Milk container usability 20 Jan 2009

As we've mentioned before on this blog, rectangular milk containers afford grocery store owners a number of benefits: They occupy less shelf space than cylindrical containers, for example, which is important since taking up less shelf space is more valuable when shelf space has to be refridgerated. Rectangular containers are also easier to stack, store and transport since, unlike round containers, they don't need milk crates to hold them in place.

...However, it seems that rectangular milk containers aren't so great from a user's perspective. According to an article published in the New York Times last year, they make it far harder to pour their milk - so much so, in fact, that one store had to employ someone to train consumers in the art of pouring from them without spilling!

[via The Human Factors Blog]