AICC Great Lakes Summit Hits Home Run With Members In Cincinnati Members of AICC, The Independent Packaging Associa- tion, gathered for the 2025 Great Lakes Summit August 12–13 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The two-day event blended
networking, plant tours, and industry insights, kicking off a sweltering Tuesday evening with a social outing and networking event attended by about 40 members at The
AICC President Mike D'Angelo welcomed the team from SUN Automation Group to the Triple Play Suites at The Great Amer- ican Ball Park in Cincinnati.
Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. Members watched the hometown Reds take on the NL East division-leading Phil- adelphia Phillies in a game won by the Reds, 6-1. Wednesday’s program opened with tours of Akers Packaging Service Group and Hummingbird, a Georgia-Pacific com- pany. Akers Packaging, a family-owned company with 15 facilities across six states, is one of the largest independent corru- gated converters in the Midwest. The Mid- dletown, OH plant manufactures its own corrugated sheets on a 98-inch Fosber Corrugator, enabling in-house customiza- tion and short lead times. It converts its board on five Isowa flexo folder gluers, among others. The facility also houses a design services team and ISTA-compliant packaging testing services. Hummingbird specializes in digital inkjet printing for corrugated packaging, producing digitally pre-printed rolls and sheets for direct conversion or distribution through its national network of converters. The plant’s 110-inch wide web press sup- ports large format needs with short-run customization and scalable production ca- pabilities. Following a networking lunch at the Hyatt Regency, attendees heard presenta- tions from economic and AI experts. Tara Bayke, Economist and Senior Consultant Speaker for ITR Economics, presented an economic outlook and analysis of market conditions impacting today’s box making plants. Bayke joined the ITR Economics team in 2025, bringing with her a wealth of experience working on both state- and CONTINUED ON PAGE 12
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www.boardconvertingnews.com
August 18, 2025
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