Bradford Company (CONT’D FROM PAGE 22)
Board Converting NEWS INTERNET DIRECTORY
making paperboard partitions for parts suppliers to the au- tomotive, home appliance, and furniture industries. “The company started moving more into automotive parts in the 1950s with the move to western Michigan,” Bradford says. “Bradford’s growth has been concentrat- ed in automotive. We started packaging small decorative parts like dashboard emblems. We packaged all of that out of chipboard partitions.” Auto industry material handling practices began to change during the 1980s, Bradford explains, when a mind- set was adopted to use returnable and reusable packag- ing. “Roughly about 1983–1984, General Motors began talking about taking all of the paper out of their plants, spe- cifically the Buick City plant in Flint, Michigan. There was going to be no paper coming into the plant; everything would be returnable. And we said, ‘Well, if we’re going to go out of business, we might as well put ourselves out of business.’ So, we got into the material handling arena, initially making partitions out of high-density polyethylene and trying to mimic what we were doing in paper.” Bradford recalls it was a time of intense competition as other companies entered the plastic packaging market seeking to retain their hold on the business. “It was a low barrier to entry,” he says. “The sophistication of the market of today wasn’t there.” Bradford’s perseverance paid off. “In probably 10–15 years most of those competitors went away as things be- came more sophisticated, and the sales cycle for develop- ing returnable packaging projects would often take up to two years before receipt of an order.” Eventually, Bradford says, these tier 1 suppliers start- ed asking for more, from the protection of small parts to the assembly and kitting of larger components. “The parts kept getting bigger,” he explains. “They asked, ‘Can you take those three parts that you’re making par- titions for—we’re going to make it into an assembly— can you package that?’ Sure, we can. We can do that.” Growth In The Automotive Sector The company’s growth in the Michigan automotive sec- tor was the impetus for its 1991 expansion south to Gallatin, Tennessee, where companies such as Nissan and Toyota had opened their first U.S. facilities, thereby christening the South Central states as the automotive region. In 1997, Bradford opened a facility in Wixom, Michigan, to serve customers along the Interstate 75 corridor and southern Ontario, and in 1998, the company opened its first location in Mexico. “One of our customers at the time said, ‘You ought to be in Mexico.’ And being young and naive, we said, ‘Sure, we can do that,’ and we went to Mexico, to Monterrey,” Bradford remembers. A look at the company’s website is an introduction to the panoply of packaging materials and systems the com- pany now employs to meet its customers’ product protec- tion and shipping needs. This includes chipboard and cor-
ARC INTERNATIONAL www.ARCInternational.com
ARC International is a world leader in the manufacturing of roller products for flexography. The latest nano-technology laser engraving in our NC and NV manufacturing facilities ensures superior quality and consistency in anilox rollers.
AES (ADVANCED EQUIPMENT SALES) www.aesales.net
AES is a leading full-service provider of integrated convey- ance systems specializing in scrap, trim, and dust. AES en- gineers custom scrap systems and works as a partner in process improvement to help businesses achieve greater profitability, productivity, and sustainability. Products include balers, shredders/hoggers, core shredders, filters, fans, and specialized dust control and collection systems. AES is the ex- clusive distributor for the AirShark Rotary Material Separator. For a wide variety of new and used equipment on to- day’s market, visit our website at www.acm-corp.com. BAUMER HHS CORPORATION www.baumerhhs.com hhs is a global leader in advanced gluing, camera verifica- tion and quality assurance systems for the packaging indus- try. Zero-defect quality and elevated production speeds are key parameters in the manufacturing of corrugated boxes. With hhs Xcam Box Monitoring and non-contact flap gluing of corrugated board, hhs offers every option for quality as- surance in the production of boxes with flexo folder gluers. AMERICAN CORRUGATED MACHINE www.acm-corp.com BLOWER APPLICATION COMPANY (BLOAPCO) www.BloApCo.com BloApCo has served the corrugated industry since 1933 with a variety of scrap handling solutions, including Hori- zontal Floor Shredders, Trim Cutters, and Material Handling Fans and Conveying Systems. BloApCo Shredders allow for continuous shredding and pneumatic removal of sheet waste stacks of all sizes, roll slab, cores, and carton scrap.
CORRUGATED MACHINERY SPECIALISTS www.cmsretrofits.com
Leading manufacturer and installer of quality retrofits, up- grades and replacement parts for S&S and Prime Flexo Folder Gluers. Specialists in reconditioning of S&S Flexo Folder Gluers, including ink, air and electrical systems.
CORRUGATOR BELT SERVICE LLC www.corrugator.com
Serving the corrugated box industry since 1991, Chicago- based Corrugator Belt Service LLC maintains corru- gator belts for peak board quality and performance.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 26
24
August 4, 2025
www.boardconvertingnews.com
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker