Bubble Wrap Teams Up With Students to Pop Their Way to a Guinness World Records® Title

ELMWOOD PARK, N.J., Jan. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Sealed Air Corporation, the makers of Bubble Wrap® brand cushioning, and 366 students from Hawthorne High School joined forces to set an official Guinness World Records® title to celebrate the 13^th Annual Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day, a day where millions around the globe honor the creation of Bubble Wrap® brand cushioning, invented more than 50 years ago.

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The pop icon and the New Jersey high school set the record for "The Most People Popping Bubble Wrap® at One Time," with 366 students popping more than 8,000 square feet of the packaging material at an event of epic bubble-popping proportions on Monday morning in the town of Bubble Wrap's birthplace, Hawthorne, N.J.

"Celebrating Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day where it all began in Hawthorne with a brand new Guinness World Record has made this holiday extra special this year," said Rohn Shellenberger, Business Manager at Sealed Air. "We are proud to commemorate the day with Hawthorne High School and all of the Bubble Wrap® cushioning fans around the world."

Rolls of Bubble Wrap® cushioning filled the gym at Hawthorne High School, as hundreds of students, were given two minutes using their hands and feet to pop as much of this iconic packaging material as possible.

"You could really feel the excitement in the gym as the participants prepared to set this world record," said Kimberly Partrick, an official Guinness World Record Adjudicator. "We applaud Sealed Air and Hawthorne High School for their hard work and enthusiasm for Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day, and their reward is setting a brand new Guinness World Records achievement."

Bubble Wrap® cushioning was invented in Hawthorne, NJ in 1960 by inventors Marc Chavannes and Al Fielding and is considered a pop culture phenomenon with more than 2 million fans on Facebook and millions more around the globe.

To make an even bigger "pop" with this year's celebration of Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day, the students, faculty and staff at Hawthorne High School raised funds for Sandy Hook Elementary School during the event.

More On Bubble Wrap® Brand Cushioning and Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day

Bubble Wrap® Appreciation Day is celebrated every year on the last Monday in January.

The originally intended use for Bubble Wrap® protective cushioning was entirely different than how it is used today. Inventors Marc Chavannes and Al Fielding originally developed a plastic they hoped to market as textured wallpaper.  When that idea did not take off, the inventors began to have some success marketing the product as a greenhouse insulator.

Chavannes then realized that Bubble Wrap® brand cushioning could be used as an improvement from paper and old newspapers for cushioning fragile items. Once the opportunity was identified, the inventors worked hard on the manufacturing process for Bubble Wrap® cushioning in an effort to create an ideal packaging material.  After a lot of tinkering, they developed a special, proprietary barrier protection which prevented air from leaking and resulted in the crisp "Pop" that Bubble Wrap® cushioning is famous for.

About Sealed Air

Sealed Air is a global leader in food safety and security, facility hygiene and product protection. With widely recognized and inventive brands such as Bubble Wrap® brand cushioning, Cryovac® brand food packaging solutions and Diversey™ brand cleaning and hygiene solutions, Sealed Air offers efficient and sustainable solutions that create business value for customers, enhance the quality of life for consumers and provide a cleaner and healthier environment for future generations. On a pro forma basis, Sealed Air generated revenue of $8.1 billion in 2011, and has approximately 26,300 employees who serve customers in 175 countries. To learn more, visit www.sealedair.com.

SOURCE Sealed Air