Board Converting News, November 23, 2020

BoardConverting Serving the North American Corrugated and Folding Carton Industries for 36 years November 23, 2020 VOL. 36, NO. 47

American Carton Co. Expands Folding Carton Print Capacity BY JACKIE SCHULTZ Nearly three decades ago Joe Harris, founder of Harris Packaging, a corrugated manufacturer in Haltom City, Texas, saw an opportunity to expand into folding cartons and started American Carton Co. (ACC). In 2006, his daughters, Jana Harris and Jenise Harris Cox, joined the firm and three years later became majority shareholders in both American Carton and Harris Packaging. Harris serves as CEO and Cox as CFO.

FBA: Shipments Jump In October, Set Record

Industry shipments of corrugated products in- creased 4.2 percent, from 35.888 bsf in Octo- ber of 2019 to 37.396 bsf in October of 2020, the Fibre Box Association (FBA) reported. The increase comes despite the fact there was one less shipping day in October of 2020. The nearly 37.4 bsf set an all-time volume re- cord. Average week shipments increased 8.9 percent, from 7.802 bsf in 2019 to 8.499 bsf in 2020, which is the highest rate since July 2000, according to Dick Storat in his Scoring Boxes newsletter. Shipments of corrugated products are up 1.9 percent year-to-date. Containerboard consumption increased 4.0 percent, from 2.9470 million tons in Octo- ber of 2019 to 3.0635 million tons in October of 2020. Consumption is up 1.9 percent year- to-date over 2019, from 27.1498 million tons to 27.6535 million tons. Containerboard inventory at corrugator plants decreased 6.9 percent, from 1.9511 mil- lion tons in September to 1.8156 million tons in October 2020. Weeks of supply also de- creased, from 2.9 to 2.6 0r 10.3 percent. “As mills ran hard to meet demand, in-

The two companies are located about 20 miles apart and run inde- pendently of each other, although they do share some clients. “We have a handful of customers that we sell both products to,” Harris says. “Our largest account here at American Carton is probably one of our top 15 at Harris. The customer’s experience is they are dealing with two different companies but usually one sales person who sells both products.” ACC has flourished under Harris’ and Cox’s leadership and is rec- ognized as one of the fastest-growing businesses in the region. It has grown 60 percent since 2015. Five years ago there were 45 employ- ees. Today there are 60. Harris attributes this growth to marketing, sales and capital equipment investments and “just getting serious about it and saying, ‘It’s time to grow.’” The company serves several key markets, including consumer packaged goods (40 percent), healthcare (37 percent), food (16 per- cent), and personal care, retail and industrial. From left, Jana Harris, Jenise Harris Cox and Trent Tucker in front of Ameri- can Carton Co. (ACC) in Haltom City, Texas.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

WHAT’S INSIDE Chicago Electric Sales Inc. To Move To Larger Facility NAM: Manufacturing Layoffs Fell To Lowest Since 2017 BWP, HP Join Forces On Digital Corrugated Solution 1 AF&PA Announces Award- 6 x x 8 x x 12 x x 26 x x Winning Sustainability Projects

CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

AVERAGE CONTAINERBOARD PRICES The average prices reported are tabulated from prices PAID by various sources throughout the United States the week previous to issue. Prices in some areas of the country may be higher or lower than the tabulated average. The prices tabulated here are intended only for purposes of reference. They do not connote any commitment to sell any material at the indi- cated average. Transactions may be completed at any time at a price agreed upon by seller and purchaser.

REGION E. Coast Midwest Southeast Southwest

42# Kraft liner $885.00-890.00 $900.00-910.00 $900.00-910.00 $900.00-910.00 $930.00-940.00 $903.00-912.00

26# Semi-Chem. Medium

Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del.

$820.00-850.00 $835.00-855.00 $835.00-855.00 $835.00-855.00 $865.00-875.00 $838.00-858.00

West Coast U.S. Average

SHEET PRICES BY REGION (AVERAGE) Per 1MSF, local delivery included, 50MSF single item order, truckload delivery. Sheets

E. Coast Midwest South-SW S. CA N.CA/WA-OR US Aver.

200# 275#

$62.26

$72.05

$62.69 $82.80

$85.35 119.54

$73.13 101.29

97.32

99.89

90.86

113.65

OYSTER UP-CHARGE 8.34

8.34

8.34

8.34

8.34

8.34

275# DBL-WALL 350# DBL-WALL

107.46 118.45

114.69 129.32

116.54 137.25 117.82 145.56

141.08

122.76

148.46

131.80

CANADIAN SHEET PRICES (AVERAGE) In Canadian Dollars, per 1MSF, local delivery included, under 50MSF single item order, truckload delivery. 200# 275# Oyster UC 275#DW 350#DW $78.56 $99.18 $9.00 $96.32 $105.83 CANADIAN LINERBOARD & MEDIUM The average prices reported are tabulated from prices PAID by various sources throughout Canada. Prices may be higher or lower in various areas of the country. The prices tabulated here are intended only for purposes of reference. They do not connote any commitment to sell any material at the indicated average. Transactions may be completed at any time at a price agreed upon by seller and purchaser. Prices are Canadian $ and per metric ton.

42# Kraft Liner 26#

Semi-Chem Medium

East West

$920.00 $965.00

$910.00 $945.00

AVERAGE CONTAINERBOARD PRICES.indd 1

3/7/19 2:04 PM

Peachtree Packaging & Display for being named a 50 P.O.P. Company by CREATIVE Magazine Top

“Advantzware's corrugated ERP plays a big role in helping to optimize our workflow on a daily basis. We are extremely grateful for the support and innovation they provide."

Chad Wagner, CEO Peachtree Packaging and Display

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November 23, 2020

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FBA: Shipments Jump (CONT’D FROM PAGE 1 )

Core Competency

ventories of liner and medium declined by 147,000 tons, the largest October drop in 13 years,” noted Storat. “At 2.18 million tons, inventories are now at the lowest level since November 2012. In the five months since May, con- tainerboard inventories have dropped continuously by an amount reaching 20.3 percent at the end of October.” AF&PA reported that containerboard mills ran at 98.1 percent capacity in October and medium mills ran at more than 100 percent of rated capacity during the same peri- od. Kraft mills ran at 99.5 percent of capacity and recycled mills ran at 95.6 percent of capacity. “A large share of the reason that box demand is holding up so strongly amid weak overall conditions is because of consumers’ increasing willingness to purchase goods online,” noted Storat. “However, the travel and shopping restrictions brought by the coronavirus pandemic acceler- ated purchases beyond anyone’s projections. Year-over- year growth since March has risen by between 20 and 30 percent. “Currently, e-commerce accounts of 15.5 percent of all sales and has been rising at an average monthly rate of 3.2 percent since March, more than triple the growth rate of total sales since the pandemic has impacted our econ- omy.” Storat wrote that imports of non-durable goods are still supplying most of the spending growth, as exports of packagable goods have declined.

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Chicago Electric Sales Inc. To Move To Larger Facility

Hanver Park, Illinois based Chicago Electric Sales Inc. has announced it is moving to a larger facility to support the growth of business. The 46,000-square-foot building at 865 Muirfield Drive in Hanover Park, Illinois, is three times the size of the current location, and will support new ini- tiatives in robotics and logistics, as well as traditional busi- ness of corrugating industry upgrades and automation systems. The facility will serve as a Center of Excellence, includ- ing a Training Center, a Logistics and Robotics Demonstra- tion Area, and Technology Development Laboratory. The new building will be a shared resource with the parent company of Chicago Electric, BHS Corrugated. “The new facility will support our corrugated upgrade

products and provide a platform for continued growth with BHS Intralogistics and robotic automation solutions,” said Chris Clark, President of Chicago Electric. The move will be completed by March of 2021.

K&B Names Renschler New CEO And President In a year-long transition designed to provide smooth continuity and maintain its strong growth and partnerships with its customers, Koenig & Bauer (US/CA) has confirmed that Kilian Renschler, its current Executive VP of Sales, has been named the new CEO and President. After 11 years at the helm of Koe- nig & Bauer (US/CA), Mark Hischar will be retiring as of December 31, 2020. “Kilian takes the reins at a time of strong, sustained performance, and we believe he has demonstrated the ability to contin- ue Mark’s innovative vision and impressive holistic management style,” said Claus Bol- za-Schünemann, CEO of the Koenig & Bau-

er Group. “As a seasoned executive, he has the perfect mix of skills and experience to drive the company’s continued success and lead us forward delivering strong financial and operational results, business develop- ment, and most important of all, providing the industry’s best customer experience.” Kilian Renschler, left, and Mark Hischar.

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November 23, 2020

40 ft of paper travel from preheater to hot plates 3 seconds of heat, glue and bonding 1 chance to get it right! the ZONE

Design & Production

Chicago Electric offers 10 technology solutions to control ‘the Zone’ CORRUGATOR Sectoral preheating plate

Our sectoral preheating plates provide direct heat by means of a double steam circuit, allowing for efficient heating in hard-to-access locations, as well as to act as a steam shower to open the paper’s fibre, making it receptive to absorbing the heat and the glue.

This translates into increased speed and improved quality of the cardboard sheet finish.

The system’s main advantages are as follows:

• The plate may only be used to heat, only to humidify, or both options at the same time. • The plate is sectored, which allows for applying humidity to the sections. • It provides temperature in previously inaccessible locations and near the location needed. • It compensates the loss of temperature dissipated due to distance, speed or limitations of the exiting preheaters. • Quick transferring of heat to the paper. • The combination of the hot plate and steam shower allows for providing heat even to the hardest papers to heat. • Does not dry out the paper. • Possibility of operating as a humidifier and pre-conditioner. • Maintains and improves the fibre’s elasticity. • Acts according to the operator’s needs. • Facilitates the paper’s hygroscopy to absorb the glue and improve rubberising.

CONTROLLABILITY

1. Wrap Arm - Position & Temperature 2. Preheater Direct Drive

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

3. Steam Plate 4. Contact Roll 5. Glue Machine Direct Drive Touch Productivity Issue—Glue Unit Many glue units run with a rider roll or a guiding bar system. The rider roll with paper gap allows a precise glue application, but requires frequent Contact Roll

PRODUCTIVITY

C/ Orfeó Català 13-15 · 08440 Cardedeu (Barcelona) telf: +34 93 846 01 06 · comercial@al-gar.com WWW.AL-GAR.COM

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

calibrations and settings. Bar systems avoid this, but compensate this with the risk of exces- sive glue application. The system contains many wearing parts. Solution The contact roll combines the ad antage of both systems and ensures minimum contact between board and applicator roll. The system uses small pneumatic cylinders in order to achieve a “soft touch.”

6. Gap Control 7. Curved Plate 8. Roller Shoe Press When it comes to a short-term increas of web tension, spring loaded systems with shoes or airpressure activated system have problems in compensating these. The system is lifted for a short time. This may result in de-lamination and in the ‘double kiss’ effect. Solution For a defined and exact bonding point of the web fiv weight rollers will be installed usually over the first flat hotplate of the heating section. The rolls are mounted into a frame, which is actuated by means of two pneumatic cylinders. P oductivity Issu —Double Kiss Bonding

PRODUCTIVITY

PRODUCTIVITY

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

Roller Shoe

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

9. Thin Wall Hot Plates 10. Pressure System Benefits —Exact glue application due to defined contact of applicator roll to web. Web is in contact to less flute tips compared to bar systems. • High precision glue application • Less moisture applied to web —No wear of shoes and springs —No adjustment of shoes or paper gap —Uniform glue application over entire working width for all flutes by use of pneumatic cylinders instead of springs — Less contamination by paper dust and glue remains —No jam of board because of web breaks caused by splice joints going through 630-784-0800 Benefits —Rollers secure exact defined first point of contact of liner and single-faced board - No double kiss —Frame design avoids unintended lifting of roller shoe (compared to spring or air loaded systems) - No double kiss —Pressure can be increased or released for special grades or products 490 Tower Blvd., Carol Stream, IL Contact Chicago Electric to GET IT RIGHT 630-784-0800 info@chicagoelectric.com chicagoelectric.com Solution The ProPress system ensures an optimum heat transfer to the board. It offers a wide range of set- tings. The loadi g pressure can be varied, the number of shoes can be lifted in accordance t the line speed. The outer shoes can be lifted in accordance to the paper width. The shoe bars will be delivered pre-assembled for a short installation time. —Liftable for easy paper infeed and for cleaning of the machine —Position adjustable in paper direction to avoid grooves in hotplate Press Productivity Issue—Poor Heat Transfer Rollers are usually limiting the heat transfer, since they often have contact mainly on the edges of the plates due to wear or bent plates. They also cause often loss of caliper and bearing need to be replaced frequently. Airpressure actuated systems can only supply a limited pressure and have com- pared to shoe systems a closed surface. Pressure Shoe

Plate vity Issue—Poor Heat Control l hotplates are slow to react to pressure due to high steam volume and massive y also have high heat radiation and heat profile. Worn plates can damage crease edge crush.

Thin-Wall Hot Plates

t by peripheral drilled hot plates. anufactured out of special wear and nt steel, through which a continuous is drilled, with one inlet and one outlet. ecured by a massive steel frame.

CORR24usa.com

ance from steam to paper surface results in fast heat flow n higher plate surface temperature

Benefits

NAM: Manufacturing Layoffs Fell To Lowest Levels Since February 2017 According to the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), there were 456,000 manufacturing job openings in September, pulling back somewhat from the 469,000 postings in August, which was the best reading since July 2019. Overall, there were 1.95 unemployed workers for ev- ery one job opening in September, down from 4.6 in April but up from 0.8 in February. Encouragingly, non-farm business layoffs decreased from 1,533,000 in August to 1,333,000 in September, an all-time low. Meanwhile, layoffs in the manufacturing sec- tor declined from 102,000 to 90,000, the lowest since February 2017 and well below the 635,000 layoffs in April. One sign of improved health is the “churn” seen in the labor market, and the number of quits has rebounded in recent months. This is also reassuring. Non-farm payroll quits rose from 2,839,000 in August to 3,018,000 in Sep- tember, the most since February, and manufacturing quits edged up from 207,000 to 212,000, a one-year high. Producer prices for final demand goods increased 0.5 percent in October, the strongest monthly gain since July, boosted by sizable increases in energy and food costs. Yet, inflation for raw material goods was flat in October. Overall, core producer prices have risen 0.9 percent year- over-year, the highest since March.

Box Shipments ( U.S. Corrugated Product Shipments) Industry Shipments In Billions of Square Feet Month October 2020

Year

Actual

Percent Change Avg Week Percent Change

2020 2019

37.396 35.888

4.2

8.499 7.802

8.9

Industry Total

Year-to Date

October 2020

Year

Actual

Percent Change Avg Week Percent Change

2020 2019

337.942 330.090

2.4

7.933 7.785

1.9

Industry Total

Containerboard Consumption (Thousands of Tons)

Year

Month

Percent Change Year-to-Date Percent Change

2020 2019

3.0635 2.9470

4.0

27.6535 27.1498

1.9

Container Board Inventory - Corrugator Plants (Thousands of Tons)

Corrugator Plants Only

Date

Percent Change Weeks of Supply

Percent Change

Oct.

1.8156 1.9511

-6.9

2.6 2.9

-10.3

Sept.

Shipping Days

Year

Month

Year-to-Date

2020 2019

22 23

213 212

SOURCE: Fibre Box Association

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SETTING STANDARDS in Corrugated Solutions

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AICC To Offer New Webinar: Driving Organic Growth

es. Driven by the voice of the customer, Lawrence has a career history of converting insights into practical action plans that yield higher revenues, higher margins, and in- creased ROI for her clients and their customers. Adams is a chemical engineer and holder of many pat- ents and innovation awards, including a listing in the Na-

AICC, The Independent Packaging Association, will offer a new webinar, Driving Organic Growth, Thursday, Decem- ber 3. This webinar will help attendees understand and im- plement voice of the customer interviews, which will foster better customer insights. Better customer understanding can lead to higher cus- tomer loyalty, superior new products, and ultimately rapid, profitable, sustainable growth. Kelly Lawrence, Founder and CEO, Lawrence Innova- tion and a coach for The AIM Institute and Dan Adams,

tional Inventors Hall of Fame. One of the foremost experts in B2B in- novation, he has taught B2B pro- fessionals in every region of the world in hundreds of workshops. An award-winning speaker, Adams has lectured at Wharton’s Execu- tive MBA program and other North American & European universities

Founder and President, The AIM Institute, and author of New Prod- uct Blueprinting: The Handbook for B2B Organic Growth , will share their years of experience with par- ticipants and help them learn the latest methods in conducting virtu- al customer interviews. For more than two decades,

Dan Adams

and is an industry keynote speaker. Registration for Driving Organic Growth is $250 for members and $500 for non-members. This webinar is part of the All Access Pass. Pass holders can use their promo code to register at no additional cost. AICC members lower training costs and streamline payments with the All Access Pass. For one payment of $1,695, participating companies are given a code that all employees can use to register for every webinar sched- uled through August 2021. Each company also receives a recording of each webinar. Register for Driving Organic Growth at www.AICCbox. org/Calendar.

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Lawrence has delivered results for B2B innovators around the world, including Berkshire Hathaway’s Lubrizol & For- tune Brands’ Moen. A widely recognized marketing expert who truly understands industrial B2B, her teams typically deliver hit rates that dramatically exceed industry averag-

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November 23, 2020

BW Papersystems, HP Join Forces On High Speed Digital Corrugated Packaging Solution In HP and BW Papersystems are combining their respective proficiencies in digital printing and analog printing and converting to drive cost out of the process of making graphic corrugated packaging. They are propos- ing a near-line solution that integrates an HP PageWide C500 single pass digital press with a BW Papersystems rotary diecutter. The line will enable corrugated packaging providers to deliver high-speed digital capabilities, ideal for displays, personalization, e-commerce, and the shortest runs with the lowest converting costs, according to Ted Samotis, Director of Go-To- Market for HP PageWide Industrial Corrugated.

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“Our intent is to deliver on a lowcost value stream that can compete effectively in markets such as litho lam, litho label and smaller quantity postprint,” he says. Examples of suitable applications include pizza boxes, beer cases and pet food trays, all of which represent lucrative markets for corrugated converters but require several processes to manufacture. For instance, pet food trays often consist of three or four different sizes for several hundred SKUs of product. In the traditional model, labels are printed on an offset press and then laminated and diecut. “With these market verticals there is a misalignment in the market need and the manufacturing and the supply chain to deliver that market need effectively,” he says. “Our job is to develop solutions that can meet the market and do it in a way that moves closer to make to order.” The current supply chain trends of make to order, closer to point of use and more distributed manufacturing are closely aligned with the value of digital printing, according to Samotis. “The number of brands converting to a digital supply chain is growing, and the capacity is increasing in the corrugated industry, but more work is necessary to drive down the con- verter’s cost to make a box,” he says. It is estimated that less than five percent of corrugated plants have dig- ital printing capabilities. “In other printing markets inkjet has been around a long time but it has failed to capture a significant share of the volume in corrugated because it’s too expensive versus the analog alternative,” he says. “The difference between commercial printing and graphic corru- gated packaging is that once an item is manufactured in a digital supply chain, it rarely goes back to an analog supply chain.” Samotis acknowledges that the cost of ink has been a barrier to adop- tion. Comparatively, the inks are more expensive than flexo or offset. How- ever, he points out that with digital printing’s ability to batch print and man- age the information flow it can be a catalyst to drive down converting costs in other areas of the value chain. Board converters might naturally question the efficiencies of coupling two machines together where a rotary diecutter becomes subordinate to a digital printer. Samotis says it is not about optimizing one routing step. It’s about optimizing a value stream and maximizing contribution dollars per hour.

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November 23, 2020

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New AICC Webinar To Focus On Sales Meetings To Drive Revenue AICC, The Independent Packaging Association, will offer a new webinar, Impactful Initial Sales Meetings to Drive Rev- enue, Friday, December 4, with popular sales speaker Ed Wallace, President, AchieveNEXT Human Capital. First impressions can set the tone for all future inter- actions. This webinar will help attendees maximize the impact of their first meeting. Sales professionals invest a great deal in acquiring initial meetings with prospective customers. This webinar will help them learn how to avoid common mistakes and create a targeted conversation pre- call plan, use the ROC process, a simple, three-step ap- proach that transitions from rapport to meaningful meeting topics, and finally take control of setting the agenda for the next steps. This webinar will build the confidence and capabilities of sales professionals. Registration for Impactful Initial Sales Meetings to Drive Revenue is $250 for members and $500 for non-members. This webinar is part of the All Ac- cess Pass. Pass holders can use their promo code to reg- ister at no additional cost. For one payment of $1,695, par- ticipating companies are given a code that all employees can use to register for every webinar scheduled through August 2021. Register for Impactful Initial Sales Meetings to Drive Revenue at www.AICCbox.org/Calendar.

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Do you need printed sheets? We have your answer.. Introducing Heartland’s ColorCorr. This is “flexo-printing in the round”. On our corrugator we can print up to 109” wide. The advantage is that we can print the equivalent of ½ roll at a time and not be required to keep several rolls of very expensive preprinted paper on the floor. Much less waste and risk. In continual print mode, we use either laser-engraved rubber rolls or solid rubber rolls to print a “flood coat” or a repeating pattern. If we are printing a repeating pattern, we can run a two-color design on the paper. Customers have found that running sheets we print can allow them to run a lighter-grade due to reduced caliper loss, and in some cases eliminate one or more machine passes.

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November 23, 2020

AF&PA Announces Award-Winning Sustainability Projects The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) has an- nounced its annual Better Practices, Better Planet 2020 Sustainability Award winners, which recognize exemplary sustainability programs and initiatives in the paper and wood products manufacturing industry and are awarded based on the merit of entries received across multiple cat- egories. “We had a record number of submissions to our Bet- ter Practices, Better Planet 2020 awards program, which underscores that sustainability is a top priority for our industry, even in the midst of a global pandemic,” said AF&PA President and CEO Heidi Brock. “I continue to be impressed by our industry’s commitment to leadership in sustainability. Our members are constantly striving to

reach new limits of possibility and these awards give us an opportunity to shine a spotlight on innovative sustainabili- ty success stories.” AF&PA’s Better Practices, Better Planet 2020 Sustain- ability Initiative is one of the most comprehensive sets of sustainability goals established for a U.S. manufacturing industry, nearly a decade ago. The initiative recognizes the three essential pillars of sustainability — economic, en- vironmental and social — interdependent factors that col- lectively support long-term viability, growth and improve- ment. The Sustainability Award winners demonstrate the industry’s long-held commitment to improving practices to build a better planet today. AF&PA congratulates the fol- lowing winners: Leadership in Sustainability – Energy Efficiency/ Greenhouse Gas Reduction : Resolute Forest Products: Modernization of Coosa Pines (Alabama) Mill Helps Re- duce Resolute’s Carbon Footprint Resolute’s $4 million

upgrade to the Coosa Pines mill’s cogenera- tion turbine resulted in a 65 percent reduc- tion in purchased energy and enabled the mill to self-generate 40 percent of its ener- gy use in 2019 and to increase total energy sourced from renewable sources, including biomass and hydroelectricity, to 68 percent. Leadership in Sustainability – Safety: Clearwater Paper: Aspects & Impacts Pro- cess to Identify and Reduce Serious Injuries and Fatalities (SIF) Risks: Taking a proactive and systematic approach, Clearwater Paper’s risk-based assessment program resulted in an immediate improvement in specific safety targets and employee engagement – each site met their 20 percent improvement goal within the first year. Leadership in Sustainability – Sustain- able Forest Management : Evergreen Pack- aging: Family Forests – The Key to Certified Success: Through major investments in re- gional programs, Evergreen Packaging is reducing barriers and increasing access for small landowners to participate in forest cer- tification programs and increase sustainable forest management practices in the region. Leadership in Sustainability – Water : Sappi Somerset Mill’s Caustic Reclaim & Re- use: Sappi North America’s Somerset Mill designed and installed an innovative system that recovers used sodium hydroxide during boiler feed water preparation and repurpos- es caustic. The process has reduced the use of caustic purchases of wood-related prod- ucts by 660 tons per year, reduced water use by more than 12,000 gallons per day, as well as reduced acid consumption in the waste- water treatment plant by 816 tons per year

DESIGNS THAT INCREASE PRODUCTION

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CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

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Domino Digital Printing Promotes Brunn To Digital Project Manager Gurnee, Illinois based Domino Digital printing announced that it has promoted Joshua Brunn to Digital Printing Proj- ect Manager. “Domino Digital Printing contin- ues to grow during these challeng- ing times,” said Eric Van Patten, Projects and Installation Manager. “We continue to build upon our strengths and add talent to sup- port our growing customer base. Joshua has proven instrumental in achieving this growth. I am happy to announce the promo- tion of Joshua to Digital Printing Project Manager.” Brunn joined Domino in 2015 after a successful Naval career, in which he spent 20 years in the U.S. Navy, ulti- mately achieving the rank of ET1. Initially starting at Domi- no as an installation engineer within the Coding and Mark- ing group, Brunn excelled in all areas. He transitioned to the Digital Printing team in 2017, where he continued to provide excellent installations, build great customer rela- tionships, and develop continuous process improvements. During his time on the Digital Printing installation team, Joshua earned his bachelor’s degree in Business Manage- ment. Joshua Brunn

AF&PA Announces (CONT’D FROM PAGE 16)

Innovation in Sustainability – Large Company : West- Rock: Pak On Demand Pouch System: Pack On Demand is a major advance for the paper-based packaging mar- ket, enabling companies to produce right-sized, highly, sustainable fiber-based pouches. The innovative pouch system uses automation to increase packing rates by up to five times. In addition, the fiber-based pouches are 100 percent curbside recyclable. Innovation in Sustainability – Small Company : Ap- pvion: Innovative and Sustainable Direct Thermal Tech- nology: Appvion’s patent-pending technology is the next innovation in direct thermal paper. CleanSlate is a transfor- mational technology that eliminates chemical developers and leuco dyes, as well as chemical reactions to form the image. The first application of CleanSlate Technology is point-of-sale (POS) receipt paper and Appvion has applied the technology to thermal label and ticket products as well. Innovation in Sustainability – Small Company : The Price Companies: Restoration & Management of Margin- al Agricultural and Timberlands The Price Companies are increasing conservation and sustainable forest manage- ment practices throughout the Mississippi Delta region, enhancing the profitability of marginal agricultural and tim- berland and restoring many of the original features that make the Delta unique. Visit sustainability.afandpa.org/awards for more.

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Money making machine

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Registration Open For AICC Webinars On Meeting Customer Expectations AICC, The Independent Packaging Association, has opened registration for a new webinar series, “Under- standing Our Capabilities to Meet Customer Expectations,” December 8-17, with Geoff Roznak of Further North, LLC. The four-part webinar series will help sales and cus- tomer service professionals and production leaders better understand their own companies’ capabilities. They will learn the questions to ask of their team members to be able to serve their customers. This webinar will build attendees’ confidence and ca- pabilities with topics including leveling expectations, why to avoid building spot colors, impact of flutes, plate lim- itations, line weights, and much more. This critical knowl- edge allows all team members who interact with custom- ers to give them accurate and valuable information about how your company can serve them. Roznak spent more than 36 years in the corrugated in- dustry in varied roles, starting on the plant floor in the early 1980s and progressed through structural design, customer service, a stint as quality manager when corrugated plants were first certifying to the ISO 9000 standards, and finding his way to championing the high end of direct print on cor- rugated. That experience was spread over both integrated and independent converters with positions at Longview Fi-

ber, Packaging Corporation of America (PCA), and Great Northern Corporation. Roznak also serves with the Flexographic Technical As- sociation (FTA) on the “Excellence in Flexography” compe- tition committee, and currently represents corrugated con- verters on the FTA’s board of directors. He has a passion for printing on corrugated as well as a passion for front end process that efficiently gather critical information from customers and deliver it to the plant floor. Being optimistic that there is always a solution for a problem and a way to improve the current state has led to many satisfying im- provements in both processes, as well as many awards for high-end print. Registration for all four parts of Understanding Our Capabilities to Meet Customer Expectations is $750 for members and $1,450 for non-members. This webinar se- ries is part of the All Access Pass. Pass holders can use their promo code to register at no additional cost. AICC members lower training costs and streamline payments with the All Access Pass. For one payment of $1,695, par- ticipating companies are given a code that all employees can use to register for every webinar scheduled through August 2021. Each company also receives a recording of each webinar. With more than 50 webinars scheduled, the All Access Pass represents a value of $12,500. Learn more at www.AICCbox.org/Pass . Register for “Understanding Our Capabilities to Meet Customer Expectations” at www.AICCbox.org/Calendar .

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American Carton Co. (CONT’D FROM PAGE 1 )

located next to an eight-color Komori GL40, also equipped with UV capabilities. The new press is running a diverse mix of business. “We can switch the business between the two presses with ease,” says Trent Tucker, ACC General Manager. “It’s very versatile,” Harris adds. “It’s not something that gave us new capabilities. There really wasn’t anything that we couldn’t run for customers that we now can. We needed to replace an older piece of equipment and this press is a workhorse for us. The gains in efficiency and run speeds has been a real game changer.” With speeds of 18,000 sheets per hour and faster setup times, American Carton Co. has seen about a 50 percent increase in throughput. “In some cases it’s up to 70 per- cent quicker,” Tucker says. With the newer technology and automation, ACC gained valuable time- and cost-saving features. “One of the things we did not have was the link between prepress and press. Getting the ink presets and the profiles for the printing units has helped reduce our waste tremendously. That’s where we’re getting a lot of time savings,” Tucker says. This feature is part of Komori’s Connected Automa- tion, which centrally connects production systems and machines, eliminating the need for human intervention. The integrated workflow from prepress to press reduces touchpoints and streamlines production on the GLX press.

The 51,000-square-foot facility operates two-shifts. There are 12 machine centers, including two Komori offset press- es, three Bobst diecutters and four Bobst folder-gluers. Additional lines include a Maxson sheeter, Heiber + Schro- der window patching machine and Lamina laminator. The company uses an Epicor ERP system.

Made For Cartons The newest press, operating since March, is a six-color Komori Lithrone GX40 (GLX640) with both conventional UV and UV LED. It replaced an older Komori press and is The new Komori Lithrone GX40 is located alongside an exist- ing eight-color Komori GL40.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 24

MEASURE MANUFACTURER’S GAP FROM THE BUNDLE WITH GAPCHEK

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GapChek™, the latest corrugated vision system from Valco Melton’s ClearVision division, moves the measurement point to the bundle so that the lead and trail gaps are measured on finished boxes. GapChek displays live measurements of each gap and per-bundle averages with statistical process control charts on-screen Users can look at per-job and per-box gap data and analyze historical trends for certain box designs or customers.

Adhesive Dispensing & Quality Inspection Systems World HQ: +1.513.874.6550 | ask@valcomelton.com For more information visit: www.valcomelton.com

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American Carton Co. (CONT’D FROM PAGE 22)

Value And Reliability Joe Harris invested in ACC’s first Komori press 20 years ago, and the second generation owners continue to see their value and reliability. “We’ve been very pleased with the presses,” Jana Harris says. Tucker agrees. “ Komori has been a great machine,” he says, pointing out that the

“What was appealing to us was the fact that the GLX is meant to be a folding carton machine,” Tucker says. “Most of Komori’s presses have been more paper presses that can run paperboard. This machine is designed to run pa- perboard. The feed table is fantastic and so is the delivery, the way it handles paperboard and quick changes.” The press averages about four to six jobs per shift, run- ning primarily paperboard grades. Thicknesses range be- tween 16 and 24 pt., and in some instances have been as low as 10 pt and as high as 30 pt. “With this press we can definitely go much thicker. We are looking at 36 pt. That’s nice to be able to run some extra thick board,” he says. It can also print medical inserts for customers, some- thing that ACC was not offering previously. “We have quite a few customers that need that so that may become some- thing we’re going to do more of,” Harris says. Due to the differences in size — the six-color is 41-inch and the eight-color is 40-inch — the printing plates are not interchangeable. “Even though we switch jobs between the two we have to be strategic about it and make sure we have good scheduling plans so that we don’t have to make two sets of plates,” Tucker says. American Carton makes new printing plates for every job, even for repeat business. This eliminates the need to store printing plates and ensures the highest quality for every job.

press that was replaced had over 300 million impressions. “And it still had a tremendous print quality. We were able to achieve G7 and maintain color and had no problem on either press producing the high-end graphics a lot of our customers are looking for.” To date, the increased printing capacity has not re- The flow of work in process is designed to “pull” from printing.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

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November 23, 2020

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American Carton Co. (CONT’D FROM PAGE 24)

and can handle the volume so we haven’t had to add any- thing,” Harris says. “I can see our next purchase probably being another blanker.” Outside vendors, such as Marbach, supply the cutting dies. With the complexity of the dies Tucker says it has been more efficient to outsource, but in-house tooling pro- duction is being considered. “We’re at that tipping point right now for the justification for it,” he says. Best Of The Best ACC is a certified Women’s Business Enterprise (WBENC). “Jana and Jenise are definitely driving the com- pany,” Tucker says, adding that their management style is more about people than profits. “Our owners here are not so much focused on what kind of money we are going to make them, but more about what lives they can impact as far as how many more people they can employ and impact more families. That’s pretty neat.” With the additional printing capacity, the plan is to con- tinue to grow and add to the ACC family. “We’re currently at $13 million in sales and I think we can get to $25 million with our existing equipment. However, knowing us, we’ll purchase a few more things between now and then,” Har- ris says. Aligned with the planned investments and growth is the focus on quality. The company has a number of glob- ally-recognized certifications to meet the quality and U.S. FDA safety compliance requirements of its clients. This in-

quired any additional investments in diecutting or gluing. The production flow is designed to “pull” from printing. “We try to have the bottleneck be printing because that’s where you have most of your investments and ex- pensive materials,” Tucker explains. “Diecutting and gluing really try to pull so we try to minimize our WIP there.”

The plant has two Bobst 102-E diecutters and a Bobst Novacut 106-ER diecutter with blanking capability. Of the four gluers, two were purchased in the last five years. “Most of our equipment is fairly new and very efficient There are two Bobst 102-E diecutters and a Bobst Novacut 106-ER diecutter with blanking capability.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

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