Safety Program Helps Zumbiel Packaging Reach OSHA Milestone Hebron, Kentucky based Zumbiel Packaging is cele- brating reaching 400,000 accident-free (referred to as “recordable-free” by OSHA) production hours due in no small part to its newest safety program,“Taking Safety to the Floor.” Spearheaded in 2019 by Mark Barton, VP of Oper- ations, this unique program helps to better ensure the safety of nearly 300 valued employees at their 500,000 square-foot facility in Hebron. “We had an effective pro- gram in place before, holding monthly safety meetings for each of our four shifts, but this program takes safety to the next level using what we call “Toolbox Talks,” said Barton. “The primary differences are first we now limit the size of the meetings to just a crew, usually 10-15 employees which is the ideal size for group interaction. And second, we an- nounce the specific safety topic in advance (a particular machine or process) and encourage our employees to ac- tively participate with questions, concerns, ideas for injury avoidance or threat reduction. By sharing the information in this forum together we can identify and mitigate injury risks.” The program is working. While Barton agreed it was easier and more time efficient to just have four big meet- ings once a month, he knows this approach allows the
company to zero in on potential risk areas more effectively than ever before. “Sure, we could have just continued with the big monthly meetings as our safety track record was good, but why settle for good when we can get to great?” Cascades To Close Ontario Containerboard Packaging Plant Kingsey Falls, Quebec, Canada based Cascades Inc. has announced that it will close its Etobicoke, Ontario Con- tainerboard packaging facility as part of the strategic repo- sitioning of its Containerboard platform in Ontario and the Corporation’s continuing global optimization initiatives. “An integral part of our strategic plan is to optimize our operational platform in Ontario,” said Charles Malo, Presi- dent and COO. “As a result, we will be gradually redeploy- ing production from the Etobicoke facility to our other units within the region. This decision will reinforce our opera- tional positioning for mid and long-term success by better aligning present production capacities, improving produc- tivity, reducing fixed costs and further strengthening our service offering for our valued customers.” Cascades’ Etobicoke Containerboard Packaging op- erations will permanently close no later than August 31, 2021, and the property will be put up for sale. Cascades will work to minimize the impact of this announcement on the 125 employees impacted by the closure.
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www.boardconvertingnews.com
August 3, 2020
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