The Journey of the Pencil

1. The Journey of the Pencil Matthew Olson, Ryan Handley, Shelby Nease, & Ryan Coleman

2. Research and Product Development • Developed in the 16th century, but has evolved into it’s modern version over time • Graphite from South Korea and Austria • Incense cedar, is found in the forests of California's Sierra Nevada Mountains • Rubber-the original foundation of erasers-are Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand

3. Marketing • Computer, magazine, and office supply store ads • Back to school commercials and sales

4. Manufacturing • Old-growth forests are often clear-cut to harvest timber for pencil production. Plantations then replace the forests, and trees generally grow for 14 years before they are removed to become pencils, about 2,500 per tree • Grooves are carved into the wood and the pencil's graphite core is glued into the slots. A second slab of wood is pressed on top, forming a sandwich around the graphite. The sandwiches are then trimmed into separate pencils • Erasers are made from natural or synthetic rubber. Natural rubber is made from the latex of rubber trees, while synthetic rubber is petroleum-based. Erasers are attached to pencils using casings made of aluminum, or brass for more expensive models

5. Packaging • Put into cardboard, labeled boxes

6. Sales, Distribution, & Transportation • Shipped in trucks to stores and distributed to stores throughout the world • Sold to customers at various types of stores

7. Consumer Use • People use these pencils every day at offices, schools, homes, etc.

8. Final Disposition • Potentially harmful to environment. Only when mixed with other products in landfills, will the pencils release methane. • Can be recycled for arts and crafts. Metal cannot be recycled.

9. Bibliography • http://www.worldwatch.org/node/6422 • http://www.joberts11.wikis.birmingham.k12.mi.us/