Menasha Corp. (CONT’D FROM PAGE 28)
Board Converting NEWS INTERNET DIRECTORY
mation to streamline the process for their customers. “It’s almost like we’re providing packaging systems, not just displays. And so, how do you do that efficiently? How do you look at the total cost through that lens? “Menasha’s original strategy of evolving with the indus- tries we serve as they grow has driven many investment decisions around the expansion of our footprint, state-of- the-art assets, automation, robotics, and new products and services. This continued network modernization is critical to the longevity and success with customers.” From the start, Smith was a man of integrity who consid- ered the well-being of his employees as a cardinal virtue of his company. Even as the former woodenware business was drying up, no employees were laid off. Writes Shaw, “It probably would have made more business sense for Menasha to lay off many of its longtime employees when the [corrugated] box plant opened [in 1927], but true to its values as a people-first company, Menasha wasn’t about to turn loyal workers out in the cold.” These values hold true today, seven generations later. “It’s interesting,” Riegsecker notes. “Everybody’s got the same equipment in this industry, right? So, it’s people who are the differentiating force, and you know, I’m proud of our people in Menasha. There’s just a tremendous longev- ity in the company, and our people really have a passion for our customers and our communities. It’s one of the rea- sons I’ve stayed here for 31 years.” The Menasha of the postwar era presented a textbook model of vertical forest-products integration: vast land holdings in the Upper Midwest and Pacific Northwest; pulp, timber, and building materials; paperboard and cor- rugating medium; and converting facilities in the form of corrugated box and sheet plants. By the 1980s, however, the company’s leadership de- cided to sell its West Coast assets, including its North Bend, Oregon, medium mill and Anaheim, California, box plant, to Weyerhaeuser. This divestiture allowed Menasha to focus on the growing graphics and display markets, es- pecially serving the large food, beverage, and consumer products customers in the Midwest. The company retained its 225,000-ton-per-year medium mill in Otsego, Michigan, having rebuilt the two paper machines there in the mid- 1990s. But by the early 2000s, the Otsego mill was also diluting Menasha’s focus on its core businesses, and in 2005, the mill was shut down and later sold. The company then became one of the largest open market buyers of containerboard, which today Riegsecker says is a decided competitive advantage. “That was a major transformation- al event for us,” he says, referring to the Otsego closure, “because we became one of the largest net buyers of liner and medium in North America. I think it’s an advantage because we’re able to utilize different kinds of paper, dif- ferent recycled content. We’re not locked into one way of doing things with a mill that we’re invested in.”
OHIO BLOW PIPE/ADVANCED AIRSYSTEMS www.obpairsystems.com For 85 years the Ohio Blow Pipe company and its whol- ly owned subsidiary, Advanced Airsystems, have provided the corrugated and folding carton industries with systems and products to process scrap. We engineer, fabricate, in- stall, service, provide system audits, and offer a wide range of scrap systems, dust collection systems and products to include cyclones, under roof AIR-SCREEN™ systems, pit belt systems, CLEANAIR dust collectors, Mist-Clone™ dust control systems for vacuum feeds, material handling fans, ductwork, switch valves, airveyors, balers, and shredders. OMP www.omp.com OMP helps companies facing complex planning challenges to excel, grow and thrive by offering the best digitized sup- ply chain planning solution on the market. Its Unison Plan- ning concept has a unique approach. It handles all supply chain planning challenges in a unified way, synchronizing all planning stages, horizons, functions and roles. Hundreds of customers run OMP’s cloud-based solution to generate more value by making informed decisions. OMP invests one out of every three dollars earned into innovation.
PAPER AND DUST PROS, INC. www.paperanddustpros.com
We custom design, install and service air conveyed scrap and dust collection systems. Our unique APS® is smaller, lighter, and more reliable than current cyclones. Contact us to learn how the APS® System can enhance your operation.
PROFERO SYSTEMS, INC. www.ProferoSystems.com
Profero Systems the leader in double facer heating and traction section conversions and performance enhancing products. Featuring products from Contact Bars and Com- pensating Rolls to New Glue Machines and Double Facers. GF PUHL www.gfpuhl.com GF PUHL designs, manufactures and installs air conveyed scrap & dust collection systems for the packaging and cor- rugated industries. With 40 years of experience, USA and In- ternational. We offer below or above roof systems featuring cyclones OR screen separators with real time pressure bal- ancing for optimal dust control. High efficiency cyclones for sheet transfer exhaust systems eliminate water consump- tion and deliver dust directly to compactor or briquetter for low maintenance, long term sustainability and reliability.
QUEST7, INC. www.Quest7.us
Quest7, Inc. is focused on being a leading manufacturer and distributor of critical parts and materials required in the cor- rugated box industry. Our commitment of “Bringing the Best to You,” reflects the level of quality and customer response in what we do every day.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 32
30
www.boardconvertingnews.com
December 9, 2024
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker