Intel China has announced that its 45-nanometer Intel Core 2 Duo processor family selling in Mainland China will be packed in packages which are 40% smaller at best than the current ones.

The smaller packages are expected to replace current ones by the third quarter this year.

The new packaging technology is said to reduce the use of packaging materials, improve freight volume, and reduce exhaust emissions during the transportation, with resulting benefits to the environment.

Apart from the package size, the Finished Process Order label size and shape is slightly changed and the processor product number is now more prominently displayed. The Land Grid Array cover will be removed from the E7xxx series processors. Elimination of this cover alone will reduce landfill waste by approximately 309 tons per year.

Yang Xu, the general manager of Intel China, stated that Intel always takes environmental protection into consideration from the research and development stage of new products to their encapsulation.