glass would stay held together.

As part of this initiative, the Design Council are already in some talks with major pub chains to try and trial these 'Glass Plus' glasses and should be ready in around 12 months time. It is these subtle changes to the route of the problem that should make the greatest effect. Telling people how they should behave is never going to have as significant results and by designing products that are subtly safer, in theory, this should help prevent many glass related crimes. It has been said that 'Designers need to become more creative than criminals', this statement is very true, as we are increasingly needing to find other pathways into finding the route of specific problems and develop methods in which subtle, clever changes can then create the greatest impact.

Designing the next generation British pint glass - the design story from Design Council on Vimeo.

http://vimeo.com/9191412