New Bubble Wrap to feature no pop

Sealed Air Corp., the maker of Bubble Wrap, will roll out a new version of its popular packaging material later this year or early 2016.

But it won't have any pop.

The new version will be more efficient to ship and have converting options to fit almost any packaging environment, company officials say. It will be shipped flat and inflated on site using an air tube.

However, when you squeeze it, it won't pop. Squeezing the new material will just push air to the other bubbles.

"Because the product ships flat to customers, it takes up less space than traditional Bubble Wrap in trucks and the result is more sustainable shipping," said Sealed Air spokesman Ken Aurichio. "It will not replace traditional Bubble Wrap as there will still be a consumer, retail and business market."

For Bubble Wrap fans, however, the bubbles that pop are part of, well, a pop culture.

People have walked to the altar dressed in it, protected their garden plants with it and even put it on display at art museums, according to The Associated Press.

Earlier this year, Oral Roberts University said it successfully broke the Guinness World Record for the number of people popping bubble wrap simultaneously.

ORU reported that in honor of National Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day, 1,011 students, faculty, staff, alumni, prospective students and friends of the university gathered in the Mabee Center for the event. The number broke the previous record of 942 people.

"We believe that academics, faith and fun should all be part of the college experience for our global student body. The Bubble Wrap Challenge created a great sense of community for our students, faculty and staff and was a lot of fun for everyone who attended. Breaking a world record is icing on the cake," ORU President Dr. William M. Wilson said.

Bubble Wrap (originally Air Cap) is a trademarked brand of Sealed Air that includes numerous cushioning products made from bubble wrap.

Both the Bubble Wrap brand and product were introduced in 1960, with the launch of Sealed Air. Although the brand was originally used for the packaging of IBM computers, Sealed Air now does most of its Bubble Wrap business in the food packaging industry.

Today, Bubble Wrap accounts for less than three percent of Sealed Air's global sales.