Design studio creates metallic paper piggy bank
PLANBUREAU studio designs a metallic piggy bank made of paper, which can encourage people to save up money and donate from a young age. The project is created for the Hungarian branch of Red Noses International, an organization that supports clown doctors who work with children in hospitals. The group needed a product for their charity shop that could help children learn how to save money and how to donate it. They tapped the Hungarian-based studio, who came up with the idea of a piggy bank that families could buy.
Part of the brief was that the price needed to stay under 10 EUR and the production costs should be low. After looking through different materials, the studio decided to go for paper since others would cost more. It is also easy to print and cut as well as pack and ship to stores. The team, who used ChatGPT and AI for the initial design, wanted the users to assemble the the metallic paper piggy bank on their own, which could help reduce costs. It becomes then an activity for children and parents, all the while being connected to the goal of learning and saving.
all images courtesy of PLANBUREAU Studio
Reflective surface for a more ‘valuable’ look
PLANBUREAU studio chose a metallic finish for the paper piggy bank to give the material a more ‘valuable’ look and a reflective surface that draws attention. The studio’s design idea was a small box that looked like a treasure chest, but the team had a small design budget, so they went out and tried ChatGPT to test as well how AI could support industrial design. For the first image, the prompt asked for an image of a money box made of metallic-effect paper, which should have thick paper materials and where the sheets should be slotted together to form a 3D object.
Then, ChatGPT added its own twist to the request: it generated it in the shape of a pig. It is probably because the shape of the pig is common in money boxes, plus a pig shape also makes children understand the purpose more quickly. The studio and Red Noses International agreed to go for the pig shape, so PLANBUREAU kept this new direction and improved the design by correcting the cutting template. They then tested how the paper would fold and how the slots would connect and checked the size of the coin slot, too. They also tried how the coins would fall inside and how the users could remove the money later if they needed to use them.
PLANBUREAU studio designs a metallic piggy bank made of paper
Red nose and tail refers to the foundation’s logo
In the end, PLANBUREAU studio designs a metallic paper piggy bank in a square shape since it is easier to cut and fold. The Red Noses Foundation asked them for two features before finalizing the design. They wanted the pig to include a red nose and a red tail, two elements that connect the object to the foundation’s logo. The final product is a set of flat paper pieces, cut in a factory, and the user receives the product in a small package. At home, they push the pieces out of the sheet and just follow simple steps to join the pieces. With enough patience, they’ll form the metallic paper piggy bank designed by PLANBUREAU studio and start saving up for themselves and others.
the design aims to encourage people to save up money and donate from a young age
part of the brief was that the price needed to stay under 10 EUR and the production costs should be low
the studio decided to go for paper since other materials would cost more, and it is also easy to print and cut