March/ April 2015 AICC BoxScore

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TESTIMONIAL VIDEOS

AICC/FBA 2015 Industry Fly-In & Nationals Baseball!

June 1 & 2, 2015 Washington, DC

We shall images courtesy Destination-DC

with

speak

Join your peers in the packaging industry as we address our legislators as one industry with one voice. The AICC/FBA 2015 Industry Fly-In will take place June 1 & 2 in Washington, DC. This year we will again partner with the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) for their 2015 Manufacturing Summit.

One Voice

Preliminary Schedule* at a Glance * Schedule is preliminary events, timing and location subject to change

Monday, June 1, 2015 AICC/FBA Welcome Reception – 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm AICC/FBA Dinner (optional) – 7:15 pm – 9:30 pm Tuesday, June 2, 2015 AICC/FBA Briefing Breakfast Meeting – 8:30 am – 11:00 am NAM Briefing Luncheon Meeting –12:00 pm – 1:30 pm

Go to bat on The Hill, then enjoy a few innings with the Nats! ™

Congressional Meetings (Capitol Hill) - 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm NAM Congressional Reception - 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Washington Nationals Baseball Game (optional) – 7:05 pm Note: The NAM Manufacturing Summit continues on Wednesday, June 3.

Join us on Tuesday, June 2 for a fun filled evening of baseball in the Silver Slugger Suite at Nationals Park! Unlimited food and drinks and a pool table are included. Come out and enjoy the game as the Washington Nationals take on the Toronto Blue Jays. nd

Accommodations: The Liaison Hotel Capitol Hill 415 New Jersey Ave, NW, Washington, DC Hotel Room Rate – $269 (plus tax) Hotel Cut-Off Date – May 11, 2015 Reservations – (866) 233-4642, or reservations@affinia.com (reference – AICC Corrugated Industry Fly-In – for group rate) For more information, contact Laura Mihalick at LMihalick@aiccbox.org

AICC – PO BOX 25708 – Alexandria, VA 22313 – 877.836.2422 – aiccbox.org FBA – 25 NW Point Blvd. – Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 – 847.364.9600 – fibrebox.org

A PUBLICATION OF AICC—THE INDEPENDENT PACKAGING ASSOCIATION

March/April 2015 Volume 19, No. 2

AICC Grows Up Finding a Purpose, Filling a Need

ALSO INSIDE The Future of Packaging The Power of Customer-centricity

4

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

TABLE OF CONTENTS March/April 2015

•

Volume 19, Issue 2

COLUMNS

50 FEATURES

50 THE FUTURE OF PACKAGING

Online buying seems to be augmenting ­—not replacing—forays into brickand-mortar retail outlets.

60 THE POWER OF

??

60

CUSTOMER-CENTRICITY

How a simple mindset change can position a business for long-term success in the “Age of the Consumer.”

66 40 YEARS OF AICC

1980–2000: AICC Grows Up: Finding a Purpose, Filling a Need

80

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

8

SCORING BOXES

17

ASK RALPH

18

THE HIDDEN FACTORY

22

SELLING TODAY

24

TACKLING TECH

26

A VIEW FROM THE FLOOR

28

INSPIRATIONAL INSIGHTS

30

SUSTAINABILITY

76

LEADERSHIP

84

ASSOCIATE ADVANTAGE

86

FINANCIAL CORNER

94

THE FINAL SCORE

DEPARTMENTS

66

SPECIAL SECTION: FOLDING CARTON AND RIGID BOX Move over, chipboard: microflute makes inroads

7

12

MEMBERS IN THE NEWS

16

NEW MEMBERS

35

GOOD FOR BUSINESS

46

MEMBER PROFILE

90

ICPF UPDATE

80

BoxScore is published bimonthly by AICC—The Independent Packaging Association, PO Box 25708, Alexandria, VA 22313, USA. Rates for reprints and permissions of articles printed are available upon request. AICC is an international trade association representing a majority of independent North American manufacturers of packaging products and the suppliers to the industry. AICC members are represented by 538 boxmaking locations and 482 supplier locations, both segments of which are offered a full array of membership services, programs, and benefits. The statements and opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of AICC. The publisher reserves the right to accept or reject any editorial or advertising matter at its discretion. The publisher is not responsible for claims made by advertisers. POSTMASTER: Send change of address to BoxScore, AICC, PO Box 25708, Alexandria, VA 22313, USA. ©2015 AICC. All rights reserved.

BOXSCORE www.aiccbox.org

5

OFFICERS Chairman: Greg Tucker, Bay Cities Container Corp.

First Vice Chairman: Tyler Howland, Sound Packaging LLC Vice Chairman: Mark Williams, Richmond Corrugated Vice Chairman: Tony Schleich, American Packaging Corp.

DIRECTORS-AT-LARGE Brad Albright, Touchpoint Packaging Jay Carman, Stand Fast Packaging Products Joseph Palmeri, Jamestown Container Companies Marco Ferrara, Cajas de Cartón Sultana Al Hoodwin, Michigan City Paper Box Jana Harris, Harris Packaging Corp./American Carton REGIONAL DIRECTORS Region 1: Don Simmons, Empire Container & Display Region 2: Matt Davis, Packaging Express Region 3: Kevin Ausburn, SMC Packaging Group Region 4: Eric Elgin, Oklahoma Interpak Region 5: Jeff Ramsey, Central Florida Box Region 6: Clay Shaw, Batavia Container Inc. Region 7: Finn MacDonald, Independent II Region 8: John Forrey, Specialty Industries Inc. Region 9: Vacant Region 10: Peter Hamilton, Rand-Whitney Corporation Region 11-12: John Franciosa, Coyle Packaging Group Region 14: Yair Caballero, CorrEmpaques Overseas: Kim Nelson, Royal Containers Ltd. President: A. Steven Young, AICC Headquarters Immediate Past Chairman: Mark Mathes, Vanguard Companies Chairman, Past Chairmen’s Council: Chuck Fienning, Sumter Packaging Corp.

Secretary/General Counsel: David P. Goch, Webster, Chamberlain, and Bean Counsel Emeritus: Paul H. Vishny, Esq. ASSOCIATE MEMBER DIRECTORS Chairman: Brian Kentopp, Bobst Vice Chairman: Keith Umlauf, Haire Group Secretary: Jeff Pallini, Fosber America Director: Ed Gargiulo, Equipment Finance Corp.

Immediate Past Chairman: Kevin Widder, Automatan ADVISERS TO THE CHAIRMAN Kim Nelson, Royal Containers Ltd. Jerry Frisch, Wasatch Container PUBLICATION STAFF Publisher: A. Steven Young, syoung@aiccbox.org Editor: Taryn Pyle, tpyle@aiccbox.org EDITORIAL/DESIGN SERVICES The YGS Group • www.theYGSgroup.com Executive Editor: Kelly Crane Winkler Managing Editor: Lori B. Racey Copy Editor: Steve Kennedy Assistant Managing Editors: Ashley Reid, Melanie Bracey VP, Marketing Services: Jack Davidson Graphic Designer: Zon Buckley Account Manager: Kali Eskew SUBMIT EDITORIAL IDEAS, NEWS, AND LETTERS TO: BoxScore@theYGSgroup.com CONTRIBUTORS Director, Meetings: Cindy Guarino, cguarino@aiccbox.org Director, Latin America: Maria Frustaci, mfrustaci@aiccbox.org Director, Membership: Virginia Humphrey, vhumphrey@aiccbox.org Administrative Assistant: Chelsea May, cmay@aiccbox.org President, ICPF: Richard M. Flaherty, rflaherty@icpfbox.org ADVERTISING Information: Taryn Pyle, tpyle@aiccbox.org Opportunities: Howard Neft, InTheKnow Inc. 847-899-7104 • thneft@aol.com Norman Summers, The Advertising Sales Department 301-652-8862 • norman@salesdept.net Folding Carton and Rigid Box Advertising: Taryn Pyle 703-535-1391 • tpyle@aiccbox.org AICC PO Box 25708 • Alexandria, VA 22313 BOXSCORE Phone 703-836-2422 • Toll-free 877-836-2422 • Fax 703-836-2795 March/April 2015 www.aiccbox.org

6

Chairman’s Message

LEARN TO WIN

W

ow! It’s hard to believe we are celebrating 40 years of service for AICC in Naples, Florida, at the end of April. I can remember going to my first AICC Region 1 meeting 31 years ago and shortly thereafter traveling to Chicago and having the opportunity of a lifetime to watch and listen to the likes of Bill Flinn, Richard Eastwood, Hardy Sanders, Jack Grollman, and Mike Harwood teach the crowd the basics of printing flexographically on corrugated and the various marketing opportunities this brought about for many companies represented in the audience. This presentation in itself got me hooked on corrugated.

My mind was thinking of a million ways to help our clients get more out of the shipping instrument known as the box. I actually drove my whole career from that one AICC meeting.

This year’s meeting in Naples will celebrate your Association, which has trained, inspired, and entertained you and many of your employees for 40 years. Let’s not forget the networking done by all of the AICC members! Along with three days of general sessions, workshop tracks, networking, and the 2nd Annual Independents’ Cup golf tournament, we will be hosting the 40th Anniversary gala dinner. You don’t want to miss this one! I have heard that past presidents and chairmen are coming in from all over North America to participate in this event—even Dick Troll will be making a special guest appearance.

The Naples meeting will also feature Holly Green. Holly comes from The Human Factor and has helped Bay Cities move from a lifestyle company to a professional company in the last three years. She has helped get rid of the sacred cows of the past and truly and insanely set our sights on winning.

“Our choice was between continuing down the path that almost dropped us off a cliff, or picking up the company and driving it toward winning.”

Holly’s approach complements my goal as your chairman, to help as many companies as I can move from a lifestyle company to a professional one. I have received many emails and letters complimenting me on the honesty with which I have written of the trials and failures of our own company and the disciplined work we did to lead ourselves out of a very dark, black hole. We are on a strong path toward professionalism. Please know that one of the strongest values of our culture is fun. This journey, albeit hard, has been extremely rewarding and fun. I described the transformation of the self-serving lifestyle company toward the unencumbered, firing-on-all-cylinders professional company. Our choice was between continuing down the path that almost dropped us off a cliff, or picking up the company and driving it toward winning. This is not just about winning—it is about the process of winning wildly, which will continue as we move forward and will drive our culture and our aspirations.

The meeting in Naples in April will bring forth the strategic processes Bay Cities has been working on during the past few years. We have tried many “flavors of the month” and many different people and

styles of strategic management. What we finally found was something and someone who truly helped us become winners.

Holly Green and her process of strategic agility have helped transform Bay Cities. I want to wholeheartedly share her outlook, techniques, and methods with all of you.

Holly’s approach is one of the tools that we have employed in order to become wildly successful. She is working with the AICC staff to put together an affordable, tailored process plan that will help all of you grow your companies to levels you never considered. I encourage you to come to this meeting and learn to win.

Let’s go have some fun!

Greg Tucker Chairman/CEO, Bay Cities Chairman, AICC

BOXSCORE www.aiccbox.org

7

Scoring Boxes

WHERE’S THE BOARD?

BY DICK STORAT

8

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

CHART 1

Containerboard Flows - November 2014 (000 tons)

Production: 2,881

@94.3% Op. Rate

Imports: 87 (Est)

Box Plant Inventory: 177

No

Corrugators

5

Consumption 2,231

4

4

(000 Tons)

Capacity: 3,056 Unmade: 3,056

Liner: 2,078 Medium: 804

3

3

2

2

1

Mills

Mill Inventory: 95

Other Uses (Imputed): 433

Made for Export: 385 MADE1

EXPORTED2

353 32 385

428 60 488

NOVEMBER

Liner Medium Total 1. AF&PA

2. US Census Bureau

1

OCTOBER

Source 2014 Richard Storat & Associates, Inc.

CHART 2

Unidentified Uses of Containerboard

N

450 400 350 300

(000 Tons)

A

round the middle of each month, America’s independent boxmakers turn their attention to the monthly statistics released by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) and the Fibre Box Association (FBA). These monthly statistics provide the best indication of market conditions and the relative balance between the supply of containerboard and the demand for corrugated packaging in the U.S. Understanding this is vital for independent boxmakers, because linerboard and medium make up the largest cost component of corrugated packaging.

Chart 1 shows the flow of containerboard from its production at paperboard mills to its consumption on the nation’s corrugators.

November’s containerboard production is adjusted for inventory changes at the mill and at box plants, but not for changes in inventory that are “in transit” between the mills and box plants. Adjustments are also made for containerboard trade.

Imports—mostly from Canada—are added to production, and the amounts of containerboard reported by mills as being produced for export are subtracted.

Other uses are the imputed residual amounts of containerboard left over after accounting for corrugator consumption and adjusting for mill and box plant inventory changes and trade flows. Other commercial uses of linerboard and medium that do not involve corrugation or the converting of corrugated sheets into finished packaging or other products at facilities that do not report data to the FBA are included in this category.

Other factors can also contribute to this residual amount. Increases in containerboard that has left the mills and is not reported as mill inventory, but which has not been received by box plants and

250 200 150 100 50 0 -50 -100

2012

2013

2014

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC Source: AF&PA. FBA

®

“Craftsmanship is what we are proud to give our customers.”

Chad Jones Assembly Watch video:

www.iplayerhd.com/player/ALFjr

BUILT IN AMERICA www.alliancellc.net

5303 E Desmet Avenue Spokane, Washington 99212 509 535-0356 info@alliancellc.net

Scoring Boxes

CHART 3

November Unidentified Uses of Containerboard 500

s

450

443

350 300

50 0 07

08

09

10

11

12

13

14

7 YR AVG

Source: AF&PA. FBA

quantity over time should tend to net out the reported as inventory there, is called increases and decreases in in-transit inventory “in-transit” inventory. Such an increase November Unidentified Usesand ofalso Containerboard remove short-term timing fluctuawould add to unidentified uses, while a tions in the difference between mill-reported decrease would reduce unidentified uses.

500 and census-reported exports. During 2012 Also, if actual exports of containerboard 450 and 2013, unidentified uses averaged 400 the amount that mills have reported exceed November Unidentified Uses of Containerboard 350 as production for export, the difference will 183,000 tons per month, about 42 percent 500as a contribution to other uses. of the unusually high November amount. show300up 250450 Additionally, last November’s amount was Overreporting of containerboard 200400 at mills or underreporting of more than double the seven-year average of production 150350 consumption would also result 212,000 tons. (See Chart 3.) corrugator Over 2012 and 2013, there was an in a100 larger quantity of imputed other uses.

300 50 AF&PA Containerboard average difference of 59,000 tons per November’s unidentified uses of contain250 for Export 0 month between census export data and erboard amounted to 433,000 tons, or 15 200 Census Containerboard 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 Exports 7 YR mill production for export.

(See Chart 4.) percent150 of U.S. containerboard production AVG 3 per. Mov. Avg Source: FBA (See Chart 2.) This was the In part, it is believed the higher census data for theAF&PA. month.

AF&PA Containerboard for Export 100 may include exports other than containerlargest amount recorded at any time during 11 12 13 14 3 per. Mov. Avg Census Containerboard Exports exports the pastSource: 11 AF&PA. years,US and a record monthly jump board. Also, actual containerboard Census Bureau may exceed mill-reported production, of 325,000 tons. Averaging this imputed

c.

110

(000 Tons)

212

(000 Tons)

443

258

258

239

238

200

242

c.

CHART 4

C

November Unidentified Uses of Containerboard

BA

500

(000 Tons)

450 400 350 300 AF&PA Containerboard for Export

250

ABC SHEET PLANT 200RECONCILIATION HOUR AND CONTRIBUTION NOVEMBER 2014 ciliation - November1502014

100

EXO 2

C

212

258

110

100

239

238

150

200

200

258

250

242

(000 Tons)

400

RDC

FLATBED

11 SFG

LITH/LAM

Census Containerboard Exports 3 per. Mov. Avg

12 OTHER

Source: AF&PA. US Census Bureau

3

3

10

3

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

2

BA 2.1

1.1

2.1 3

1.4

0.5

TOTAL HRS 3.2 1.2 8 3 3.25 3.2 2.1 4.9

CONTRIB. CONTRIB. 13PER HR. % 14 358 260 373 199 322 333 263 478

26.9% 39.0% 19.2% 39.2% 13.9% 32.9% 55.1% 34.6%

AF&PA Containerboard for Export

3 per. Mov. Avg Census Containerboard Exports

because production not initially earmarked for export may be exported eventually by Corrugated Containers Reusable Pla brokers or Annual otherContainer nonmill entities. $1,109,000 Cost: Annual Replenishme However,Annual even ifCost: the full average Label $10,000 Annual Label Cost: CC Trucking Costs: $6,234,236 RPC Trucking Costs: export difference was subtracted from the Total trucking costs include Total trucking cos trucking and any standing cost trucking and any s average monthly unidentified uses, the at unloading and loading. at unloading and CC Handling Costs: $43,129 RPC Handling Costs result—124,000 tons—provides some meaTotal handling costs including, Total handling cos unloading,monthly handling, and amount loading. unloading, handlin sure of the average of other CC Operating Impacts: $0 RPC Operating Impac Operating impacts are detailed Operating impact commercial nonreported uses of containat various distribution points. at various distribu erboard. But that still leaves 309,000 tons Disposal Cost (or Recycling Value): ($99,700) Disposal Cost (or Re CC Inventory Value: $30,806 RPC Initial Cost: of November containerboard production CC Inventory Interest Cost: $2,464 RPC Annual Amortiza unidentified except as “in-transit” inventory Annual CC Cost: $7,299,130 Annual RPC Cos increase or as reporting error.

Reporting error is not thought to be a significant contribution to imputed other uses.

AF&PA and FBA regularly receive data from what is thought to be in excess of 90 percent of actual industry production, and they take Reusable Plast audit stepsCorrugated to identifyContainers the nonreporting Annual Container Cost: $1,109,000 Annual Replenishment share of capacity.

Both organizations are also Annual Label Cost: $10,000 Annual Label Cost: Trucking Costs: $6,234,236 RPC Trucking Costs: thought toCCprovide a careful review of data Total trucking costs include Total trucking costs and any standing costerror in the trucking and any sta such that a trucking monthly reporting atDetails unloading and loading. at unloading and loa ( ”Drill Down”) of RPC Renta CC Handling Costs: $43,129 RPC Handling Costs: range of 10 percent of monthly production Total handling costs including, Total handling costs 0T360 Northwest Onions 12-17-14 handling, and loading. unloading, handling could hardlyunloading, go unnoticed.

Cost Owner: Retailer (Onions) CC Operating Impacts: $0 RPC Operating Impacts Based upon this analysis, it appears that Full Disclosure Model Rental Costsa Operating impacts are detailed Operating impacts at various distribution points.

Corrugated RPC Varianceat various Feesdistributio Othe there is somewhere the range to (1) of up (2) (3)=(2)-(1) (4) (or Recy (5) Disposal Cost (orin Recycling Value): ($99,700) Disposal Cost CC Container Inventory Value: $30,806 RPC Cost: $0 $0 Initial$0 300,000 tons of missing board, $0most likely CC Label Inventory Interest Cost: $2,464 RPC $0 $0 $0 Annual Amortizatio a temporaryTrucking increase in inventory $6,234,236 not $6,722,992 $488,756 Annual CC Cost: $7,299,130 Annual RPC Cost $38,974During $37,561 ($1,413) $0 included in Handling the reported figures.

Va Operating Impacts $0 $22,700 $22,700 November, mills and box plants$0reported CC Inventory $0 Recycling/Disposal ($99,700) $0 $99,700 a combined RPC decrease of 82,000 tons of $0 Amortization $0 TOTALinventory,$6,173,510 $6,783,253 containerboard an unusually large$609,743 $0 $0 amount for November. (Over the past five years, an average increase of 10,000 tons has been typical for November.)

The upshot of all this is that one can expect that reported inventories are set to rise by somewhere in the range of up to Details ( ”Drill Down”) of RPC Rental 200,000 tons during the end of the fourth 0T360 Northwest Onions 12-17-14 quarter andCost into the beginning of 2015 of RPC Renta Details ( ”Retailer Drill (Onions) Down”) Owner: beyond what0T360 historical data analysis would Full Disclosure Model Rental Costs Northwest Onions 12-17-14 Corrugated RPC Variance Fees Other Cost Owner: Grower-Shipper suggest, as these “in-transit” inventories (1) (2) (3)=(2)-(1) (4) (5) Full Disclosure Model Rental Cos $0 $0 $0 $0 show up atContainer box plants. Corrugated RPC Variance Fees O Label $0 $0 $0 (1) (2) (3)=(2)-(1) (4) Trucking $6,234,236 $6,722,992 $488,756 Container $1,109,000 $0 ($1,109,000) $1,140,000 Handling $38,974 $37,561 ($1,413) $0 Label Impacts $10,000 $16,600 $22,700 $6,600 Operating $0 $22,700 $0 CC Trucking Inventory $0 $0 $0 $0 Handling $4,155 $5,133 Recycling/Disposal ($99,700) $0 $99,700$978 Impacts $0 $136,800 $136,800 RPCOperating Amortization $0 $0 CC Inventory $2,464 ($2,464) TOTAL $6,173,510 $6,783,253 $609,743 $0 $0 Recycling/Disposal $0 $0 $0 RPC Amortization $0 $0

Richard Storat is president of Richard Storat & Associates. He can be reached at 610-282-6033 or storatre@aol.com.

TOTAL

$1,125,620

$158,533 ($967,087) $1,140,000

$

$

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Members in the News

C&M Conveyor Promotes Hodgkinson to Product Manager–Roll Handling C&M Conveyor Inc. announced it has promoted industry veteran Evan Hodgkinson to the newly created position of product manager–roll handling. The appointment is part of an ongoing growth plan to increase capacity in all areas of C&M’s operations to meet the industry’s growing demand for C&M’s materials handling solutions. It also reflects a renewed emphasis on the company’s line of paper roll–handling equipment.

Evan Hodgkinson

Baumer hhs Names New President and Sales Representative Baumer hhs announced the appointment of Chris Raney as hhs president and welcomes new salesperson Rob Bradshaw to accommodate demands of continuous growth.

Raney brings more than 25 years of industry experience to his new role, with more than 10 years in the folding carton market in North America. Bradshaw will be based in Illinois as the Midwest sales manager and will lead Midwestern region sales efforts.

Photo courtesy of Kiwiplan

Photo courtesy of Metsä

Chris Raney

Caption

Metsä Board Wins Hong Kong Print, Folio Awards Metsä Board has won the Championship for Environmentally Friendly Printing award in the Hong Kong Print Awards 2014 for its Metsä Skincare box set. The glueless rigid box demonstrates how innovative packaging for the cosmetic market can be made using 100 percent recyclable paperboard, avoiding plastic wrapping, while the inner cartons provide a unique user experience. The set was printed by Shenzhen Inpa Packaging Co. Ltd. In addition, Metsä Board magazine has won the B-to-B Overall Design category in the 2014 Folio awards for the January 2014 issue. It is the second time Metsä Board magazine has won this category at the Ozzies.

Kiwiplan Appoints Key Executives Cincinnati, Ohio–based Kiwiplan Inc. has promoted Ryan Brown as a senior account executive, specifically to work with independently owned corrugator and sheet plant customers in the U.S. and Canada. Brown joined Kiwiplan in January 2013 and will be working closely with Dana Disney, a senior account executive, who has been with Kiwiplan since 1995.

Ryan Brown and Dana Disney

Ronald Diedeman

12

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Bob Matthis

SUN Automation Group Appoints Diedeman, Matthis Pat O’Connor, SUN Automation Group chairman, has named Ronald Diedeman as president. Diedeman will oversee the continued success of the SUN625 Rotary Die Cutter (RDC) and the CorrStream digital printer, as well as other innovative products.

SUN Automation Group also announced that Bob Matthis has joined the company to further develop its SUN625 RDC initiatives. In his new role, he will optimize product development, identify market opportunities, and provide and implement high-quality solutions for customers.

Members in the News

Frantz Retires From Huston Patterson Huston Patterson Corp. Chief Operating Officer Stephen Frantz announced his retirement after 50 years of service to the package print industry, effective January 1.

“It is with a heavy heart that I announce my retirement,” says Frantz. “I am truly blessed to have worked with the greatest clients, vendors, employees, and management that anyone could ever ask for. I have no regrets and will cherish the memories and experiences I have had at Huston Patterson and Sigma Graphics.”

Stephen Frantz

Harper/Love’s Cuccia Retires Lou Cuccia retired from Harper/Love Adhesives Corp. on December 31 after 28 years of service. Bill Kahn, Harper/Love general manager, comments, “Lou has been a valuable asset to Harper/Love, and to me personally. He is known within the company and the industry as an excellent teacher and trainer.”

“My 28 years with Harper/Love have been more than I would have ever thought,” says Cuccia. “Pam and I raised a fantastic family, put our kids through college, and traveled the U.S., Europe, and South America. The most rewarding has been the people.

We have made friends everywhere we went, many we expect that will last our lifetime.

We will miss all of you.”

Lou Cuccia and Bill Kahn

14

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

FFG 8.20 EXPERT

INTRODUCING THE MOST EFFICIENT SOLUTION FOR MANUFACTURING CORRUGATED BOXES. NOW YOU CAN PUT AN EXPERT TO WORK FOR YOU.

www.bobst.com

New Members

WELCOME AICC’S NEW MEMBERS EAGLEWOOD TECHNOLOGIES PETE MULHERAN President 6409 Goodrich Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55426 Phone: 952-922-2910 Fax: 952-922-2976 www.eaglewoodtech.com petem@eaglewoodtech.com

JAYCOX CONSULTING, LLC LONNIE JAYCOX Owner 4027 Magnolia Ave. St. Louis, MO 63110 Phone: 314-696-0211 www.jaycoxconsulting.com lonnie@jaycoxconsulting.com

WHETHER YOU NEED A RIGHTY OR LEFTY TO HIT ONE OUT OF THE PARK FOR YOU . . .

CHOOSE KLINGHER NADLER LLP FOR ALL OF YOUR ACCOUNTING, TAX AND FINANCIAL NEEDS

“The Industry Experts” 580 Sylvan Avenue, Suite M-A Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 (201) 731-3025 Fax: (201) 731-3026 Info@Klinghernadler.Com

16

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

QUESTCOR CHRIS SALVADOR General Manager 5133 W. 66th St. Bedford Park, IL 60638 Phone: 708-458-7711 Fax: 708-458-7717 www.questcorrugated.com csalvador@pkging.com VOLUNTEER BOX, LLC JACK B. ROBINSON JR. President and Owner P.O. Box 1735 Gallatin, TN 37066-1735 Phone: 615-451-2996 Fax: 615-451-4023 www.edgeprotectors.us jrobinson@volunteerbox.com WESTERN COMPUTER LINDA COLLINS President 351 Candelaria Rd. Oxnard, CA 93030 Phone: 805-581-5020 Fax: 805-581-9399 www.westerncomputer.com linda.collins@westerncomputer.com

Ask Ralph

MICROFLUTE AND FOLDING CARTON REVISITED

BY RALPH YOUNG

The beginning of this article previously appeared in AICC’s weekly newsletter, inBox. This enhanced piece includes testing comparisons.

W

hile it may not have been a prominent theme in folding carton, rigid box, and corrugated, it is a subject that needs to be revisited. Many variables have changed. Almost 15 years ago, Vann Parker of Applied Paper Technology and I, at Mead Containerboard at the time, were investigating microcorrugated applications like G-, O-, E-, and F-flute engineered with 14# mediums and 30# kraft papers (10# linerboard) as replacements for some folding carton applications. Companies such as Flutes, Independent Corrugated, and Calumet Carton led this initiative.

Were those really the good old days? So, what has changed?

For one, the European market has really embraced the ultralightweight containerboard culture—actually, they own it! And they are at least 15 years ahead of us in producing the right carton/box for the enduse application. International companies like Smurfit Kappa have experience and expertise in this area. With their Board Referee testing methodology implemented across Europe, using three-point bending stiffness as a measure of packaging performance, and their Cor-Trade line of 750–850 micron which is 0.031 inches thick, KartonFlute corrugated to replace G- and T-flute—sheets aimed at the graphics and display channels—they are offering new substrates to folding carton and rigid box markets. Another innovation making the future less clear is the multiple joiners that can take three separate and distinct substrates and marry them together.

Stay tuned on this one.

Domestic corrugated independents are continuing to merge with likeminded folding carton/rigid box companies or form strong partnerships to learn and thrive together.

Consolidations and acquisitions continue in all packaging venues. The recent purchase of Cascades’ operations by Graphic Packaging will boost the latter’s market share of coated recycled board to 45.6 percent. More is held in the hands of fewer, and in this case, there’s a more focused view on end-use markets, as Graphic Packaging exited the uncoated recycled market last year. Let us know if you desire more detail about industry statistics and trends. BoxScore columnist Dick Storat is also here to assist you!

We have a good database of the different testing protocols and results among corrugated and folding carton/rigid boxes.

Taber, block compression, corner crush, flexural stiffness, and torsional stiffness are structural measurements we have for SBS, CNK/SUS, CUK, CRB, URB, and microfluted corrugated.

Taber Stiffness While used as the benchmark standard for folding carton grades, it has a use in corrugated. As one end of the small rectangular strip is held in a clamp, the other end of the strip is pushed to 7.5 degrees or 15 degrees from the original plane, and the amount of force or stiffness is measured.

For corrugated, we would probably use four-point bending stiffness or torsional stiffness to measure board rigidity.

Block Compression Here, four rectangular strips are placed in a jig and then in a small compression tester like the one we use for ECT, ring crush, flat crush, Concora, pin adhesion,

or corrugated flute crush. It is a measure of the vertical performance of the paperboard.

The tests are performed in both the machine direction and cross-direction axes.

Corner Crush In this test, two test strips are scored at 90 degrees and placed in a jig and then in a compression tester. Now we are measuring the strength of the solid fiber paperboard when it has a manufactured corner. We don’t use this test in corrugated, but it’s interesting to observe the structural difference in the paperboards used in the solid fiber and folding carton applications, which of course relate to fiber quality and papermaking technology.

With every increasing use of flexography in folding carton printing, we should be able to bring network contacts alongside to assist in understanding surface and drying characteristics.

Since low-caliper and low-basis-weight SBS grades can find their way into labels and top sheets in the more conventional corrugated markets, we have data on the individual strength properties that they bring forward, whether the sheets are composed of virgin, recycled, or chemical, thermal, mechanical pulps (CTMP).

We are here to serve you. And there are much more technical details and research comparisons—yes, in the metal file drawer, but also up on the cloud.

Ralph Young is principal of Alternative Paper Solutions and AICC’s technical adviser.

Contact Ralph directly at any time about any technical issues that impact our industry at ASKRalph@aiccbox.org.

BOXSCORE www.aiccbox.org

17

The Hidden Factory

SPRING CLEANING

BY LES PICKERING

I

t’s springtime, and I am always amazed at the diversity of the North American continent. On the East Coast, the land is still sleeping under snowstorms; in California, we are enjoying the first lemons of the year in our salads and cocktails. For the industry, this is a time of opportunities and tasks that are diverse but ideal for this time of year.

Diversity can be seen in many box plants. During the holidays, when most people are at home with their families, many people in maintenance and

engineering work hard installing large corrugator upgrades. Following this comes a time when the balance of the team becomes involved through training and getting a handle on their new processes.

Everyone on the team has their part to play at different points on the timeline to make all that hard work a success.

Preparing to Be Busy Spring is historically a quieter time as product in the pipeline has been consumed by the holidays, creating a

vacuum in many sectors of the market.

During this quieter time, let’s get to work preparing for the busier times in the coming months.

Cleaning — Spring is a great time for high bay cleaning, painting, and lighting of areas six feet and above in the plant. Constructing and working around gantries is too disruptive at times of high productivity. Lighting efficiencies have come a long way with LED options, and most locations have rebate programs to enable you to make

During the quieter times in your plant’s production schedule, work on curb appeal for those all-too-important customer tours.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Congratulations AICC on

40 Years

of Service to the Independent Converting Community

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The Hidden Factory

these upgrades at little or no cost. Solar is also a workable alternative. This year may be the time to seriously inquire about fitting solar arrays on the roof and to provide shaded parking areas for team members, allowing solar arrays to be fitted on top of the canopies.

Inventory — No better time to take stock of slow- or nonmoving pallets. Look for pallets with several stocktake indicators, a great opportunity to alert the sales representative to get in front of the customer to get a decision on the orders. Look for damaged pallets of materials caused by fork trucks in the warehouse—dust is not the only visual indicator.

Tooling — Many facilities take this time to color-tag their cutting tools and remove tooling that has expired. These are time-consuming projects, so why not purge twice a year, eventually moving to monthly purging, as best-in-class operations do?

Don’t underestimate the importance of the tooling library within the facility. It is the one consumable you cannot replace quickly.

In the event of catastrophic loss of a main conversion line, you can remove it and replace it relatively quickly. You cannot do that with the catastrophic loss of tooling. It’s simply not possible to replace large amounts of tooling quickly, so maintain and look after it. Print plates that use a hanger system can use a color for each year. Change the color each year so that you know the last time the plate was in use. Having colored hangers allows you to purge the print plates quickly and effectively at year’s end.

Ink — Time to rework one-year or older ink. Now look at the cost of ink that you may be considering to either rework or write off as an asset. This cost to the bottom line is because ink is traditionally stored in a FILO (first-in, last-out) method, with buckets resting on top of each other. The problem with this is that the oldest in is on the bottom, and obtaining the oldest ink is more difficult than it needs to be. If ink were stored in a FIFO (first-in, first-out) method, this would remove the problem altogether,

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

reducing operational cost. When you go to the supermarket for milk, the oldest carton is presented closest to you, to make it as easy as possible for you to choose the oldest carton. This directly reduces waste seen as old inventory, plus you don’t have to count, manage, and purge old inventory. (See Inventory.)

Signage — Check whether signage is still necessary or needs moving. Are the fire extinguishers all marked clearly? Some plants are now painting on roof columns, a band six feet down from the roof to indicate the location of a fire extinguisher, allowing you to see even when pallets are close to the post.

Are door swings entrapped by pallets? Are all electrical panels clear of materials? Remove

about your company, what you are proud of, and why the customer should be doing business with your company. Feature cost reductions, quality improvements, inventory turns, and other team member actions.

Display the delivery radius of the facility on a map to show the “reach” of your company.

On the wall to help facilitate this discussion, place a sign that showcases some ideal subjects to remember to share with your prospect: speed of delivery, cost reduction, foundation of the company, quality ratings for types of process, and new equipment being installed.

The customer landing conditions the customer to reflect on why you are better than the competition and what you are

New for 2015: Customer landings are prepared areas that facilitate you to talk about what is unique about your company. all handwritten signs and replace with sophisticated signage. Use colors to represent the level of hazard—blue for information, yellow for caution, and red for danger or forbidden. Use of icons and minimal text is a good direction to go.

Job Changeover — During these quiet times, let’s practice the changeover drill. If you analyze the amount of time the process is stopped on changeover and translate this to cost per minute, you will see how expensive minutes are—more so when you have flexo-folder-gluers (FFGs) stopped more often than running due to short run lengths. So practice the changeover drill with the aim of reducing time by 50 percent.

Customer Landing — For 2015, I would like to introduce what will be a new concept for many—customer landings. When you introduce prospects to the facility, early in the plant tour of both administration and operations, there will be a location where it is convenient to stop. Convert this area to what is termed the “customer landing.”

Customer landings are prepared areas that facilitate you to talk about what is unique

doing to stay competitive. Don’t assume the customer sees what you want them to see.

Return to the customer landing to review the plant tour to ensure you have communicated all the important and relevant points of the tour.

Success throughout the year requires the entire team be committed to an annual spring cleaning checklist. Your clients and prospects will take notice of your organized plant, instilling confidence that you will handle their jobs with the same organized care and attention.

Les Pickering is co-founder of Quadrant 5 Consulting, based in San Francisco. Les can be reached at 415-9880000 or leslie.pickering@ quadrant5c.com. Follow him and Quadrant 5 on Twitter at @Q5cLP.

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Selling Today

WHERE ARE THE HUNTERS?

BY KIM BROWN

T

here is a dilemma brewing within our industry and challenging many B2B companies today. To outline this problem, I’m going to tell you a story.

Six months ago I met Michael Anderson. Michael has been running a box plant for 18 years. They’ve done well—a profitable company with annual sales exceeding $25 million, employing 85 people and serving hundreds of customers. But lately, something is going wrong. The day we spoke, Michael had just fired another sales rep. This made four of the five he’s hired in the last few years.

“We can’t find any hunters,” Michael explained. “Too many salespeople only know how to sell on price or service our existing business. Anyone can do that. I need people who will find prospects, and talk about what we offer and how we help them. I just need to find some hunters that’ll hit the pavement every day, talk value, not price, and close the deal.”

Sound familiar? It is the most common complaint I hear from owners and sales managers. So, what’s going on with the lack of hunters?

Maybe we’re asking the wrong question. Remaining focused on a lack of hunters or where they are hiding is keeping us stagnant. The reality is that buying has changed, and selling has not.

There has been a dramatic change in how we purchase things. The Corporate Executive Board (CEB) recently conducted a study on changes in B2B buyer behavior. This study of 1,400 companies determined that on average, buyers complete 57 percent of a purchase process before they engage salespeople from potential vendors. This is an enormous shift that cannot be ignored.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Hunters don’t function well in a silo; they have high expectations of the people around them.

What are the implications of this data for us, as B2B sellers?

This significant change in buying behavior compels us to re-examine our selling process. Buyers are no longer responding to unsolicited attempts at communication, and they are less interested in granting us time to pummel them with questions in hopes of identifying a problem we can solve. They have a variety of potential suppliers offering the same solutions we continue to tell ourselves are unique and value-added.

Let’s set this significant trend aside for just a moment to examine another aspect impacting our world today.

Historically we’ve described our plants as either being sales-driven or production-driven. The past few years a new category has emerged, with many becoming more financially driven as CFOs play a heightened role in strategy development and decision-making. The majority of box plants believe themselves to be sales-driven organizations. Yet despite this description, they experience a decline in attracting new business and maintaining desired margin levels.

They’ve struggled to minimize attrition and build loyalty. The impact is evident in the bottom line and the fault commonly placed on the shoulders of

the sales department. Have your CFO work with the sales team to uphold the desired margins.

The typical response to disappointing financial results is to apply more pressure to our salespeople or terminate their employment and revert to seeking out the elusive hunter—the hero who will build a pipeline full of ripe opportunities, continually adding profitable top-line growth.

If only we knew where to find them.

Imagine you’ve just hired a top performer—the hunter who will bring in consistent new business at the margin levels you seek. She starts with you next Monday. Are you ready?

Now answer this question—not from your perspective, but from hers: Do you have the infrastructure, the tools, the personnel, and the culture in place to support her? To retain her? Hunters don’t function well in a silo; they have high expectations of the people around them.

They cannot thrive without the support and alignment of everyone on the team.

The buying process has changed, and this need for hunters will continue. Achieving the results we seek requires a new perspective on the selling process and a new definition of being a sales-driven organization.

We can run our business based solely on history, or proactively use this data on customer buying to build a better sales team. Rather than just dreaming of finding a hunter, Michael needs to reframe the strategy.

Kim Brown is the founder of Corrugated Strategies. She may be reached at 317-5064465 or kbrown@ corrugatedstrategies.com.

ThankYou, AICC. AICC Salute to Paul H. Vishny

AICC Hall of Fame Jack W. Schwarz

This past year AICC and Griffin Communications were awarded two Gold MarCom Awards by the Association of Marketing Communications Professionals: a significant peer recognition of accomplishment.

The first award was for this past Spring’s Hall of Fame video honoring Jack Schwarz. The second was Corrugated Week’s video Salute to Paul Vishny and his 40 years of service.

Our most sincere thanks go to AICC. Thank you for giving us the privilege of producing not only these two, but each of the Hall of Fame videos since 2002.

Getting to know the lives and achievements of the honorees is truly one of the high points of our year, and we greatly appreciate you entrusting it to us.

Association of Marketing & Communications Professionals 2014 MarCom Gold Winners for AICC Hall of Fame Jack W. Schwarz AICC’s Salute to Paul H. Vishny

410.296.7777 | NickG@Griffcom.com | GriffCom.com on the web

Tackling Tech

WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT BIG DATA?

BY GREG HEINZ

A

s a marketer working in the information technology space, I am constantly challenged by innovations that address key issues in business productivity and data security. I may not always comprehend terms such as big data, business intelligence, fabrics, and cloud computing; they require a little research to uncover their meaning. My goal is to share these findings with you and attempt to explain, in the simplest way possible, how these concepts can impact your business.

Today, let’s tackle “big data.”

Wikipedia defines big data as “an allencompassing term for any collection of data sets so large or complex that it becomes difficult to process using traditional data processing applications.”

Further digging reveals that there are two types of data: structured and unstructured.

Structured is the traditional data we capture from our business systems and store in databases. Unstructured is everything else—email, social media, website interactions, customer services conversations, etc.

The latter makes up nearly 90 percent of all data, which is eye-opening when you consider how much we rely on data to make informed business decisions and how little unstructured data we can comprehend.

When compared over history, the amount of new information generated today is shocking. Consider this: Researchers estimate that 90 percent of all the data in the world was created within the last two years.

The number they ascribe to the amount of data now in existence is 50 petabytes (1 petabyte = 1 million gigabytes). Translating this into a more tangible form, 50 petabytes would be equivalent to the amount of information you could store on the sheets paper made from 2.56 billion trees.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

While the numbers may be difficult to comprehend, the opportunity presented by big data is real. The challenge is figuring out what data is most important to your business, understanding how to capture it, and then translating the data into easily consumable and cost-effective matter. The reality is that the solution to measuring much of this data is “to be determined”; however, new business intelligence tools are making progress.

Big data is set to reach $16.9 billion in market size in 2015, displaying more than 500 percent growth from the $3.2 billon market in 2010.

Business intelligence can be defined as the set of techniques and tools used to transform raw data (big data) into meaningful and useful information for business analysis purposes. By leveraging today’s business intelligence systems, organizational leaders are able to see dashboards of detailed data on all aspects of their business, which for packaging manufacturers could include financial, production, and customer data. The goal is to leverage the data to achieve operational excellence and gain a competitive advantage.

Consider these four basic and very achievable objectives of business intelligence systems:

Fact-based decision-making — Accurate sales and financial data will improve decisions on product direction and operational improvements by offering profitability by product line, on-time shipping analysis, and trailer utilization.

Identifying opportunities — Act swiftly and correctly in response to new opportunities by knowing which customers are most profitable, historical quote-hit ratios, and average lead time based on order type.

Eliminating waste — Measure size and throughput by machine, department, and shift to identify areas of waste or loss that may have previously gone unnoticed in a large organization.

Tracking corporate objectives — With detailed information on individual employee, department, and plant performance, leadership can better align and track organizational performance against corporate objectives.

These examples are just a few of the opportunities available to organizations that are willing to buy into the big data hype. Those still considering should not wait, as the big data market is only getting bigger. According to an International Data Corp. forecast, big data is set to reach $16.9 billion in market size in 2015, displaying more than 500 percent growth from the $3.2 billon market in 2010. Plus, with a compound growth rate at 10 times that of the overall technology market, there is no denying its staying power.

Greg Heinz is director of marketing at Amtech Software and Futura Services. Greg can be reached at 215-639-9540 or at gheinz@ amtechsoftware.com.

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A View From the Floor

ROBOTICS, COMPUTERS, AND THE 21ST-CENTURY WORKFORCE

BY DEAN MITCHELL

M

uch has been written and debated about the loss of manufacturing in the United States and the role robotics and computer technology will play in making us competitive on the world stage once again. Also highly discussed is the failure of the American educational system to prepare our workforce for competition globally and its role in bringing manufacturing back to the U.S. There is much work to be done to change an educational system that places us 26th and just below the average in score results worldwide. Changing our educational system to better prepare our young people for securing good jobs and competing internationally seems to be on many of our new representatives’ agendas, but the fight is likely to be long and challenging.

Our efforts will be better spent focusing on what an owner, a machine operator, and a crew can do to compete with the low wages currently being paid in countries such as Mexico and China.

Several years ago I conducted an analysis of the labor cost to produce a box in Mexico versus the United States. I was able to compare like machinery and product mix. The interesting conclusion was that even though productivity in the U.S. was far superior, the low wages paid in Mexico resulted in a much lower cost per unit. When I asked how a U.S. box plant is supposed to compete, the answer was machinery with robotic capabilities or smaller crews with skills and knowledge that would reduce the crew size from a total of nine operating three machines to a total of five operating three machines. Unfortunately, both scenarios result in a loss of jobs for the American worker. Decisions will need to be made to

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

prevent plant closure and the loss of 100 to 150 jobs.

Let’s begin by looking at robotics and computer technology. Use of robots and advanced automation, as pointed out in an MIT study, “is growing in the industrial sector but also moving into clerical and retail work.” In the corrugated industry, machinery suppliers are offering equipment with robotic features designed to make them more productive and reduce the cost of labor. These machines are more and more automated, using computer technology to perform functions once done manually. It is possible that robotics could be used for feeding the machines and stacking off the machines, with the potential of one person managing the robotic and computer systems.

Most corrugators and converting machines are equipped with some form of computer technology to assist in machine setup and running. Remember when you bought your first machine with computerized features and the challenges it placed on the operator and crew? In fact, some never were able to make the adjustment.

The skills necessary to set up and run the machine manually were no longer as valuable. Computer skills and knowledge became the new value.

Another area in which computer technology has impacted production is the information and data that are now available at our fingertips. A huge cache of information is provided today by advanced management information systems (MIS). Both “real time” and historical information that can be used to improve productivity and lower cost could position U.S. box companies to be competitive globally once again. The availability of

It is possible that robotics could be used for feeding the machines and stacking off the machines, with the potential of one person managing the robotic and computer systems? data and information is the new challenge for today’s operators and crews. These are new skills and knowledge that American workers must have and employers are demanding.

As an owner, no matter whether you choose the robotics strategy, computer technology strategy, or the knowledge strategy, it will require an investment in the operator and crew. Let’s call it vocational or apprenticeship training. This training provides the skills and knowledge crews need to operate a machine equipped with robotics or computer technology.

Crews in our industry will perform fewer mechanical tasks and more cognitive tasks. Operators and crew members must have the skill sets to use the data and information now available to identify opportunities and develop processes for increasing productivity.

This leads to the questions: What are the specific skill sets and knowledge required to

be a 21st-century box plant operator and crew? Who will provide the necessary training to obtain these skills and knowledge?

Why should you and your company make this a priority? How do you hire the right people and retain the right personnel?

To compete, retain, and bring back manufacturing in America will require an investment in machinery, robotics, computer technology, and MIS data and information. The strategy you implement

will be unique to your location and customer base and the products and services you offer. However, one key to making your strategy work will be your willingness to invest in training.

In my next article I look at a method for identifying the various skills and knowledge for the box plant operator and crew in the 21st century—what those skills might be, the education and training opportunities offered by AICC, and where other training

could come from so your box plant’s workforce will be prepared to compete and succeed in a global world.

Dean Mitchell is president of The Mitchell Group. If you have questions or comments about doing business on a global scale, email Dean at tde55@aol.com.

Know-how makes your business, our business.

Providing equipment financing to the corrugated industry for over 15 years.

At People’s Capital and Leasing Corp., we offer: • Capital access for new/used equipment • Corrugated industry expertise • Comprehensive financial resources Our industry knowledge and understanding of your business can give you an edge in the marketplace.

ContaCt me today.

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203-591-2703 • Kevin.Hartney@peoples.com

©2012 People’s United Bank | Member FDIC | Equal Opportunity Lender

BOXSCORE www.aiccbox.org

27

Inspirational Insights

WOW THE CUSTOMER

BY MIKE NUNN

W

hen was the last time you were wowed? Do you remember the last time you wowed someone?

In business today there are many givens, from a competitive price and good-quality product and service to good people, but the key factor that separates good businesses from outstanding ones is the wow factor. We all have the ability to wow someone, and we all know what it feels like to be wowed, but sometimes we don’t reocgnize the opportunities to wow someone. If you want to be memorable, if you want to get ahead, if you want to make a difference, then start wowing people.

What Is a Wow? Just say yes, plain and simple. Too often we get into the habit of needing to justify and explain why something can or cannot be done. The reality, however, is that people don’t

care; they just want to know their request will be looked after. Just say yes. Take it to the next level; do what you say you’re going to do, clarify, go beyond expectations, and follow up after the task has been completed, the whole time being 100 percent sincere.

One of the subtle points to wowing people is to treat them as you would want to be treated. In today’s fast-paced world, we get bombarded with quick deadlines, indifference, and insincerity. You need to fight back against these negatives with honesty, integrity, and care. Be confident, take an interest in what people have to say, remember topics of conversation, and bring them up the next time you’re speaking with that person. Tone of voice always comes across loud and clear.

If you’re having a good or bad day, the other person can tell—trust me.

A wow is the unexpected, the little—or big—thing that someone does for you

HOW CAN YOU WOW?

Here are a few examples of how to wow your customers on a regular basis: 30 minutes, regardless whether you • Be a great empathetic listener. have an answer or not. Let the caller • Answer the phone in two rings know you are working on it. or fewer.

• Be committed to 100 percent • Understand a need, and then on-time delivery. meet it before being asked.

• Say yes. If your client needs boxes • Look for better ways to do sometoday, then that’s what you should thing or add value to something. do, without a negotiation.

Then pull the stakeholders together • Send quotes ASAP, usually within the hour. and make it happen.

• Guarantee your service. Here’s an • Don’t have an automated phone system. Most people prefer talking to idea: Boxes in five days or they’re free.

• Have fun. It shines through in how another human being. you come across to your customers.

• Return phone calls and emails in

Share your wow factor by writing to BoxScore@theYGSgroup.com.

Look for your wows in an upcoming issue.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

that you had no idea they were thinking about. It’s when someone follows up on an event or action to make sure everything went well in order to improve the next time or acknowledge a job well done.

Always try to read the situation, and have a good understanding of what needs to be achieved. If there’s any confusion, make sure to clarify expectations. Take it to the next level by looking at the big picture, then do the things that weren’t asked for but will add value. Go the extra mile, and people will be wowed.

Whom Should I Wow? You should always want to wow your customers—but who are your customers?

The answer is anyone and everyone who is a stakeholder in the business. Think of all the people you interact with every day—all the people you give paperwork to, all the people who are dependent on you for information, all the people who rely on your business existing. Who your customers are goes way beyond the people who buy and use your product or service; it also includes your co-workers, suppliers, vendors, and everyone each of these people networks with. Are you wowing these people? If you wow any one of your customers, think about how many people they will talk to about the positive experience they had in dealing with you.

Now what are you waiting for? Go wow someone!

Mike Nunn is operations team leader at Ideon Packaging and is Lean Blackbelt Certified.

Mike can be reached at 604-524-0524 or miken@ideonpackaging.com, or followed on Twitter @mikednunn.

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Sustainability

SHIPPING ONIONS IN CORRUGATED COSTS LESS

BY DENNIS COLLEY

G

rocery retailers are always looking for ways to improve profits by reducing costs throughout the entire distribution channel. Transportation packaging is one area retailers scrutinize for possible cost savings.

Real-world data to analyze the costef fectiveness of shipping-container options is available using the Full DisclosureSM modeling tool, which makes it possible to study the impact of multiple cost drivers on different container choices.

Full Disclosure was used to perform a direct cost comparison between using corrugated containers and using reusable plastic containers (RPCs) for shipping onions. The analysis showed that the corrugated solution realized a cost advantage of nearly $760,000 compared to RPCs. Onions Scenario In this study, it was assumed that 40 million pounds of onions would be shipped annually over 2,200 miles to the distribution center (DC) and then to retail stores. This approximates the distance from the Pacific Northwest to Columbus, Ohio, a distance that reflects the weighted average of shipping

distances to the actual distribution centers supplied by the onion grower.

These onions are packed into containers—either corrugated or RPCs—loaded onto standard pallets, and placed in 53-foot refrigerated trailers. Each pallet holds 40 RPCs or corrugated containers, and each truck holds 22 pallets (880 cases) of corrugated containers or 20.25 pallets (810 cases) of RPCs. Trucks weigh out holding 35,200 pounds of onions in corrugated or 32,400 pounds of onions in RPCs. The trucks then transport the onions to distribution centers, where pallet loads are reconfigured for retail, loaded onto delivery trucks, and distributed to retail outlets.

Once at the retail stores, pallets are unloaded from the trailers, and the onions are set up for retail presentation.

Empty corrugated containers are broken down and compacted for recycling.

RPCs accumulate at stores to fill one or more trailers, which then go to a washing facility in Chicago or Atlanta, then to Portland, Oregon, for staging—a weighted average distance of 2,400 miles.

After washing, the RPCs are shipped back to the grower-shipper as needed.

CHART 1 Full DisclosureSM Analysis Corrugated Containers Annual Container Cost: Annual Label Cost: CC Trucking Costs:

$1,109,000 $10,000 $6,234,236

Total trucking costs include trucking and any standing cost at unloading and loading.

CC Handling Costs:

$43,129

Annual CC Cost:

$63,690 $16,600 $7,626,025

($1,045,310) $6,600 $1,391,789

$149,043

$105,914

$159,500

$159,500

($43,036) $416,667 $84,265

$56,664 ($2,464) $84,265

$8,056,087

$756,957

RPC Handling Costs: Total handling costs including, unloading, handling, and loading

$0

Operating impacts are detailed at various distribution points.

Disposal Cost (or Recycling Value): CC Inventory Value: CC Inventory Interest Cost:

Variance

Annual Replenishment Cost: Annual Label Cost: RPC Trucking Costs: Total trucking costs include trucking and any standing cost at unloading and loading.

Total handling costs including, unloading, handling, and loading.

CC Operating Impacts:

Reusable Plastic Containers

RPC Operating Impacts: Operating impacts are detailed at various distribution points.

($99,700) $30,806 $2,464

$7,299,130

Disposal Cost (or Recycling Value): RPC Initial Cost: RPC Annual Amortization:

Annual RPC Cost:

Variance without RPC Amortization:

30

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

$672,693

Full Disclosure was developed by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) and the Fibre Box Association (FBA).

The Corrugated Packaging Alliance (CPA) is a corrugated industry initiative, jointly sponsored by AF&PA, AICC, FBA, and the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI). Its mission is to foster growth and profitability of corrugated in applications where it can be demonstrated, based on credible and persuasive evidence, that corrugated should be the packaging material of choice; and to provide a coordinated industry focus that effectively acts on industry matters that cannot be accomplished by individual members. CPA members include corrugated manufacturers and converters throughout North America.

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CC Inventory Recycling/Disposal RPC Amortization

Census Containerboard Exports 3 per. Mov. Avg

14

TOTAL

AF&PA Containerboard for Export

Sustainability

$0 ($99,700)

$0 $0

$0 $99,700 $0

$6,173,510 $6,783,253

$609,743

$0

$0

$0 $0 $0

$0 $99,700 $0

$6,783,253

$609,743

3 per. Mov. Avg

Census Containerboard Exports

RIB. CONTRIB. HR. % 358 26.9% 260 39.0% 373 19.2% 199 39.2% 322 13.9% 333 32.9% 263 55.1% 478 34.6% 356 13.9% 250 54.3% 397 32.7% 331 15.0% 261 28.1% 336 30.3% 320 20.2% 396 20.7% 277 22.8% 393 20.7%

CHART 2 Grower/Shipper Costs RPCs frequently impose obscure costs that are easy to overlook. In this situation, Details ( ”Drill Down”) of RPC Rental Costs vs. Corrugated the grower-shipper experienced three such 0T360 Northwest Onions 12-17-14 costs: additional labor at the packing shed; Cost Owner: Grower-Shipper more collapsed pallets at the DC; and Full Disclosure Model Rental Costs Total RPC Rental Cost RPC Rental vs. Corrugated monthly administrative and “add-on” fees.

Corrugated RPC Variance Fees Other (1) (2) (3)=(2)-(1) (4) (5) (6)=(2)+(4)+(5) (7)=(6)-(1) RPCs arrive wet at this grower-shipper Container $1,109,000 $0 ($1,109,000) $1,140,000 $1,140,000 $31,000 throughout the year, requiring additional Label $10,000 $16,600 $6,600 $16,600 $6,600 Trucking $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 labor to wipe down the containers before Handling $4,155 $5,133 $978 $0 $5,133 $978 feeding them to the filling line. When Operating Impacts $0 $136,800 $136,800 $136,800 $136,800 CC Inventory $2,464 ($2,464) $0 ($2,464) shipped over long distances, RPCs conRecycling/Disposal $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 sistently resulted in more collapsed pallets RPC Amortization $0 $0 $0 $0 TOTAL $1,125,620 $158,533 ($967,087) $1,140,000 $0 $1,298,533 $172,913 at the DC than corrugated. Finally, the grower-shipper found he incurred additional alone adds $100,000 to the annual cost of administrative costs and fees each month.

Full Disclosure data shows that in a These costs added up to about 13.5 cents per using RPCs. typical leasing arrangement, the retailer pays case in higher costs. Full Disclosure captures 9.9 percent more to receive onions shipped Corrugated Containers Reusable Plastic Variance Who PaysContainers for What? this additional cost as “operating impacts.” in RPCs as opposed to corrugated, and the Annual Container Cost: $1,109,000 Annual Replenishment Cost: $63,690 ($1,045,310) With corrugated shipping containers, the grower pays 15.4 percent more to ship in Annual Label Cost: $10,000 Annual Label Cost: $16,600 $6,600 grower pays for the containers and labor associClear Total Cost Picture RPCs (see Charts 2 and 3).

CC Trucking Costs: $6,234,236 RPC Trucking Costs: $7,626,025 $1,391,789 TotalFull trucking costs include analysis summarized in Total trucking costs include ated with managing them.

Once the truckload The Disclosure Initial arguments to justify the use of trucking and any standing cost trucking and any standing cost at unloading and loading. and the loading. leaves grower’s packing operation, retailers Chart 1 shows a total annual cost of $7.3 at unloading RPCs vs. corrugated were based on a supCC Handling Costs: $43,129 RPC Handling Costs: $149,043 $105,914 pay all handling million for corrugated position that RPCs were more economical Total handling costs including, vs. $8.06 million for Total handling costs including, and shipping costs but benefit unloading, handling, and loading. unloading, handling, and loading from the sale of the used corrugated containers RPCs—assuming the cost of initial RPCs in because they were reusable. Full Disclosure $159,500 CC Operating Impacts: $0 RPC Operating Impacts: $159,500 Operating are detailedIn other words, totalOperating are detailed atimpacts the end of the one-way trip, when they are the float impacts is amortized. case studies detail the impact of major cost at various distribution points. at various distribution points. recovered for recycling.

It does not work that packaging, shipping, and handling costs sensitivity factors on the total distribution $56,664 Disposal Cost (or Recycling Value): ($99,700) Disposal Cost (or Recycling Value): ($43,036) ($2,464) CC Inventory $416,667 way with RPCs. were 10.4Value: percent higher using$30,806 RPCs. RPC Initial Cost: system; and shipping container economics $84,265 CC Inventory Interest Cost: $2,464 RPC Annual Amortization: $84,265 A fair cost comparison must examine This analysis reveals that RPCs incur continually present a clear picture that Annual CC Cost: $7,299,130 Annual RPC Cost: $8,056,087 $756,957 the effect that either packaging alteralmost $1.5 million in higher trucking corrugated containers offer the lowest-cost Variance without RPC Amortization: $672,693 native has on the total system costs of and handling costs than corrugated. This supply-chain solution for fresh produce. distribution. If total costs go up, none is the result of higher trucking costs to These facts have been demonstrated in Full of the supply chain participants (grower, ship onions to the distribution center in Disclosure cost analysis case studies for RPCs, the RPC backhaul trip requirements, distributor, or retailer) can realistically strawberries, tomatoes, apples, broccoli, handling costs at return distribution centers, save money in the long run. As the total citrus, grapes, and watermelons. cost picture (see Chart 1) demonstrates, plus washing and warehousing costs. At Once again, the facts demonstrate that RPCs increase total system cost. an estimated $0.10 per container, washing corrugated is the most economical transport packaging solution. These cost benefits, in CHART 3 Retailer Costs addition to the ability to customize every corrugated structural design and graphics Details ( ”Drill Down”) of RPC Rental Costs vs. Corrugated for in-store merchandising, make corrugated 0T360 Northwest Onions 12-17-14 the most versatile and economical shipping Cost Owner: Retailer (Onions) container solution.

Full Disclosure Model Rental Costs Total RPC Rental Cost RPC Rental vs. Corrugated Corrugated

Variance

Fees $0

$0 $0

$0 $0 $488,756 ($1,413) $22,700 $0 $99,700 $0

$6,173,510 $6,783,253

$609,743

$0

(1)

Container Label Trucking Handling Operating Impacts CC Inventory Recycling/Disposal RPC Amortization TOTAL

32

$0 $0 $6,234,236 $38,974 $0 $0 ($99,700)

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

RPC (2)

$0 $0 $6,722,992 $37,561 $22,700

(3)=(2)-(1)

(4)

Other (5)

$0

$0

(6)=(2)+(4)+(5)

(7)=(6)-(1)

$0 $0 $6,722,992 $37,561 $22,700 $0 $0 $0

$0 $0 $488,756 ($1,413) $22,700 $0 $99,700 $0

$6,783,253

$609,743

Dennis Colley is the executive director of the Corrugated Packaging Alliance and president of the Fibre Box Association.

He can be reached at 847-364-9600 or dcolley@fibrebox.org.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

GOOD FOR BUSINESS

TIME MANAGEMENT 35 PRODUCTIVITY 36 TO-DO 42 PLANNING 43

BOXSCORE TIPS, TRICKS, AND SOLUTIONS TO BETTER BUSINESS

TIME MANAGEMENT The Small Habits That Improve Your Business

By Jeff Fernandez These days, it seems like there are an infinite number of tasks to juggle. That’s why it’s so important to stay on top of the details, no matter how tiny or tedious. Small changes—like reducing the amount of time you spend each day managing email or your remote team— can quickly add up, meaning you can spend your time growing your business instead of your to-do list.

Managing Time-Wasters One of the most insidious time sucks in the modern workplace is at your fingertips every day—and worse, it’s legitimately work-related. Ask almost anyone what they spend the most time on while at work, and the answer is bound to be email. Email is the basis of communication in the 21st-century workforce.

Professional email etiquette is just as crucial as efficiency, and it’s more than just good manners—it’s good management. For instance, knowing how to start and end a professional email takes a lot

of the guesswork out of communicating with co-workers, clients, and customers.

A professional greeting lets the recipient know that the topic is business, and a cordial and appropriate sign-off can eliminate the need for unnecessary responses as well as the need to go back and read them.

Knowing when to CC or BCC someone can also go a long way in saving time on email distribution. Create folders to keep all emails of a certain type together, and regularly archive emails that you have handled but that still contain information you may need to refer to later.

Email search will also save you tons of time when tracking down old messages, so make regular use of this feature even if your inbox is completely organized.

Checking your email the right way can also help keep you on task. A good way to do this is to set aside certain points of the day to check your email, and check it at only those times—if that’s realistic for your situation. Try setting your email program to check for messages only at your decided times if self-control isn’t enough to keep you from clicking that envelope.

BOXSCORE www.aiccbox.org

35

Good for Business

TIME MANAGEMENT Developing Good Habits Structuring your day and managing your workflow are the two pillars of any successful productivity strategy. Tasks should be outlined at the beginning of every day or at the end of the previous day, and nobody in the office should ever be unsure of what they are supposed to be doing. Setting productivity goals at the start of each day gives both you and your employees concrete objectives to work toward instead of an endless procession of menial tasks.

Good physical habits are often an underrated part of success. As clichéd as it may sound, a good diet, moderate exercise, and the appropriate amount of sleep will actually help you feel better and miss work less often, maximizing your potential as a leader and decision-maker.

Work habits are important as well, and business owners in particular must evaluate their methods on a regular basis to ensure they’re still best for the business.

A clean physical and digital workspace minimizes distractions and promotes clarity of mind, allowing you to focus on the task at hand.

Putting your business in the best position for success means managing your resources wisely, and time is the most valuable and irreplaceable asset a business has. Time truly is money, and making sure not to waste either in the early stages of growth can make the difference for your company.

Jeff Fernandez is the co-founder and CEO of Grovo, a learning platform that is closing the growing digital skills gap with highly engaging 60-second videos. Fernandez is also a member of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invitation-only organization comprising the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs.

PRODUCTIVITY 7 Productivity Apps You Never Want to Be Without

By Brittany Hodak In entrepreneurship and in life, the most valuable commodity is time. There’s never enough of it, and yet a staggering amount is spent doing the mundane tasks that come with running a business day to day.

I hate inefficiency, and I loathe wasting time, so I’m always looking for the latest cool gadgets to help me get things done quicker and easier. The following are some of my favorite productivity hacks that I use daily. These apps, plug-ins, and tools have helped me become a more effective CEO by freeing up dozens of hours a month that would otherwise be relegated to things everyone hates doing.

The best things in life are free, and these tools are no exception. Each one is either free forever or comes with a free trial—you’re welcome.

Optimize Your Inbox From reaching inbox zero to implementing folder-palooza, everyone has their own method of managing their email. Regardless of your preference for dealing with messages, these five apps are style-agnostic and will save you lots of time and frustration. I promise.

1. Boomerang I love using Boomerang even more than I love saying “Boomerang.” This plug-in has changed my entire email behavior.

It’s a genius tool that adds a “send later” button to your messages, allowing you to schedule your emails to go out at a chosen time. It also lets you “boomerang” messages—directing your emails back to your inbox under specific sets of circumstances. It’s a great tool to use for new business or press pitches if you want to be reminded about something; e.g.,

36

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Good for Business someone hasn’t replied to your email after three days. Try it: It just might change your life—or at least your inbox.

Cost: Free (basic plan) or $14.99/month (professional plan) Compatibility: Gmail, Google Apps, and Outlook.com

2. Goodtodo.com To avoid your email becoming your to do list, this app allows you to forward messages from your email to your future self. Your prospect emailed you and asked you to follow up in six months? Forward the email to Oct15@goodtodo.com, six months from the April 15 email you just received. On October 15, when you open your Goodtodo.com home page, there’s the reminder.

As managers we are not only tasked with delegating but also checking up on an associate’s project that’s due next Friday, for example. Email the associate the task and BCC yourself to check up on the Thursday before by emailing Thursday@goodtodo.com. The email will become a “to do” on your next Thursday’s list. Clear that email box of “to do,” and watch your productivity zoom.

Cost: Free (basic plan) or $3/month (premium plan) Compatibility: Gmail, Outlook.com, Apple Mail, iPhone, iPad, Android

3. Unroll.me It’s no fun waking up in the morning to 18 newsletters in your inbox. It’s even worse to get bombarded with 23 more while you’re trying to get work done during the day. Unroll.me offers a genius solution to this issue: The free plug-in aggregates all of your subscriptions into one daily digest. It also makes unsubscribing from lists a breeze.

Cost: Free Compatibility: Gmail, Google Apps, Yahoo! Mail, AOL, Outlook.com, and iCloud

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

4. Contact Monkey

5. Rapportive

“Read receipts” are old news. Here’s a little secret: I hide tracking tickets in almost every email I send. That means I can tell when, where, and for how long people look at my messages.

I can also tell which links they click and whether they share the email with other people. I can even turn on realtime notifications. The best part? It’s undetectable to everyone but computer wizards—whom I luckily rarely email.

Cost: Free (100 messages/month) or $15/month (Salesforce.com integration edition) Compatibility: Gmail, Google Apps, and Outlook.com

Have you ever spent more than two minutes trying to guess the email address of someone you want to connect with? With Rapportive, you’ll never have to again. This deceptively simple tool replaces the ads in Gmail with a social profile that feeds in the information from the person you’re typing an email to. It’s great for keeping up with the people in your network, but its superpower is making it easy to guess email addresses. Once you hit the right combination, a profile will automatically populate on the side. It will always solve your “Is it first.last@awesomecompany.com or first_last@awesomecompany.com?” dilemma.

Cost: Free Compatibility: Gmail and Google Apps

Good for Business From Zero to Expert in 60 Seconds Much like being a spy or a secret agent, being a successful entrepreneur involves keeping tabs on lots of people at all times.

These are my of two favorite tools for doing just that, without having to resort to creepy or questionable measures.

6. Mention Mention is everything you wish Google Alerts could be. It monitors mentions of keywords on the Web and social media, and it gives you real-time alerts when people are talking. You can sort by channel (blogs, news sites, social networks, etc.), collaborate with your team, and even sync your social accounts to respond to social chatter instantly. There is seamless integration among the desktop program, mobile app, and Chrome plug-in. Whether you’re

tracking your own company or spying on your competitors, you’ll never go back to Google Alerts after trying Mention.

Cost: Free (basic, 100 mentions/month) or $29.99/month (premium, 100,000 mentions/month)

7. Newsle Newsle brings you “news about your people.” When you join the site, you can import your Facebook friends and LinkedIn contacts. Newsle then keeps track of Web articles about you, your connections, and other people you might care about—like celebrities and politicians. You can get weekly digests of stories or have them delivered to your inbox as they happen. It makes it easy to send your clients emails like, “Congrats on the awesome promotion!” or “Good luck with this week’s launch!” Bonus: It

ranks your friends from “most famous” to “least famous.”

Cost: Free I hope you’ll find these tools as useful as I do. I’m always trying new things and looking for ways to streamline my work process.

Brittany Hodak is the co-founder of ZinePak, a custom publication company that creates fan packages for entertainers, brands, and athletes.

Hodak is a member of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC). YEC recently launched StartupCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

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Good for Business

TO DO Keep a Journal

By Melanie Bracey

way the first page of your book always tells you what items are where, without having to sift through (potentially) hundreds of pages to find that great idea you had once.

To learn more about the process of starting and keeping a bullet journal, visit www.bulletjournal.com. Watch the video to see bullet journaling in action and to understand each element of the process.

Melanie Bracey is an assistant managing editor at The YGS Group, publishing partner to BoxScore. She can be reached at BoxScore@ theYGSgroup.com.

Photo courtesy of bulletjournal.com

Even in the digital age, there are those who prefer the feel and control of taking notes on paper. This practice, however, runs the risk of creating dozens of notes in so many different places that we lose the benefits the muscle memory of physically writing something down provides.

Enter the “bullet journal,” a system of note-taking and list-making that art director and interactive designer Ryder Carroll developed after years of figuring out the best combination of methods.

The basic idea of the bullet journal is that the notes you take should be quick and to the point. They should fit into one of three categories: tasks, notes, or events. The category is indicated by a simple symbol to the left of each

entry—a box for tasks, a solid circle for notes, and an empty circle for events. As entries are completed, the mark to the left gets checked off. Anything that isn’t completed is moved to the next day’s list, with an arrow in the box to show that it has migrated to a new list.

A new list starts each month: What did you not complete in the last month that is still a priority, what notes have become tasks or events, and what new items have been added to your plate? If an item from a previous list has become irrelevant or unnecessary, it gets a strikethrough.

The index at the front of the book is useful to follow up on weeks or months of events, notes, and tasks. As soon as you enter an item, add it to the index, and add the page number. This

The bullet journal technique is for people who like the print on paper feel. Your journal should be portable enough to carry with you at all times.

42

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

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Good for Business

Manage Interruptions With Time Lock

By Melanie Bracey

S

taying on task in the office can sometimes be a monumental challenge. Client phone calls, last-minute meetings, and colleagues coming in and out of your workspace throughout the day are all sources of lost time and interrupted productivity.

According to a 2005 study by research firm Basex, $588 billion is wasted every year due to unnecessary interruptions in the workplace. As a response to this overwhelming fact, Edward G. Brown of Cohen Brown Management Group developed the time lock system. The primary goal of this system is to change behavior and habits surrounding what Brown calls the “interruption culture” in his 2014 book The Time Bandit Solution: Recovering Stolen Time You Never Knew You Had. “One behavior I couldn’t change— unless I did something about it—was interruptions: unwanted, unnecessary, unneeded, and completely unproductive interruptions were driving my clients crazy,” says Brown. In surveys Brown collected from his clients, the results were staggering. Participants noted 40 to 60 percent of their day, or three to five hours, was wasted by interruptions.

To curb interruptions in the office— and save productivity—Brown says, the first step is to “protect yourself against unwanted interruptions” by enforcing a “time lock.” Focus yourself on a task, and don’t allow anyone else in during the time set aside to complete it. The next step is to identify those who most often interrupt your workday—also known as “time bandits.” Time bandits can be just about anyone: friends, clients, colleagues, and even your boss. Finally, doing your own calculations of how much time is wasted

44

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

PLANNING

COMPANY CULTURE

by unwanted interruptions within your organization will prove useful, however overwhelming those numbers may be.

Allowing your employees to provide their honest responses to a survey on interruptions within the workplace will be a great starting point to establishing a time lock arrangement.

The most successful time lock implementations are mutual agreements within your organization. These can be verbal agreements to not interrupt one another during a specific block of time or a certain day of the week. These agreements essentially create a sense of accountability within the office; if everyone is in on the agreement to not interrupt one another, then the only conversations and collaborations that will happen are those necessary for completing immediate tasks. Brown says verbal agreements work from the onset, without having to create a formal

written agreement. “The agreement is how you get started, and then eventually it becomes a normal behavior within the organization,” he explains. If the goal is process and behavior change, and everyone is on board, then the agreement naturally becomes a part of the operating procedure within the organization.

Even in open floor plan arrangements, time locking can be successful. Brown spoke to Fortune earlier this year about the challenge of open floor plans or cubicle spaces. While space and communication needs are satisfied in these environments, often productivity suffers because of the closeness of colleagues and the lack of noise barriers. In these situations, mutual time lock agreements are beneficial all around. If you and your cubicle neighbors enter into a mutual agreement, then everyone is committed to working at the same time, without concern about being bothered by—or becoming—a time bandit.

There are a few keys to implementing a successful time lock. First, make sure there is an action plan to effectively use the recovered time. Projects that are always in the works but have been pushed to the bottom of the list will come to fruition as a result of the extra time.

The other factor in the success of this system is reinforcement. The benefits of implementing a time lock are not limited to the workplace. A further consequence of more productivity in the workplace is more valuable time spent at home with family and friends. Brown says, “The most precious commodity in life is our time. We can’t afford to squander a second of it on unnecessary interruptions.”

For more information on time locking and for an introductory video, visit www. stwm.com. Brown’s book is available through Cohen Brown Picture Co.

Are you using an organizational tool or app? Please share your tips by writing to BoxScore@theYGSgroup.com.

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Member Profile

COMPANY: Fruit Growers Supply Company ESTABLISHED: 1907 JOINED AICC: 1975

FRUIT GROWERS SUPPLY COMPANY

BY TARYN PYLE

F

ruit Growers Supply Company (FGS) has seen a lot of changes in the past century, and they’re poised to see even more in the next. Up until 15 to 20 years ago, the nonprofit cooperative serviced only its member-owners. FGS was born in 1907 as the fruit growers’ answer to cartels that were overcharging citrus growers for boxes, chemicals, and other supplies they needed to succeed. FGS has provided everything West Coast citrus growers and other agricultural producers need for planting, harvesting, packaging, and shipping. Now FGS is expanding its capacities and getting ready to let people know what it has done.

“We sell cartons to people who pack their products in them, and we’re making a move toward vertical integration,” says CEO and President Mark Lindgren.

Expanding a Carton Facility The creation of an expanded facility will mean new efficiencies for FGS and increased production.

“We really feel that domestically, it is going to be one of the most technologically advanced and most efficient plants on a per-unit basis in North America,” Lindgren says. “It is going to be a performer that is a showcase.”

The expansion will include the addition of an 6,400 square-foot area to house a new corrugator and 3,000 square feet of

46

BOXSCORE March/April 2015

PHONE: 818-986-6480 WEBSITE: www.fruitgrowers.com LOCATIONS:

administrative space. The new administrative area includes a design room—allowing for work to be done in-house that they currently job out—lunchrooms, training rooms, customer service areas, and staff offices.

Carton Plant Manager Steve Moore says the real efficiencies and ability to move to open markets will come from new equipment including: • Mitsubishi EVOL 40-inch flexo-folder-gluer • 110-inch BHS corrugator • 6-color Göpfert rotary die cutter The EVOL will allow them to double their production.

“Last year we were just shy of 800 million square feet of board. With [the EVOL] and the new addition of the corrugator in May, our capacity in 2016 is expected to be 1.6 billion square feet,” Moore says.

The rotary die cutter, which will be operational in September, will also allow FGS to expand their operations. Today, FGS makes only a complete folded and cut box, but the die cutter will allow them to manufacture a wider range of products.

“It will change everything,” Moore says.

“It will provide the plant with a high-color graphics printer—a market that is shut off to us right now. We believe this is the best die cutter out there, and with six-color graphics, we will be unlimited from where we can go from a printing standpoint.”

FGS Corporate Headquarters, Valencia, CA; FGS Ontario Carton Plant, Ontario, CA; FGS Exeter Packing Services, Exeter, CA; FGS Burney, Burney, CA; FGS Springfield, Springfield, OR; FGS Hilt, Hilt/ Hornbrook, CA; FGS Montesano, Montesano, WA; United Wholesale Lumber Company, Visalia, CA

Always Sustainable While other companies race to convert their practices to sustainable ones, CEO Lindgren notes FGS has always practiced sustainability, in large part because their member-owners are farmers and growers who have to practice those techniques to survive.

FGS approaches sustainability from two sides, Lindgren says: the timber side and the farm supply side.

On the timber side, they are part of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), with a 100-year plan to ensure they plant more trees than they cut down.

“In timber, you have to think in real long terms,” Lindgren says. “Our harvest schedule each year has provisions for a 100year plan. We are, at minimum, growing as much as we harvest, but in 10-year blocks of this plan, we will grow far more than we harvest. It truly is a sustainable resource.”

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on!

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Flexographic Print Basics, Keeping Score: Understanding Financial Statements, and Maintenance Budgeting

To find out how to get your employees to the top of the class at AICC’s Packaging University, log on to the AICC Packaging University site at AICCbox.org, contact Taryn Pyle at tpyle@aiccbox.org or call 703.535.1391.

T HE I NDEPE NDENT P AC KAG I NG A S SOCIATION

113 S. West Street • Alexandria, VA 22314 • Phone +1.703.836.2422 • www.aiccbox.org

Member Profile

Along with a sustainable harvest plan, FSG’s forestry policies include: • Integrating the management, harvesting, and reforestation of timberlands with responsible conservation of soil, air, water, wildlife, and aesthetic quality.

• Reforesting promptly after harvesting; usually immediately, but always within two years of harvest.

• Protecting water quality and soil productivity and stability by using equipment and best-management practices to minimize disturbance and erosion.

• Protecting forestlands’ unique biological, geological, and historical qualities and sites.

• Providing diverse habitats for wildlife and protecting threatened and endangered species.

• Minimizing losses caused by fire, insects, and disease.

From the farm supply side, Lindgren says the most important thing is to communicate what the company is doing.

“We’ve always had a mentality of sustainability,” Lindgren says. “It’s in our culture.

It’s more of sending the message out of what we are currently doing to help the growers achieve different levels of sustainability, energy usage, materials, and water usage.

We haven’t formulated our message yet, but that is forthcoming. We really have a good track record.”

Both Lindgren and Moore have been with AICC for years and say it helps them survive as an independent manufacturer.

“It is great from a networking status and an educational standpoint,” Lindgren says.

“This was especially true when we were limited in our customer base. We didn’t

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

integrate as well with our other independent brothers out there. Our membership has been and continues to be a great way to get industry information and industry education, and network.”

Moore agrees, saying membership to AICC has helped them survive among the integrateds, providing a platform for FGS to share resources with others. It’s a membership they expect to serve them well as they grow during the next century.

Taryn Pyle is the director of marketing and communications for AICC—The Independent Packaging Association. Please send company news and press releases to BoxScore@theYGSgroup.com.

Taryn can be reached at 703-535-1391 or tpyle@aiccbox.org.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

THE FUTURE OF

PACKAGING

BY LIN GRENSING-POPHAL

T

he holidays saw another surge in online buying, according to research by Accenture but, importantly, online buying seems to be augmenting and not replacing forays into brick-and-mortar retail outlets. Two very interesting, and seemingly contradictory, results from their research support this:

MORE THAN HALF

(58%)

of respondents said they will shop at online-only retailers (Up from 50 percent in 2013 and 44 percent in 2012)

NEARLY HALF

(47%)

The changing shopping environment creates both opportunity and complexity for those in the packaging industry. While shipping cartons may proliferate, demand continues for in-store point-of-purchase displays and attention-getting packaging designed to attract shoppers to products displayed on store shelves. Those shipping containers can range from the basic, brownbox simplicity of Amazon to the tactilely and aesthetically appealing packaging for which Apple has become known.

of consumers planned to buy gifts at department stores in 2014 (Up 12 percentage points from 2013)

BOXSCORE www.aiccbox.org

51

Communication and Collaboration Aside from the technical capabilities that really represent the price of entry in today’s market, retailers and manufacturers are looking for vendors they can collaborate with to find cost-ef fective, environmentally friendly, and brandappropriate packaging solutions for both in-store and online product interactions, says Cort Kinker, vice president, business development, at Equinox Technology Partners and an expert in the Beverage Alcohol market with more than 25 years of experience building brands, leading sales organizations and marketing teams, and managing strategic partnerships.

Interactions are key—among manufacturers, retailers, and print vendors, he says. Each of these industry players has insights that can come to bear to stimulate innovation, decrease costs, and ensure sustainability.

“Sometimes you get designers that create something that can’t be produced, or can’t be produced economically,” he says.

“They need to be aware of the technical limitations.” That means conversations among designers, purchasing managers, and printing and packaging vendors.

Vendor catalogs, whether online or in traditional hard-copy format, can be a good source of information and inspiration, he notes. “It’s helpful just to see the capabilities of the producer,” he says.

It’s an exciting time, says Jess Dankert, senior director, retail operations, for the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) in Arlington, Virginia, the trade organization that represents companies such as Target, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Cabela’s, and others. “It doesn’t sound very fascinating to outsiders, but I think there are a lot of exciting things going on in the packaging arena,” she says.

While cost continues to be a big driver in terms of packaging decisions, consumer preference, sustainability, and an increase in online shopping are also driving these decisions.

Key Packaging Considerations The needs of manufacturers, retailers, and consumers may be changing, but some considerations are constant—most notably the need to control costs and minimize environmental impacts.

Companies are always trying to cut costs, says Kinker, but their goal is to do so “without sacrificing quality or sacrificing message delivery,” he says. Those costs can be related to the print production process as well as the impacts of packaging on shipping costs. In 2015, changes in FedEx and UPS charges for shipping based on dimensional weight will have an impact on packaging, Dankert notes. (See sidebar on Page 54.) “It’s an additional

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Photo courtesy of CubiScan

The CubiScan 125 is a dimensioning and weighing system used for measuring case packs and irregular-shaped items with a single device.

impetus to support cost-efficiency. At the end of the day, it’s about trying to get products to customers in the most efficient way and best state possible.”

Sustainability also is a big deal these days for many manufacturers, retailers, and print vendors, says Dankert. “All of our members have a very great focus on sustainability issues and have sustainability goals to meet in terms of waste reduction in packaging as well as operations and energy use,” says Dankert.

“Obviously, packaging is a huge source of waste creation. There is a lot of focus on working with suppliers and suppliers’ suppliers in terms of reducing that waste, and also a general sense of efficiency and having smarter packaging in addition to, where possible, less packaging,” she says.

Ironically, one new requirement for including hazard symbols on packaging is actually going to create more effort for printers, notes Calvin Osterberg, purchasing manager for Rochester Midland Corporation in Rochester, New York. “All hazard symbols in the U.S. had been two-color; now technology is going to be three colors—red, black, and white. When you look at the addition of having to print red, it’s an interesting change; they’re going to be putting through a second pass, or buying another press.” The change takes place in June 2015, he says, “right around the corner.”

While printers themselves don’t have to worry about being in compliance with

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

these new regulations, there is a role they can play in providing a value-added service to their customers, says Osterberg.

“You’d think it would be something the printing industry would be informed of and out on the front end of, using it as a sales tactic,” he says. “Some that are on the front, leading edge have purchased software that would take the current format and create new symbols for you.”

The Importance of Packaging Few would disagree that packaging matters when it comes to marketers attempting to influence consumers and end users in ways designed to boost both their brands and bottom lines. In fact, studies support that what most believe is just common sense. “Secondary package design with on-message, brand-building color and graphics can lift brand awareness and increase purchase intent when integrated into in-store marketing campaigns,” according to a news release from the Reusable Packaging Association on a study released by Clemson University and Rehrig Pacific Company.

In the in-store environment, shoppers’ purchase decisions are highly influenced by the packaging of the products on the shelves as well as through in-store displays. Creative approaches to packaging that can minimize costs are prevalent.

For instance, Kinker points to brand messaging on the Tanduay shipper. “We designed the lower portion of the box so it could be easily trayed on a display and have marketing messages about the brand website, www.tanduayusa.com, which defined its category, and ‘Silky Smooth,’ a key product attribute,” he notes. “With spirits, a lot of times the boxes are used for display, so you’re cutting those boxes to expose the product, but the box is also being used to communicate a message about the brand.”

Packaging, says Kinker, “is vitally important in alcoholic beverages,” noting

Changes in Dimensional Weight Pricing Impact Shippers Dimensional weight pricing, or volumetric pricing, has always had implications for shippers—whether manufacturers shipping in bulk to retailers or retailers fulfilling individual orders for consumers. Those implications will be impacted in 2015 as both FedEx and UPS make changes in their pricing to address not only the weight of packages, but also their size. With the addition of Enhanced Dimensional Weighing Systems, both carriers have announced they will eliminate the example for ground packages of less than three cubic feet.

In 2015 all ground packages will be subject to dimensional weight billing.

For shippers, this means an increased need to understand, and potentially adjust, existing packaging to minimize costs.

Time is running out to take steps proactively to avoid increased costs. Print vendors can play an important role with their customers by starting conversations about how current packaging might be modified to avoid increased dimensional shipping costs.

Some manufacturers have already been exploring innovative alternatives, notes Vicki Matranga, design programs coordinator with the International Housewares Association.

“A lot of products, particularly in the cleaning and consumables area, are removing water so that they can sell more loads of laundry in a refillable pouch, or selling little jars or bottles of concentrate so that you can mix up your own cleaning solutions.”

These considerations are interrelated, of course. As manufacturers work to drive out costs, they must keep in mind considerations that impact both retailers and consumers—and their printing and packaging vendors. This is just one impending example of the impacts of omnichannel marketing and the need to tear down barriers between various constituents.

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that there is “a lot of growth in the craft beverage industry between craft spirits and craft brews.” These smaller organizations, he says, often don’t have a great deal of money to invest in packaging, so economy is critical. And, of course, packaging is equally important for other goods ranging from clothing to electronics, and everything in between.

It remains to be seen, though, how the importance of packaging may diminish as consumers make purchases outside of the brick-and-mortar environment. With online sales on the increase, it might initially seem that a shift in focus might make brown box more prevalent; that may not, though, ultimately be the case.

The Impact of Online Purchasing As consumers in both B2C and B2B segments have turned increasingly to online shopping, changes in packaging have been a natural impact. Those in the industry say in-store sales are still important, meaning that packaging for both on-shelf and point-of-purchase displays remain in play—however, with less impact than in the past.

Osterberg worked for Eastman Kodak for 30 years, primarily in purchasing, where he was responsible for the packaging of all Kodak products—a process that led him to pare down the suppliers used from 22 to 5. Through his experiences, he says, he’s had the opportunity to visit corrugated plants and folding carton plants around the world. “It’s been a great opportunity for me,” he says.

Over the years, Osterberg has learned a lot about packaging, and he’s seen a lot of changes, not only in terms of retail packaging, but packaging in general.

One of his current company’s key market segments is industrial complexes, he says.

“So, if you’re a hospital and you’re cleaning the floors, we’ll be selling to the company that’s contracting to clean the floors.”

It used to be, he says, that the packaging of these products didn’t really matter. “It used to be anything down and dirty,” he says. That’s changed.

“Today graphics, artwork, logos, and branding have become much more important. All market segments are pushing for stronger display of graphics and product identification.”

In his Eastman Kodak days, Osterberg says, “We had an entire division that did nothing but build point-of-purchase displays. We had an entire building dedicated to packing and shipping pointof-purchase displays. I just don’t see that happening in any industry now—short of seasonal demand.”

Vicki Matranga agrees. Matranga is the design programs coordinator for the International Housewares Association (IHI) in Rosemont, Illinois. “With the boom in online retailing, so much of the adjunct packaging is being replaced by plexibags and other things that are shipping without the attractive kind of shopper appeal of the shelf packaging,” she says. “When I buy clothing from an online retailer, it just comes in several plastic bags that are in a cardboard box.”

But the trend toward plain may represent opportunity for some retailers.

Even in an era of increasing online purchasing, the box or container has importance that is often overlooked, says Kinker. “My personal opinion is that a lot of companies underestimate the value and think of it as just a box that their product is going into. I think

2014 Accenture Holiday Shopping Survey Offers Packaging Insights Accenture conducted an online survey using a representative sample of 500 U.S. consumers in September 2014. The results reveal surprising—and seemingly contradictory—insights into consumer shopping behaviors and preferences in an increasingly wired world.

While consumers have more discretionary income and job security than in recent years and planned to spend more on holiday shopping in 2014, they still indicated that they were very focused on discounts and sales. Black Friday shopping reached its highest level in eight years. Interestingly, while 37 percent indicated they planned to shop online on Black Friday—up from 32 percent in 2013—the vast majority still opted for the in-store experience, despite the crowds.

Discount retailers remained the top destination for consumers in the 2014 holiday season. The in-store experience remains popular here as well. And while more than half (57 percent) of holiday shoppers indicated they planned to buy gift cards, 12 percent more consumers in 2014 than in 2013 said they planned to buy their gifts at department stores. These shoppers indicated top priorities of apparel (56 percent) and toys (42 percent).

Technology, of course, continues to compel consumers to purchase trendy gifts. In 2014, wearable technology such as fitness bands (13 percent), smartphones (14 percent), and tablets (13 percent) were the tech-savvy gifts of choice.

For packaging vendors, the dual approach to shopping in-store and online, and signs that the economy is shifting and driving more consumers to loosen up their pocketbooks, portend a continued demand for point-of-purchase, on-shelf, and shipping materials.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Big Design Roundup

Save the date! Start saving your samples!

Categories for Corrugated, Folding Carton, & Rigid Box Members

The AICC 2015 Independent Packaging Design Competition

“Big Design Roundup” is being held September 28-30, 2015 in conjunction with the AICC 2015 Annual Meeting, taking place in Fort Worth, Texas.

Since 1981, AICC has been proud to distinguish, showcase, and reward those independents’ who have met and exceeded their customers’ expectations of their packaging designs and displays. There is a category for everyone to compete in, as well as to receive the recognition they deserve for creating and manufacturing global packaging solutions. As always, competition will be close for the Industry’s People’s Choice Award and the prestigious Judges’ Choice Award.

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Show Off your company’s creativity, innovation, and excellence in package design & production capabilities!

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PO Box 25708, Alexandria, VA 22313 | phone +1-703-836-2422

the shipper is a huge messaging vehicle that is often overlooked.”

In fact, there certainly are brands that make an effort to “brand their box,” says Osterberg. Zappos is one example.

There is, he says, room for both branded packaging for shipping online orders to consumers and plain, brown box packaging à la Amazon.com.

While manufacturers and retailers have long been sharply focused on the in-store customer experience, there’s opportunity to delight customers even when they’re shopping online and having packages delivered to their front doors, agrees Matranga.

“I think everybody points to Apple as an example of the ‘opening of the box’ experience,” she says. “There’s nothing that beats those Apple boxes with their matte-finished white cardboard and the beautiful shapes of the plastic inside.” In their packaging, she says, they’ve created “tactile pleasure,” an important marketing consideration. “Human beings have fingers, and we love the tactile experience,” she notes. Still, each manufacturer or retailer will need to find the right balance among brand, user experience, cost, and sustainability issues, she says.

Dankert agrees. “It really depends on the particular retailer,” she says.

“Some are operating from a standpoint of efficiency, and it doesn’t necessarily matter what the package looks like as long as it gets the item to the customer in the best state, efficiently. Some want to focus more on the branding aspect and have that be a piece of the customer experience in terms of the total omnichannel picture.”

Omnichannel, she notes, is one major trend that all involved in packaging need to be aware of.

What the Future Holds The impact of omnichannel marketing considerations will be significant, says

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Glossary of Terms Omnichannel

Showrooming

Webrooming

A recently coined term that reflects marketers’ recognition that consumers are interacting with brands across a variety of different channels traditional and new, increasingly online, and that their marketing efforts need to be consistent across all of these channels, ensuring a consistent brand experience at all touch points (call centers, customer service desks, clerks, etc.).

Starting the shopping process in retail outlets and then going online to purchase the actual product.

Starting the shopping process online to research products available, then going to a retail outlet to see—and purchase—the actual product.

Dankert. “I know that all of our members are trying to take a more holistic view toward the entire customer experience.

There is much more of an integrated approach to things and a lot more of a holistic view of the customer experience versus the siloed individual development of things.” That integration may certainly affect packaging considerations—both in-store and in shipping containers.

As Accenture’s research notes, 2014 saw an increase in a “seamless holiday shopping experience across all shopping channels.” Their results indicate a growing number of consumers—71 percent—planned to participate in “webrooming”—checking things out online and then going into a store to make a purchase (68 percent indicated that they were likely to participate in the reverse, showrooming). That dual approach to shopping means that manufacturers and retailers need to consider both in-store and online consumer behavior when making decisions about packaging.

Technology is likely to herald other impacts, says Kinker. He attended Luxe Pack in 2014, a luxury product packing show in New York, where 3-D packaging was a topic of discussion. “It will be interesting to see how 3-D printing comes to impact

the industry,” he says. “I don’t see much happening with it right now, but I can’t imagine that it won’t at some point, especially with high-quality, low-volume applications.”

Laser cutting is another area of opportunity, notes Kinker. “You can do a lot of very intricate and interesting designs just by cutting away material, so that’s a technology that is likely to be more widely applied as it comes down in price and is more accessible.”

These innovations are just the tip of the iceberg as manufacturers and retailers continue to attract the attention of consumers in unique, yet cost-effective ways.

As we move into 2015 and beyond, collaboration will be critical for those involved—in any capacity—with issues related to the packaging of goods, whether in-store or in transit.

“I know there is a lot of knowledge on the supplier side, and there’s a lot of knowledge on the retail side,” says Dankert. “The best success stories are where both sides are able to bring that together and find improvements or solutions based on collaboration and really be open-minded and work together to find those improvements.”

Lin Grensing-Pophal is a freelance writer based in Wisconsin. She is a frequent contributor to BoxScore.

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

THE

POWER OF

CUSTOMER CENTRICITY

BY GREG HEINZ

I

n today’s Internet-focused world, consumers have more authority and less patience than ever before. The line that once differentiated consumers from B2B buyers has been blurred, and businesses must remain agile enough to easily adapt to these changes, or risk falling behind. For independent packaging manufacturers specifically, it’s about employing a business practice that focuses on the customer—not just in the value that a business offers (quality products and service), but realizing the long-term value the customer will provide in return. It’s about open lines of communication and a mutually beneficial relationship. It’s about customer-centricity.

According to Forbes, customer-centricity means a better understanding and engagement of customers, as well as enhancing capabilities for serving customers.

E-commerce giants Amazon.com and Zappos are great examples of companies that have successfully employed a customer-centric approach. Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, famously said his goal was to become the “Earth’s most customer-centric company” and would do so by “focusing obsessively on the customer.” In the end, what really differentiates these companies is that they do not just claim to provide the greatest customer experience—they deliver it.

Packaging manufacturers, too, can deliver such an experience to their customers by adopting a customer-centric model based on four key principles: self-service, real-time access, collaboration, and business agility. The importance of the customer experience cannot be overemphasized, and it has become vital that businesses make their products and services easily accessible.

The importance of the customer experience cannot be overemphasized, and it has become vital.

SELF-SERVICE In the Age of the Consumer, self-service exists in nearly every aspect of our lives. From the way we bank and shop to the way we monitor our health, we have come to rely on technology as a replacement for people. For packaging manufacturers, the objective of customer self-service is the same: Provide end users with access to information and the ability to manage their own accounts without the assistance of a representative.

This can be achieved through mutually beneficial Web-­based technologies—most commonly known as portals—which allow customers to interact with businesses at

BOXSCORE www.aiccbox.org

61

Business agility is a critical element in a company’s ability not just to grow, but to survive. their convenience. So whether customers are generating a quote, paying an invoice, tracking a shipment, or approving a new design, they are afforded a simple, valuable online experience.

Now unlike Amazon, most independent packaging manufacturers are unable to be everything to everyone. The time and effort required to implement such an online system would most likely be cost-prohibitive.

Instead, focus on the core customers, which for some packaging manufacturers may make up only 10 percent of the customer base but 80 percent of the company profit.

With these customers now able to manage their own accounts, the company can refocus its energy on identifying areas of growth. In addition, customer service and order processing costs should go down, while sales volume and customer satisfaction go up.

REAL-TIME ACCESS In addition to self-service, a customer’s ability to access real-time data plays a significant role in business sustainability. It is no secret that consumers want instant gratification.

The automation of the supply chain through enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems has not only allowed businesses to increase efficiencies, but it has also created the opportunity for live data aggregation. Sharing real-time data is how companies allow customers to self-manage their accounts and, more importantly, to make timely business decisions. It gives customers what they want when they want it

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

and optimizes business operations for the manufacturer.

The counterbalance for some business owners may be an increased sense of vulnerability; however, providing customers with a level of transparency into business operations will open the door for a more honest and valuable customer relationship.

Consider the power of offering customers an inside view into their accounts as never before—tracking orders down to machine level while viewing live maps of trucks making their deliveries. In the end, businesses receive more favorable customer attitudes, increased trust on quality and fulfillment and, most importantly, increased purchase intention.

COLLABORATION Collaboration, which at one point was just a growing trend in the evolution of the supply chain, is now widely considered a priority due to increasingly complex operations and mounting demand from customers. Aided by the growth of workflow automation systems over the past decade, manufacturers are now able to offer customers tools for work and communication management, which can sometimes be the difference between maintaining and losing accounts.

Specifically, new solutions like Esko’s WebCenter, a Web-based project management system, have helped organizations

initiate and sustain collaboration with customers on time-sensitive processes such as packaging design.

WebCenter was created to enhance data sharing and communication between all partners in the packaging and printing supply chain. Considering the tighter and tighter time constraints on order completion, the large number of order components, and growing cost competition, any opportunity to speed up the order process and improve customer experience should be considered.

Along with a communication platform that is accessible 24/7, tools such as quality management, file-sharing, feedback, and project status can greatly enhance the overall customer experience. The goal is to collaborate seamlessly and synchronize business processes from multiple sources to better improve efficiencies.

BUSINESS AGILITY Business agility is a critical element in a company’s ability not just to grow, but to survive. Independent technology and market research company Forrester Research defines business agility as “the quality that allows an enterprise to embrace market and operational changes as a matter of routine.”

To remain agile, organizations must find a balance in adapting processes that are both flexible and transparent. The use of new technologies is both a quick and cost-effective way to meet customer demands.

The pace at which the world is changing from a technological standpoint is astounding. Consider the Apple iPhone, which was first introduced in 2007 and has already sold more than 500 million units.

This one device has become a symbol of our society, yet we are just scratching the

surface of its impact in business operations. As Forrester suggests, the companies that embrace this change will reap the most rewards.

The packaging industry is certainly no stranger to change, both in the product landscape and the growth in competition. Because the industry is constantly evolving, it is important that companies have the ability to counter the competition and quickly respond to new opportunities. Those who do not are at a huge disadvantage.

CUSTOMER-CENTRIC CULTURE STARTS AT THE TOP The reason companies like Amazon and Zappos are able to achieve customercentricity is because the leaders have created a company culture that supports it. It

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starts at the top and has been reinforced in every aspect of their business, from their hiring processes down through product development. They also leverage data to better understand their customersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; desires and behaviors, and they create solutions to capitalize on them.

For an independent packaging company that has been in operation for many decades, this change in culture may not initially seem like such a simple task. Fortunately, with trademarks of fast order turnaround and quality products, these organizations have a head start. The focus from here must be the execution

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

of new customer-focused solutions targeting self-service, real-time data access, and collaboration.

Perhaps the last question left unanswered, and most likely the first that comes to mind for business owners, is at what cost? While there are many who perceive improving the customer experience as an expensive task, the reality is that a happy customer requires less time and effort during the normal course of business. One could then deduce that improving the customer experience would actually reduce customer service costs. This will improve not only company reputation and relationship, but

will also make it easier for customers to conduct business.

At the end of the day, by creating a mutually beneficial customer relationship, packaging manufacturers will better position their businesses for sustained long-term success in an increasingly consumer-led world.

Greg Heinz is director of marketing at Amtech Software and Futura Services. Greg can be reached at 215-639-9540 or at gheinz@ amtechsoftware.com.

1980â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2000

In the late 1990s, AICC assembled a group of 21 members who met in Alexandria, Virginia, to map out a strategic plan for the association. Pictured here are, front row, from left: AICC Executive Vice President Steve Young; Greg Arvanigian; Barbara Eastwood, Bill Hanan, Joseph R. Palmeri, David Harrison and Karen Krzmarzick. Second row, from left: Larry Cooper; Bill Notke; Robin Jackson; Jackie Schultz; Melissa Lyman Hughes; Madeline Crawford; Jim Adams; Dick Troll; Michael Babchuk and Jim Davis.

Photos courtesy of AICC

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

AICC Grows Up: Finding a Purpose, Filling a Need

BY STEVE YOUNG

I

n the previous issue of BoxScore, we looked at the first five years of AICC’s existence, a tense period in the industry and a proving ground for the new Association. In this issue we look at the 20-year period 1980–2000, when AICC found its voice in the industry and earned its role as a respected player.

1980–1985:

‘AICC Cannot Survive on Fear’ Dick Troll, AICC’s fourth president and a tireless advocate for its members’ interests, said early on that “AICC cannot survive on fear.” The group had to find a purpose beyond antitrust issues and lawsuits in serving the needs of the independent box plant owner. So when he became

the Association’s fifth full-time executive director in June 1980, he worked diligently to find direction and purpose for the organization. Troll knew that for independents to survive, they would need access to the same kinds of resources as their integrated competitors. So the Association set out to develop the type of services that members could not possibly do on their own.

Employee training was the biggest concern of members at that time. Illustrating this serious lack of training was an early AICC convention workshop titled “$50 Million Market; $5 Million Plant; $1.98 Sales Force.” Understanding this need, Troll got AICC’s leadership behind efforts to develop sales training programs, which became the first of many AICC training

programs in sales, production supervision, customer service, and eventually, executive and management training. The Realworld Selling Course, or RSC, was the first industry-specific training program designed for independent corrugated converters. While other professional training organizations offered training throughout the industry, none focused on the needs of the smaller company; AICC’s Realworld Selling Course filled this void.

Training programs put AICC on the corrugated industry map and earned the Association a reputation for excellence in corrugated-specific education and training. AICC expanded the number of disciplines in its training retinue, in 1984 adding “Corrman,” a management program for corrugated plant supervisors;

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in 1985, the Communications Seminar for Sales Correspondents (CSSC), a customer service communications program; and in 1986, “Up and Running,” the first program designed for production managers.

AICC developed other services for members, including the gathering of statistical information and salary and wage surveys for independent members. The organization was on its way to becoming a respected player in the corrugated industry.

1985–1994

A Decade of Growth, Expansion, and Influence On the occasion of AICC’s 10th anniversary, membership stood at 500.

Jack Grollman, the ninth president of AICC, used his presidency for building membership and thus the influence of the Association. In 1985, Executive Director Dick Troll and AICC’s 10th president, Hardy continued on Page 74

1980–2000: A SALUTE TO AICC LEADERSHIP AICC has enjoyed the dedication of its member volunteers who have stepped up over the years to lead the Association and direct its course. In the list below we pay tribute to them.

Joseph Armstrong, 1979–1980** Krafcor George B. Arvanigian, 1980–1981** Arvco Container Corp.

Lawrence I. Falstein, 1981–1982** Tri-Pack Corp.

Jack D. Grollman, 1982–1983** Triangle Container Corp.

Hardy Sanders, 1983–1984** Bates Container Corp.

Donald Morphy, 1984–1985 Morphy Containers Ltd. William C. Akers, 1985–1986** Akers Packaging Service Inc. Stanley Jacobson, 1986–1987 Alden Corrugated Box Co. Robert J. Thacker, 1987–1988 Thacker Container Co. Jim DeLine, 1988–1989** DeLine Box Co. Laurence C. Schiffenhaus, 1989–1990 Schiffenhaus Packaging Corp.

Lou Wetmore, 1990–1991 Triad Packaging Corp.

Richard Braverman, 1991–1992 R & R Corrugated Peter Keady, 1992–1993 Viking Container Co. Richard F. Eastwood, 1993–1994 Central Graphics & Display James E. Haglund, 1994–1995 Central Container Corp.

William I. Flinn, 1995–1996** Scope Packaging Inc. Joseph R. Palmeri, 1996–1997 Jamestown Container Cos. Richard J. Kelley, 1997–1998 Dusobox

AICC’s Education Catalog, the 1989 edition, shows the “family” of AICC’s industry-specific training programs available for sales representatives, production supervisors and customer service representatives.

Thomas D. Skinner, 1998–1999 Phoenix Packaging Inc. James M. Davis, 1999–2000 DeLine Box Co. **Of happy memory

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

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Meet Dick Troll: His Aphorisms About the Box Business Ring True Even Today

T

here aren’t many members around these days who knew Dick Troll.

Those who do would remember him as “feisty,” “hot-tempered,” “egotistical,” and “passionate.” A “rabble rouser” and a “showman.” And he was just what AICC needed at the time.

I may get some of these details wrong in the retelling, but Dick began his career in 1956 with Hoerner Boxes, later HoernerWaldorf, working a back-roads territory in central Arkansas. He spoke with fondness about calling on customers in places called Greasy Creek, Toadsuck, and Rose Bud. He remembered former bosses

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whom he always described as “certifiable.”

He was of the generation when truckload orders were taken on cocktail napkins after boozy lunches; the girls came by later (no offense intended).

Dick’s career ventured from HoernerWaldorf to Lawless Container Corp., where he became vice president of sales.

In 1978, he oversaw construction of a Lawless sheet plant in Madison, Ohio, and it was during that year that he became the fourth president of AICC. During his tenure as president, AICC grew in services and in defense of independents, the membership growing to 300 companies and

“Dick was my mentor in this industry; some of the best memories I have of his leadership are the war stories, anecdotes, and truisms he was fond of retelling.”

— Steve Young, AICC president

the Association becoming a recognized force in the industry.

From Lawless, Dick went on to join Arvco Container Corp. in Kalamazoo, Mich., as vice president of marketing.

At this point George Arvanigian, Arvco’s owner, was AICC president, and he and the board recognized the need for a full-time executive to run the affairs of the Association. AICC was growing up.

So in 1980, Dick assumed the role of executive director of AICC and opened the first office in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., moving across the Potomac River to Alexandria, Virginia, in 1982. When Dick took charge, AICC took off.

Dick was my mentor in this industry; some of the best memories I have of his leadership are the war stories, anecdotes, and truisms he was fond of retelling. Here are a few: “You can’t run a box plant in Biloxi from Wayne, New Jersey.” This was a sideways swipe at the integrated, centralized management model, where all decisions are made at corporate headquarters. Dick knew that the box business is a local business, and thus decisions have to be made on the local level. Independents do this best, he’d say, and that’s still true today. (Wayne, New Jersey, was the headquarters of Union Camp, at that time one of the many integrated players in the market.)

“You have people running a million-dollar flexo who you wouldn’t let drive your car!” This was Dick’s way of chiding owners who didn’t see the value of industry training—and education and training were Dick’s passion. He always said that every worker deserves a chance to better themselves, and not just for their job performance. Their dignity and selfrespect mattered more. Dick’s passion has led AICC into the forefront of industry training and education for all levels of employees. Dick’s “million-dollar-flexo” quote was trotted out often when AICC introduced the Corrman program for corrugated plant supervisors in 1984.

“Why do you have your salesmen waste their time on call reports? The dollars at the end of the month will tell you where they’ve been!” As a consummate salesman and, later, sales manager, Dick knew the proclivities of salespeople better than anyone. He was their champion in 1978 when AICC developed the first corrugated industry sales training course, called AID: Applied Interaction Development. A few years later, in 1983, AICC rolled out RSC—the Realworld Selling Course. He was a harsh critic of the industry’s sales methods and the lack of adequate sales training, and he knew AICC could fill a critical role in providing industry-specific training programs.

“Why travel to Armonk, New York, when you can have a rewarding career right down the street?” Dick was the inspiration, motivator, and founder of the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation (ICPF). As a self-styled “cheerleader-in-chief ” for the corrugated box business, Dick wanted young people to understand the wonderful career opportunities available to them in the corrugated industry—opportunities available in their hometowns. He saw the Foundation as a vehicle to reach into colleges and universities to begin proselytizing new generations of talented workers. ICPF’s mission remains the same, and it now boasts an endowment of $12 million and a presence in more than 25 packaging schools nationally. (Armonk, New York, was the headquarters of IBM, which in 1985 was the recognized leader in computer technology.)

I hope now you have a better understanding of the man without whom AICC as it is today would not exist. Dick Troll is not AICC’s “George Washington.” We reserve that honor for Jim Kowall, AICC’s first president.

Dick is rather the Adams, Jefferson, and Madison in the building of our “union,” a man who helped establish the foundations of AICC’s mission and growth after its founding during a turbulent period in our industry. —S.Y.

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ICPF: CREATED BY AICC’S VISION TO BRING YOUNG TALENT TO THE INDUSTRY

Fred Edelman, President of National Packaging Corp., Tullytown, Pa., explains the nature of AICC’s “FirstPak” program at AICC’s 1999 Spring Meeting in Boca Raton, Fla., as AICC President Steve Young hoists the logo on the dais.

continued from page 70 Sanders, acted as the catalysts in forming the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation (ICPF), a nonprofit charitable organization devoted to industrywide education and public awareness of the importance of corrugated packaging. By 1990, the work of ICPF necessitated that it be sponsored by the entire corrugated industry, not just the independent sector, and so the Fibre Box Association (FBA) was invited to join in sponsorship and support. In 1992, Dick Troll was named the Foundation’s full-time president. In 1994, ICPF donated a Bobst 3-color flexographic press to Clemson University, and since then additional curriculum support, including a 3-color Workhorse rotary die cutter installed at Fox Valley Technical College, and CAD tables have been donated to packaging schools.

By the Association’s 15th anniversary in 1989, changes in the industry were dominating the discussion at AICC national and regional meetings.

Rule 41 and Item 222 were the subject of much debate, and an alternate solution was proposed that would allow the use of lighter-weight liners by emphasizing stacking performance

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rather than the traditional bursting strength tests.

AICC’s growth in its first 15 years provided it the resources to acquire its own headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C. From this headquarters office, the Association has provided an array of services to the membership, including: national meetings that have grown in attendance, scope, and prestige; corrugated packaging design competitions and, in 1994, the publication of the first full-color AICC Packaging Competition Awards book; bigger, better, and more beneficial associate member trade fairs; the development of a safety video series in both English and Spanish and a “Buyers’ Guide to Corrugated Packaging” video and text package; and membership growth that put AICC membership at nearly 800 companies. In 1993, AICC introduced the Executive Council for Owner-Managers, the first executive-level education program for independents.

Cooperative efforts with other organizations helped AICC’s influence expand domestically and internationally, culminating in 1994, when AICC joined with FBA to become a co-sponsor of the Corrugated Packaging Council and AICC’s agreement with Reed Exhibition

In November 1985, AICC’s board of directors officially chartered the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation (ICPF), a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation for the purpose of working with packaging schools and universities to help them build a curriculum for the corrugated packaging industry. The goal: Create a cadre of young people coming out of universities who are enthusiastic about working in corrugated.

Dick Troll, AICC’s executive vice president at the time; Hardy Sanders, president of Bates Container; and William C. “Bill” Akers of Akers Packaging Service formed the leadership triumvirate that signed the initial documents. A check from Hardy Sanders in the amount of $25,000 provided the initial seed money. Today, ICPF’s endowment stands at more than $12 million.

In 1990, AICC invited the FBA to join as a co-sponsor, making it an industrywide endeavor. Since its founding, the ICPF has worked with more than 30 educational institutions, from four-year degree–granting schools to community colleges, and has placed more than $8 million in assets in those schools.

For more information about ICPF today, contact Richard Flaherty, president, at 703-549-5850 or rflaherty@ icpfbox.org, or visit ICPF on the Web at www.careersincorrugated.org.

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“No longer was it just the box plant owner who would benefit from AICC educational programs; his key senior employees were to benefit as well.”

Cos. to be the first association to co-sponsor Corrugated 94, the world’s inaugural corrugated-specific machinery show. The success of the corrugated show in 1994 set the stage for later development of corrugated industry machinery shows in North America and Asia.

1995–1999:

Plans for the Future, Leadership for the Millennium AICC continued to solidify its services to members as it introduced new programs.

In 1995, AICC and M.S. Ackerman & Co. LLC co-sponsored the School for Financial Managers & Controllers. This was followed in 1996 by the first AICC Sales Management Institute, and in 1997 by the Production Managers’ Forum. All

of these programs were designed to meet the needs of senior-level personnel in independent box plants, and they were reflective of the independent sector’s growth: No longer was it just the box plant owner who would benefit from AICC educational programs; his key senior employees were to benefit as well.

In 1996, AICC took the unusual step of inviting a group of 25 general and associate members to its headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia, for the purpose of developing a long-range plan. Joseph R. Palmeri, AICC’s 23rd president, spearheaded the effort to determine where the Association would devote its resources and concentrate its programs.

As the generational shift in AICC member companies takes place by virtue of the

In the spring of 1997 AICC and TAPPI began a unique partnership to create and own its own corrugated industry machinery show, SuperCorrExpo.

Here, leadership of both associations gather at the USAirways Club at Pittsburgh International Airport to sign the documents. From left, standing, Wayne Gross, executive director of TAPPI; Dale Dill, president of TAPPI; Steve Young, executive vice president of AICC, and Joseph R. Palmeri, Jamestown Container, president of AICC.

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independent sector’s natural demographics, a next generation of AICC leadership is emerging to take on leadership of the Association. To help foster this leadership and preserve the lifeblood of AICC, a Next Generation Committee was formed within AICC to provide a forum for younger members and to help members in their management transitions.

As part of the long-range plan, members recognized the value of working with other groups to bring greater services to AICC members. Under the leadership of then-President Joseph R. Palmeri of Jamestown Container Cos., AICC and TAPPI forged a partnership in May 1997 to sponsor SuperCorrExpoSM 2000, the first North American corrugated machinery show.

The agreement was a first for AICC and the corrugated industry.

In 1998, AICC formally recognized the cooperative efforts among members through its FirstPak program. AICC petitioned the U.S. Department of Justice—and subsequently the Canadian Competition Bureau—to recognize and approve a program whereby AICC members, working together in joint selling entities, could serve multiple-location national or regional customers. Through the FirstPak program, members could expand their own capabilities, protecting and even expanding their market share.

The 20-year period of 1980–2000 transformed the AICC founders’ dream of an international association

of independent corrugated converters into a reality. From a small group of entrepreneurs reacting to ensure their survival as independent businesses, AICC has grown into a professionally run, yet member-driven, association.

Next Issue: 21st-Century Leadership for a Changing Industry Steve Young is president of AICC. He can be reached at 703-535-1381 or syoung@aiccbox.org.

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Leadership

BENCHMARK: 2015

BY SCOTT ELLIS, ED.D.

P

roducers of goods and services pay close attention to the numbers regarding production, safety, and sales. Good manufacturers go beyond measuring outcomes to track key performance indicators to ensure these results. The best producers identify KPIs for all critical aspects of the business: getting the order, getting paid, and everything in between. In AICC’s

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workshop “Optimizing Plant Operations” we teach the use of a benchmarking tool that provides assessment and direction for improvement in 11 key areas affecting productivity and profit.

The Rapid Plant Assessment was developed by Dr. R. Eugene Goodson of the University of Michigan Business School and Johnson Controls to compare any organization to the best manufacturers

across industries and international borders. P2 has used this assessment for many years to evaluate operations for acquisition analysis, to target improvement opportunities, and to develop ROI-driven action plans.

In the workshop we cover the clear criteria that are observable on a plant tour, and then we practice their use. In fact, in the March workshop, hosted by Southern

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“The best producers identify KPIs for all critical aspects of the business: getting the order, getting paid, and everything in between.”

Missouri Containers, we toured and rated two plants. In addition to our host plant, we rated a plant owned by Jack Stack, author of The Great Game of Business.

The 11 categories are • Customer service.

Safety, environment, cleanliness, and order.

• Visual management deployment.

• Scheduling system.

• Product flow, space use, and material movement.

• Inventory and work in progress (WIP) levels.

• People, teamwork, skill level, and motivation.

• Equipment and tooling state and maintenance.

• Management of complexity.

• Supply chain integration.

• Quality system deployment.

There are two versions that we use regularly: the full version, which is completed periodically, and the abbreviated version, which can be used anytime. I call the abbreviated version the “coffee shop quiz” because it is a 20-question quiz that fuels great discussion. I have often asked employees to walk through the place where they work each week and then answer the brief questionnaire.

Even this short exercise can open eyes to great improvement opportunities.

The ensuing discussion, perhaps over coffee, has led to greater awareness and engagement of the employees.

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Space does not allow a description of the observation criteria for the full assessment; however, the “coffee shop” version is included below. When distributing the questions, it is important to give people permission to be candid—you are not asking them to praise or criticize the operations, but to observe and discuss what they see. I encourage you to share it with your team and then learn from your observations. While it is not a full diagnostic, it is an occasion to see improvement prospects that are hidden in plain sight and to engage the people who will help you to realize the benefits they will bring.

The number of yeses to the following 20 questions determines the leanness of the plant. The more yeses, the more the plant is operating by lean principles and reducing waste of time, effort, money, and creativity. To answer yes to a question, the observer must see evidence. Noes represent opportunities for improvement.

Yes or No (No Maybes) Are visitors welcomed and given information about the plant layout, workforce, customers, and products?

Are ratings for customer satisfaction and product quality displayed?

Is the facility safe, clean, orderly, and well-lit? Is the air quality good, and are the noise levels low?

Does a visual labeling system identify and locate inventory, tools, processes, and flow?

Does everything have its own place, and is everything stored in its place?

Are up-to-date operational goals and performance measures for those goals prominently posted?

Are production materials brought to and stored at line side rather than in separate inventory storage areas?

Are work instructions and product quality specifications visible at all work areas?

Are updated charts on productivity, quality, safety, and problem-solving visible for all teams?

Can the current state of the operation be viewed from a central control room, on a status board, or on a computer display?

Are product lines scheduled off a single pacing process with appropriate inventory levels at each stage?

Is material moved only once, as short a distance as possible, and in appropriate containers?

Is the plant laid out in continuous product flow lines rather than “shops”?

Are work teams trained, empowered, and involved in problem-solving and ongoing improvements?

Do employees appear committed to continuous improvement?

Is a timetable posted for equipment preventative maintenance and continuous improvement of tools and processes?

Is there an effective project management process, with cost and timing goals for new product startups?

Is a supplier certification process displayed, with measures for quality, delivery, and cost performance?

Have key products’ characteristics been identified and fail-safe methods used to forestall propagation of defects?

Would you buy the products this operation produces?

Scott Ellis, Ed.D., is a partner in P-Squared (P2).

He can be reached at 425-985-8508 or scottellis@psquaredusa.com.

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Folding Carton/Rigid Box

MOVE OVER, CHIPBOARD: MICROFLUTE MAKES INROADS

BY ROBERT BITTNER

Challenges and Choices “Box manufacturers have very few mills to buy boards from,” explains Nelva Walz, vice president of business development at rigid box company Elegant Packaging in Cicero, Illinois. “Right now, we do not stock chipboard, and we only order based on the jobs we have. But the mills are on a six-week cycle in terms of running the chipboard in different color and thickness. So when I get a big job— say 300,000 pieces—and the chipboard

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is not available, it compromises my production schedule.”

By comparison, typical fulfillment time for standard microflute orders—including a 300,000-piece job—would be one week, according to Michael Drummond, president of Packrite, a High Point, North Carolina–based company focused on producing microflute primarily for the folding carton industry. His worst-case scenario: “You can end up in a four-week cycle if you have a very specialized substrate.”

Walz appreciates the potential of a dramatically shortened fulfillment time, but she also knows more research needs to happen before microflute will show up in an Elegant Packaging job for a real customer. “We haven’t done a comprehensive price comparison yet regarding different thickness of chipboard vs.

different thickness of microflute,” she says. “We would need to run all the common calipers we use, from 30 pt. to 110 pt.” She also must determine whether microflute will pass the drop ship test for some of the boxes the company produces.

Finally, Walz suspects microflute will not be an across-the-board chipboard replacement. “I think using microflute will work only on certain types and sizes of boxes,” she admits. “It could be an alternative to chipboard or in addition to chipboard.”

Young agrees. “I think box design becomes critical. Corrugated really develops its strength in a cubical form.

It doesn’t lend itself well to a box that is much longer.”

Drummond acknowledges the questions about microflute’s adaptability for setup boxes, but he is encouraged that anyone is even pursuing the answers. “Using

Photo courtesy of Ralph Young

Microflute packaging has been a proven part of the box industry since its introduction roughly 40 years ago.

Today, it accounts for approximately 5 to 7 percent of all corrugated business in the United States, according to Ralph Young, technical adviser for AICC. Yet that number seems destined to change over the next few years—perhaps dramatically—as innovative folding carton and rigid box companies explore microflute as an increasingly desirable substrate alternative or adjunct to paperboard.

Folding carton companies have been working with microflutes for decades.

But new machinery and new printing techniques and media are making it an even more appealing option. And now rigid box companies are taking notice as well, due to growing frustrations with chipboard availability and the ongoing desire to offer customers distinctive packaging at a competitive price. Unlike their folding carton colleagues, no rigid box converter contacted for this article is ready to bring a microflute-based box to market. But given their across-the-board enthusiasm for chipboard alternatives, it seems to be only a matter of time.

From Top to bottom actual production samples; E Flute, E/B Doublewall, M Flute, Conventional C Flute. Micro flutes not shown D, R, S, T, O, N, G, and Karton Flute©

microflute in rigid boxes is certainly not fully developed yet. But it’s really pretty innovative to even think of moving in that direction. You’re talking about cutting-edge technology.”

In categories where microflute has been well-developed—packaging for everything from tobacco and shoes to fast food—a number of folding carton companies are seeing just how far microflute can go.

T-flute, for example, is bendable to the point of being a packaging replacement for heavier paperboard tubes. At least one company is pitching it, combined with premium foil finishes, as a replacement for metal as a consumer-facing container for higher-end and luxury products.

Coming to Terms With Corrugated Folding carton and setup box companies that have rarely needed to look beyond 50 pt. chipboard substrates may hear the

word “corrugated” and immediately picture the common cardboard box, which typically features C-flute. While such boxes can be incredibly durable, they usually feature visible flute ends, have a noticeably wavy surface to the touch, and take ink poorly—none of which holds any consumer appeal.

Microflutes, on the other hand, have the potential to be much more chipboardlike in their finished state, due largely to advances in printing processes.

“You can print directly on, say, N-flute,” says Packrite’s Drummond.

“But it’s like you’re printing on a sponge. It doesn’t print as well as on solid fiber substrate.

“There are really two good ways to create offset quality on a fluted substrate.

With litho lamination, you’re applying a printed laminate to a complete set of corrugated. It’s great for short runs, display

stands. On the other hand, single-face lamination is best for packaging.”

Like all corrugated board, a “complete” microflute consists of three layers of paper: the back liner, the corrugated medium, and the top sheet. When producing products requiring quality printing—and premium elements such as foil, embossing, and UV highlights—Drummond’s approach is to produce the back liner and the corrugated medium and then have the customer print their top sheet separately, including all of the premium treatments they desire. The pre-printed top sheets are then glued onto the waiting back liner and medium, creating a complete, finished piece of microflute ready for the next stage. “Essentially, you’re printing on the substrate before it’s converted into flute. It can have a smoother feel for the customer.” In addition, the top sheet is usually glued to the flute tips, “so I’m

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Folding Carton/Rigid Box

MAKING SENSE OF MICROFLUTE There is no one definition for what constitutes a microflute product. Rather, microflute (like fine flute and small flute) is a catchall term referring to a variety of the smallest corrugated sizes that generally range in height (in inches) from T-flute (.087), to E-flute (.043-.06), F-flute (.03), G-flute (.02), and N-flute (.018). Note, however, that these sizes are not set in stone but can vary slightly from manufacturer to manufacturer.

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not showing the flute tips like a normal corrugated would have.”

Even without the use of a printed top sheet, Drummond notes, microflute offers a much wider range of fiber and color choices than typical chipboard, making it extremely customizable.

“If you’re looking for a white interior, we can do the medium and back liner in brown and then have a white top sheet. But it’s infinitely variable. You have three layers of paper, so you can design the flute you want: all black, all white, any number of things.

When you talk about a solid fiber, you’re limited. You have one substrate to play with.”

Price may still be a deterrent to immediate acceptance of microflute over chipboard, but that will depend on companies’—and clients’—needs. Drummond points out that “with brown substrates, you have to get to 28 pt. solid fiber and above before microflute takes over pricewise.

Where it really shines is when you get into 24 pt. SBS [solid bleached sulfate]. Then microflute triple white [in which all three layers are SBS] can absolutely dominate the marketplace in price.” The picture is less rosy if 26 pt. or 28 pt. SBS is required.

“Those are special runs,” he points out, “and the cost-ef fectiveness of microflute decreases dramatically.”

While the future of microflute for folding carton—and especially rigid box—converting remains uncertain, Young believes it is an exciting time to be involved with the product.

“The competition is so fierce and the need for services is so great, microflute suppliers do handsprings to please and delight the converter. These companies are trying hard to outperform one another.”

Robert Bittner is a Michigan-based author and freelance writer. He is a regular contributor to the Folding Carton/Rigid Box column. Robert can be reached at rmbittner@gmail.com.

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The intelligent Ultima™ technology platform is born from our desire to constantly exceed market demands and cultivate focused collaboration with our customers.

The cleverness of the Ultima™ platform offers “easy to run and easy to learn” features for machine operators and a modular development environment for designers, making the EMBA 175 QS Ultima™ upgrade compatible throughout its entire lifetime.

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EMBA’s World first Non-Crush Converting™ technology, with the unique Ultima™ feed unit and the acknowledged Quick-Set™ feature, makes the EMBA 175 QS Ultima™ and EMBA 245 QS Ultima™ unbeatable.

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E KEITH R. UMLAUF THE HAIRE GROUP VICE CHAIRMAN KUMLAUF@HAIREGROUP.COM

JEFF PALLINI FOSBER AMERICA SECRETARY PALLINIJ@FOSBER.COM

ED GARGIULO EQUIPMENT FINANCE CORP. FIRST ALTERNATE EGARGIULO@EFC-FINANCE.COM

KEVIN WIDDER AUTOMATÄN IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIRMAN KWIDDER@AUTOMATAN.COM

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

ntering the corrugated industry fresh out of college, I was challenged to learn the manufacturers of both corrugated boxes and machinery. On the paper and box side were names like St. Joe, Mead, Willamette, Inland Container, Box USA, Jefferson-Smurfit, Weyerhaeuser, and Stone Container, to list just a few. Machinery industry giants like S&S, Langston, Koppers, and others like Staley, General, and Harper are now names of the past. All of the above have either merged with others through consolidation or have simply “gone home.”

Today there is ample evidence that the momentum to consolidate is increasing, this time without borders. New names like Smurfit Kappa and Pratt, from other countries and with headquarters outside the United States, have enlarged and continue to have a solid and growing footprint throughout the United States and across the globe. The big continue to get bigger, and the independent must get bigger, get better, or simply try to hang on.

What does getting bigger in our competitive industry look like? It could happen through merger or even through an acquisition. Recently, longtime multiplant independent Carolina Container was acquired by Rand-Whitney and Schwarz Partners; Orange County Container, Bates Container, and Brian Thomas Display, all acquired by Smurfit Kappa. Another growing trend is becoming part of a corrugator combine to have greater control over sheet supply. Or perhaps it means growing your business through the addition of machinery, allowing you to now bring in

house business otherwise farmed out. We are definitely seeing an increasing number of independents with minority ownership in paper mills, all pointing to the independent desiring greater control over their own supply chain of materials.

Every owner or manager wants to see their company and the individuals involved get better. Yet in the busyness of the daily grind, the implementation of a specific plan or company goal often falls through the cracks, resulting in another year of mediocrity. It is imperative to stay current with the pace of technology with machinery in our plants to provide more up time, quicker setups, faster run speeds, in order that we continue to add daily to the bottom line. Another noticeable trend is automation. Robotics, automatic feeders, load formers, conveyorization, and bundle breakers are all geared to provide higher production rates, greater efficiency, and increased personnel safety. (See Page 26).

While the big continue to get bigger, the independent must get better. The greatest strength of the independent is their ability to be creative and responsive to customers with unparalleled service and pursuit of customer satisfaction. The entrepreneurial spirit and drive is the force that takes good companies to great, and the great to exceptional. The independent will never be the “big,” but as long as the pursuit remains to get better, you don’t need to worry about “going home.”

Every owner or manager wants to see their company and the individuals involved get better.

This article was written by Keith Umlauf.

S I M P LY A C U T A B O V E

MADE1

EXPORTED2

353 32 385

428 60 488

NOVEMBER

Liner Medium Total

0

OCTOBER

07

Financial Corner

1. AF&PA

2. US Census Bureau

08

09

10

11

12

13

14

7 YR AVG

Source: AF&PA. FBA

2014 Richard Storat & Associates, Inc.

Unidentified Uses of Containerboar ANALYZING HISTORICALNovember CONTRIBUTION THROUGH THE LENS OF MACHINE HOURS

ied Uses of Containerboard

500

BY MITCHELL KLINGHER

P

(000 Tons)

450 400 350 300 250

of allocation, you will end up with data systems. You know what the200 contribution retty much everybody has plant data that, while not perfect, will help you make dollars associated with each 150 order are, collection systems that let them know better decisions. and if you have been paying attention how many hours each order ties up 100 What to previous issues, you know what you each piece of equipment in the plant.

11 12 this spreadsheet 13 illustrates is 14 that contribution percentage alone is not have to do to make sure that this is an You all have costing systems that calculate Source: AF&PA. US Census Bureau always the best methodology with which accurate number and that it can and how many contribution dollars each order 2012 2013 2014 to evaluate the desirability of an order. should be reconciled to your general generates. In past issues of BoxScore we Take order number 1008 as an example. ledger. Your existing plant reporting have spent a lot of time on the issue of EB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC It’s a large order with a low contribution system will tell you how long it took to defining and tracking contribution, and Source: AF&PA. FBA percentage (13.9 percent), but it yields set up and run the order. You do have to we have spent a lot of time discussing the a significant amount of contribution importance of tracking machine hours. The make some assumptions about how to dollars—$3,557—and when looked at on allocate the contribution among multiple hypothetical spreadsheet below shows how a contribution-dollars-per-hour basis, it is machine orders, and that does add you can marry this information together to almost as high as the entire mix for that some subjectivity to the machine center help you make better decisions. machine center ($356 versus $366). Order analysis. However, I would argue that if Every line on this spreadsheet can be number 1001 shows a high contribution you are consistent in your methodology populated directly from your existing ABC SHEET PLANT MACHINE HOUR AND CONTRIBUTION RECONCILIATION 2014 2014 Contrubution ReconciliationNOVEMBER - November

ABC Sheet Plant Machine Hour And

ORDER NUMBER SALES CONTRIB FLEXO 1 FLEXO 2 RDC FLATBED SFG LITH/LAM 1000 4,250 1,145 3.2 1001 800 312 1.2 1002 15,552 2,987 3 3 2 1003 1,526 598 3 1004 7,545 1,045 3.25 1005 3,245 1,067 2.1 1006 1,002 552 2.1 1007 6,777 2,342 3 1.4 0.5 1008 25,555 3,557 10 1009 368 200 0.8 1010 5,456 1,785 3 1.5 1011 8,798 1,324 4 1012 2,324 652 2.5 1013 4,443 1,345 2 2 1014 9,843 1,987 6.2 ALL OTHER 2,313,450 478,032 287 257 298 110 121 88 1420 4,489 1,025 1 1.5 1.2 TOTAL HOURS 304.85 274.2 307.3 116 128.4 93.7 TOTAL $ 2,415,423 499,955 94,991 99,991 114,990 59,995 64,994 44,996 CONTRIB./HR. 311.60 364.66 374.19 517.19 506.18 480.21 HOURS AVAILABLE 336 336 336 168 168 168 UTILIZATION % 90.7% 81.6% 91.5% 69.0% 76.4% 55.8%

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

OTHER

1.1

47 48.1 19,998 415.76 336 14.3%

TOTAL HRS 3.2 1.2 8 3 3.25 3.2 2.1 4.9 10 0.8 4.5 4 2.5 4 6.2 1208 3.7 1272.55

1848 68.9%

CONTRIB. CONTRIB. PER HR. % 358 260 373 199 322 333 263 478 356 250 397 331 261 336 320 396 277 393

26.9% 39.0% 19.2% 39.2% 13.9% 32.9% 55.1% 34.6% 13.9% 54.3% 32.7% 15.0% 28.1% 30.3% 20.2% 20.7% 22.8% 20.7%

AF&PA Contai for Export

Census Contai Exports

3 per. Mov. Av

AF&PA Containerb

3 per. Mov. Av

Census Containerb

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Financial Corner “If you are consistent in your methodology of allocation, you will end up with data that, while not perfect, will help you make better decisions.” percentage (39 percent) but generated only $312 of contribution dollars and at a lower dollars-per-hour than the average of your overall sales mix.

At the end of the day, a good order is one that allows you to fill up your plant

B O X

M A K E R S

•

decisions. A high sales price per MSF (thousand square feet) and a large material margin are not always the most objective criteria in evaluating the profitability of an order. Adding some measure of profitability per machine hour will help you make better decisions.

Mitchell Klingher is a partner of Klingher Nadler LLP. He can be reached at 201-731-3025 or mitch@klinghernadler.com.

with orders that it can run efficiently and that help you to generate enough contribution dollars to cover your fixed costs. Looking at the time it takes to run the order is one of the most important and overlooked criteria used in pricing

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

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International Corrugated Packaging Foundation

EFFECTIVELY RECRUIT ENTRY-LEVEL CANDIDATES THROUGH ICPF

N

ow is a great time to recruit students who are approaching spring and summer graduation. For ICPF corporate partners—and firms considering corporate partner pledges—that have entry-level openings or wish to offer a student internship, one of the most proven tools for recruiting is ICPF’s Career Portal. Not only do you get direct applications from new or upcoming graduates, but the posting of an opening also allows your firm to search ICPF’s online Résumé Bank, which has more than 100 résumés. If your firm has an entry-level opening in packaging design, graphic design, sales, business, or engineering, or if you wish to locate a student intern for this coming summer or fall, contact rflaherty@icpfbox.org to get started. ICPF’s Career Portal is a free benefit for ICPF corporate partners and for those corrugated firms or suppliers considering making a partnership pledge.

Richard M. Flaherty is president of the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation. He can be reached at 703-549-8580 or rflaherty@icpfbox.org.

For more information about the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation, visit www.careersincorrugated.org.

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

PACKAGING

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

CORRUGATED

F O U N D AT I O N

EIGHTH ANNUAL HOLIDAY WEEKEND IN NEW YORK — SIGN UP EARLY! Registration is now open for ICPF’s Holiday Weekend in New York, scheduled for Friday and Saturday, December 11–12, 2015. ICPF’s New York holiday event this past December was an early sellout. To ensure participation, ICPF recommends you register this spring. You can request a registration form from rflaherty@icpfbox.org or visit www. careersincorrugated.org to download a form. Bring your spouse or a guest for holiday shopping, touring, dining at a renowned restaurant, or the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall during New York City’s holiday season—all while supporting ICPF’s educational mission.

ICPF Update

16TH ANNUAL CAREERS IN CORRUGATED PACKAGING TELECONFERENCE

O

n February 19, ICPF conducted its 16th annual Careers in Corrugated Packaging & Displays Teleconference. In spite of the shutdown of colleges across the mid-Atlantic due to snow and the 17-below-zero temperatures at Michigan State University that kept many students inside, an estimated 400 packaging, graphic design, sales, and business students and faculty from 15 colleges and universities participated. The annual teleconference is not a webcast, but a live, interactive video conference utilizing professional TV broadcast-grade equipment at the PBS station in East Lansing, Michigan, for the two-way interactivity.

“The Business of Corrugated Packaging & Displays” was addressed by Tim Bergwall (GREIF) and Jack Fiterman (Liberty Diversified). Co-moderators included Sheridyn Gasser (Jamestown Container packaging designer) and Megan Stallings (PCA student intern), both of whom were recruited to the corrugated industry through ICPF after representing Bowling Green State University and Virginia Tech packaging

programs, respectively, at last year’s Careers in Corrugated Teleconference and student dialogue dinner. The two university programs are among the more than 25 university programs working with ICPF. A round of live questions directed to the panelists from each of the participating campuses followed the industry representatives. The two hour teleconference’s grand finale included ICPF’s annual “Best of the Best” student design presentation competition.

Three student teams that earlier placed in AICC’s 2014 design competition were tasked to “show, tell, and sell” their winning entries by explaining the objective, the research conducted, design, and other background. The results were very close among the three teams. The first-place winner was the Dunwoody College of Technology student team of Stephanie Burdorf, Charlotte LaCour, Dan Mueller, Noah Rabinowitz, and Jenna Weiler; second place was awarded to the Cal Poly team of Emily Mallet, Andrew Morey, and Patrick Salibi; and third place went to the Millersville

University team of Hynea Redd and Walter Simko. The three teams each won cash prizes for their compelling presentations.

Participating campuses in the 16th Annual Careers in Corrugated Packaging Teleconference included: Bowling Green State University, Cal Poly, Clemson University Graphic Communications & Packaging, Dunwoody College of Technology, Illinois State University, Indiana State University, Lewis-Clark State College, Michigan State University, Millersville University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, University of Florida, University of Texas–Arlington, University of Wisconsin–Stout, Virginia Tech, and Western Michigan University.

ANNUAL STUDENT DINNER DIALOGUE

T

he evening before ICPF’s Career in Corrugated Packaging and Displays Teleconference, 18 select students from Michigan State, Bowling Green State University, Clemson University, Illinois State, and Virginia Tech joined teleconference speakers and industry executives for dinner to learn more about corrugated packaging and display industry careers. The firms represented in the student dinner dialogue included Buckeye Corrugated Inc., Greif, Jamestown Container Cos., Liberty

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

Diversified International, Tavens Packaging, Touchpoint Packaging, and Landaal Packaging Systems, which sponsored the dinner and guest travel for the evening.

The students from Bowling Green State University, Clemson University, Illinois State, and Virginia Tech were flown into East Lansing as ICPF’s special teleconference guests. These students joined the MSU student audience the next day to view ICPF’s Careers in Corrugated Teleconference, gaining a unique perspective by observing

their remotely accessed campuses and fellow students’ participation from the broadcast site in Michigan.

For more information on the students and executives who participated, visit www.careersincorrugated.org. Additionally, the résumés of these students, as well as those of other qualified upcoming graduates, can be accessed by ICPF Corporate Partners and potential partners that post student internships or full-time entry-level openings on ICPF’s Career Portal.

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The Final Score

ONLINE VS. IN-STORE: IS THERE A TREND AFOOT?

L

ast August an article in The Washington Post business section caught my eye: “Sales Sagging at Best Buy’s Stores” (The Washington Post, Wednesday, August 27, 2014, Page A10). The article talked about the big-box electronics retailer’s woes with lackluster sales in its 1,400 brick-and-mortar outlets nationwide.

It was the subheading in this story that really got my attention, though: “Online revenue is a bright spot.” According to the article, while Best Buy’s retail outlets struggled to achieve 2 percent sales growth through the second quarter of 2014, online sales grew at 22 percent in the second quarter, more than doubling the prior-year figure of 10.5 percent.

A few days before this, the CEO of Dick’s Sporting Goods predicted that his company’s e-commerce profits would top store profits by the year 2017. Mark Brohan, the author of the article on InternetRetailer.com, reported that in a conference call with investors, Dick’s CEO Edward Stack said that “we are almost to the same profitability of the four-wall cost, if you will, on e-commerce as we are in the stores” (InternetRetailer.com, August 20, 2014). Translation: Our online business is growing by leaps and bounds.

What do these two retailer stories say about the corrugated business? In “The Future of Packaging” feature in this issue of BoxScore (see Page 52), we examine these trends more closely. On the surface, the rise in e-commerce might be seen as “robbing Peter to pay Paul,” since sales made online are shipped directly to consumers from distribution centers, keeping consumers away from stores entirely. On closer inspection, however, it might just be a case of “helping or enabling Peter to pay Paul,” because shopping online, comparing features and prices, drives consumers to the store to pick up the desired item.

That, according to InternetRetailer.com, is the strategy Dick’s is employing to help drive sales in both sales outlets.

I have wondered how this trend will affect the growing point-of-purchase display business.

Will sagging sales in big-box retailers—Best Buy’s experience is not unique—bring about a decline in POP (point of purchase) sales, as customers order fewer units to populate fewer stores? Or will more POP be needed in-store to attract the attention of consumers coming in to pick up items ordered online, in a sort of “do you want fries with that?” approach? It’s probably too early to tell, because the research in this area is just beginning.

Responding to this question, the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), the trade group representing owners of shopping malls and shopping centers—the brick-andmortar segment of the business—last spring released results of a study touting the benefits of the in-store shopping experience, saying that consumers spend significantly more in-store ($1,710) than online ($247). What’s more, says ICSC, the average time a consumer spends in a brick-and-mortar store is 54 minutes, compared with 38 minutes online. These are good stats for use in your POP marketing, I’d say!

Regardless of how this discussion plays out—whether something’s bought in-store or ordered online—we can all be sure a corrugated, folding carton, or rigid box is likely to be displaying it and delivering it, and that’s good for everybody.

Steve Young President

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BOXSCORE March/April 2015

i

Thank you for supporting AiCC.

A.G. Stacker, Inc., Weyers Cave, VA • Abbott-Action, Inc., Pawtucket, RI • Absolute Engineering Limited, West Yorkshire, UK • Accu-Bond Corporation, Downingtown, PA • Acme Corrugated Box Company, Inc., Hatboro, PA • ACTEGA Kelstar, Inc., Delran, NJ • Action Box Company Inc., Houston, TX • ADD Ink / Atlantic Decorated & Display, Toronto, ON • Adhesive Products, Inc., Albany, CA • Advance Packaging Corporation, Grand Rapids, MI • Advance Packaging Corporation, Jackson, MI • Advanced Design & Packaging, Atlanta, GA • Advanced Die Supplies, Inc., Santa Fe Springs, CA • AFP Corrugated, Pflugerville, TX • Age Empaques De Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Monterrey, NLE • AGE Industries Incorporated, San Benito, TX • AGE Industries Incorporated, El Paso, TX • AGE Industries Ltd., Belton, TX • AGE Industries Ltd., Cibolo, TX • AGE Industries Ltd., Cleburne, TX • AGE Industries Ltd., Houston, TX • AGE Industries Ltd., Conway, AR • AICC, Alexandria, VA • AICC Canada, Toronto, ON • AIM Corrugated Container Corp., Lancaster, NY • Air Conveying Corp., Memphis, TN • Air Systems Design Inc., Mandeville, LA • Akers Packaging Service Inc., Middletown, OH • The ALC Group, Kansas City, MO • The ALC Group, Phoenix, AZ • Alfa Desarrollos Industriales, S.A. De C.V., Ecatepec, MEX • ALHU Internacional De Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Tlalnepantla, MEX • ALHU International Inc., El Paso, TX • All-Size Corrugated Products, a BCI Company, Lancaster, PA • Allan Company, Baldwin Park, CA • Allan Company Baldwin Park, Baldwin Park, CA • Allan Company Commerce Warehouse, Commerce, CA • Allan Company Fresno (Chestnut Ave), Fresno, CA • Allan Company Fresno (Sunland Ave), Fresno, CA • Allan Company Fresno (Woodward Ave), Fresno, CA • Allan Company Glendale Recycling, Glendale, CA • Allan Company Palmdale, Palmdale, CA • Allan Company Roll Division, Pomona, CA • Allan Company San Diego (Consolidated Way), San Diego, CA • Allan Company San Diego (Convoy St), San Diego, CA • Allan Company Santa Ana, Santa Ana, CA • Allan Company Santa Monica Division, Santa Monica, CA • Alliance Machine Systems Europe, , • Alliance Machine Systems International, LLC, Spokane, WA • Allpak Container, Renton, WA • Alma Container Corp., Alma, MI • Alpha Packaging Corporation, Centerport, PA • Alpha Packaging Inc., Greenwood, AR • Alpine Corrugated Machinery, Inc., Ridgefield Park, NJ • ALTEX Packaging, Inc., Anniston, AL • American Box Co., Shawnee Mission, KS • American Carton Company, Mansfield, TX • American Corrugated, Lebanon, TN • American Corrugated Machine Corp., Indian Trail, NC • American Corrugated Products Inc., Columbus, OH • American Ink and Coatings, Sheridan, AR • American Packaging Corp., Hutchinson, KS • Amsterdam - KapStone Container Corporation, Amsterdam, NY • Amtech, Fort Washington, PA • Anilox Roll Cleaning Systems, Hatfield, PA • Annan & Bird Lithographers, Mississauga, ON • Annan & Bird Lithographers Ltd., Toronto, ON • Apex Group of Companies, Goch, Germany • Apex North America LLC, Donora, PA • Apex Paper Box Co., Cleveland, OH • APPI - Affiliated Power Purchasers International, LLC, Salisbury, MD • Applied Adhesives, Santa Fe Springs, CA • ARC International, Charlotte, NC • ARCH Inc., Heber City, UT • Archbold Container Corp., Archbold, OH • Arden Software North America, Park City, UT • Arrow Box Company, Saint Louis, MO • Arrowhead Containers, Inc. SMC Packaging Group, Kansas City, MO • Artistic Carton Company, Elgin, IL • Arvco Container Corp., Cadillac, MI • Arvco Container Corp. Specialty Packaging Division, Kalamazoo, MI • Arvco Container Corporation, Kalamazoo, MI • Arvco Container Corporation, Kalamazoo, MI • Associated Packaging Inc., Greer, SC • Astral Adhesives & Coatings, Inc., Seal Beach, CA • Atlanta Box Plant - KapStone Container Corporation, College Park, GA • Atlanta Sheet Feeder -KapStone Container Corporation, Atlanta, GA • Atlanta Sheet Plant - KapStone Container Corporation, Atlanta, GA • Atlantic Packaging Products Ltd., Brampton, ON • Atlantic Packaging Products Ltd., Mississauga, ON • Atlantic Packaging Products Ltd., Mississauga, ON • Atlas Container Corp., Severn, MD • Aurora Sheet Plant - KapStone Container Corporation, Aurora, IL • Automatan, Plover, WI • Automated Conveyor Systems Inc., Lynchburg, VA • Avista Solutions International (Alliance Technical Services, Inc.), Eden Prairie, MN • Axis Corrugated Container, Butner, NC • B & B Box Company Inc., Perrysburg, OH • Badger Packaging Corp., West Bend, WI • Bahmueller Technologies, Inc., Charlotte, NC • Batavia Container Inc., Batavia, IL • Bates Container LTD - Fort Worth, North Richland Hills, TX • Bates Container LTD - Longview, Longview, TX • Bates Container LTD - San Antonio, Von Ormy, TX • Baumer Hhs Corporation, Dayton, OH • Bay Cities, Pico Rivera, CA • Bay Corrugated Container, Inc., Monroe, MI • Baysek Machines Inc., Amherst, WI • BCI Graphics & Display, Kenosha, WI • BCI, Buckeye Corrugated Inc., Fairlawn, OH • BCM Inks U.S.A. Inc., Cincinnati, OH • Bell Container Corp., Newark, NJ • Bell Containers, Cuddy, PA • Benefits Exchange Alliance, Culver City, CA • Bennett Packaging of K.C. Inc., Lees Summit, MO • Berenz Packaging Corp., Menomonee Falls, WI • BGM - Bahmuller Gopfert, Wiesentheid, • BHS Corrugated - North America, Inc., Baltimore, MD • Bio-PAPPEL International, Dallas, TX • Bio-PAPPEL International, Prewitt, NM • Bio-PAPPEL S.A.B. De C.V., Mexico City, DIF • Bird Packaging Limited, Guelph, ON • Blue Box Inc., Columbus, OH • Blue Ridge Packaging Corp., Martinsville, VA • Board Converting News, Avon By The Sea, NJ • Bobst Latinoamerica Norte SA De CV, Mexico, DIF • Bobst North America Inc., Roseland, NJ • Borinquen Container Corporation, Hatillo, PR • Bowling Green - KapStone Container Corporation, Bowling Green, KY • Box-Board Products Inc., Greensboro, NC • Boxes Inc., Saint Louis, MO • The Boxmaker, Kent, WA • Boxmaster, New Westminster, BC • Boxtec, Indianapolis, IN • Braden Sutphin Ink Company (Flexographic Division), Milwaukee, WI • Bradford Company, Holland, MI • Brausse Group, Richmond, BC • Brausse Group USA, Grand Prairie, TX • Brian Thomas Display & Packaging, Houston, TX • British Converting Solutions North America, LLC, Clarendon Hills, IL • Brown Packaging, Burlington, ON • Buckeye Boxes, Columbus, OH • Buckeye Boxes Inc., Columbus, OH • Buckeye Container, a BCI Company, Wooster, OH • C & B Display Packaging Inc., Mississauga, ON • C & M Conveyor, Inc., Mitchell, IN • C.U.E., Inc., Cranberry Twp, PA • Cajas De Carton Sultana, S.A. DE C.V., Santa Catarina, NLE • Cajas Y Empaques Modernos, Mexico, DIF • Cal Plate, Artesia, CA • Cal Sheets LLC, Stockton, CA • California Box II, Rancho Cucamonga, CA • California Paperboard Corp. A Co. of the Newark Group, Santa Clara, CA • Cameo Container, Chicago, IL • Cano Container Corp., Aurora, IL • Canon Solutions America, Inc., Itasca, IL • Capital Corrugated & Carton, Sacramento, CA • Capitol Carton Co., Chicago, IL • Capitol City Container Corp., Indianapolis, IN • CardConnect, Overland Park, KS • Carlisle Container Co., Carlisle, PA • Carolina Container Co., High Point, NC • Carolina Container Co., High Point, NC • Carolina Container Co. (Columbia, SC), Columbia, SC • Casco, Inc., Pointe Claire, Montreal, QC • Cedar City Sheet Plant- KapStone Container Corporation, Cedar City, UT • Cedar Rapids - KapStone Container Corporation, Cedar Rapids, IA • CEL Chemical & Supplies, Inc., Piedmont, SC • Cell-Pak, Bridgeport, CT • CellMark Packaging, San Rafael, CA • Central California Sheets, Kingsburg, CA • Central Florida Box Corp., Lake Mary, FL • The Central Group, Mississauga, ON • Central National - Gottesman Inc., Purchase, NY • Central Package & Display, Minneapolis, MN • Century Sunshine Paper (USA) Inc., West Covina, CA • Champion Container Corporation, Wood Dale, IL • Chief Container Company, Inc., Acworth, GA • Classic Corrugated, Denton, TX • ClearVision, North Vancouver, BC • Coastal Container Corp., Holland, MI • Coastal Corrugated Inc., Charleston, SC • Coleman Containers Ltd., Etobicoke, ON • Colmar Inks, Toronto, ON • Color Box Container, Atlanta, GA • Color Pak, Mechanicsville, VA • Color Resolutions International LLC, Fairfield, OH • Columbia Container Corp., Baltimore, MD • Combined Containerboard Inc., Cincinnati, OH • Commencement Bay Corrugated, Orting, WA • Commercial-Wagner Inc., Baltimore, MD • Commonwealth Packaging Corp., Chicopee, MA • Compak Inc & Webcor Packaging Corp., Burton, MI • Compass Packaging, Mantua, OH • Complete Design and Packaging, Concord, NC • Complete Packaging Limited, Windsor, ON • Complete Packaging, LLC, San Angelo, TX • Concord Specialty Corrugated, a BCI Company, Batesville, AR • Conductor Systems, Inc., Atlanta, GA • Connecticut Container Corp./ Unicorr Packaging Group, North Haven, CT • Container Graphics Corp., Pineville, NC • Container Graphics Corp., Toledo, OH • Container Graphics Corp., Modesto, CA • Container Graphics Corp., Denver, CO • Container Graphics Corp., Irving, TX • Container Graphics Corp., Cary, NC • Container Graphics Corp. (Schaumburg, IL), Schaumburg, IL • Container Graphics Corp. (White Bear, MN), White Bear Lake, MN • Container Graphics Ltd., Weston, Ontario • Container Service Corp., South Bend, IN • Container Service Corp., Ringgold, GA • Copar Corp., Burbank, IL • Copar Corp., Burbank, IL • Copar Corp., Burbank, IL • Corn Products Stockton Mfg., Stockton, CA • Corr-A-Box Packaging Limited, Rexdale, ON • Corr-Pak Corporation, McCook, IL • Corru Kraft, Buena Park, CA • Corruempaques, S. A. De C.V., Col. Casa Blanca, QRO • Corrugated Chemicals, Inc., Cincinnati, OH • Corrugated Container Corp., Roanoke, VA • Corrugated Container Corp. of NC, Holly Springs, NC • Corrugated Container Corp. of Tennessee, Piney Flats, TN • Corrugated Gear & Services Inc., Alpharetta, GA • Corrugated Paper Group, Milford, NJ • Corrugated Supplies Co., LLC, Chicago, IL • Corrugated Synergies International LLC, Renton, WA • Corrugated Technologies Inc., San Diego, CA • Corrugated Today, Cleveland, OH • Coyle Packaging Group, Scarborough, ON • Cra-Wal Container, a BCI Company, Indianapolis, IN • Creative Packaging Inc., Garden City, GA • Cross Container Corporation, Carpentersville, IL • Crown Creative Group, New Westminister, BC • Crown Packaging, Richmond, BC • Crown Packaging Ltd., Richmond, BC • CST Systems, Inc, Marietta, GA • CSW, Inc., Sylvania, OH • CSW, Inc., Rochester, NY • CSW, Inc., Ludlow, MA • Custom Corrugated Box Corporation, East Providence, RI • Custom Corrugated Containers Inc., Charlotte, NC • Custom Packaging Inc., Lebanon, TN • Cyecsa S.A. De C.V., Guadalajara, JAL • Dakota Corrugated Box Co., Sioux Falls, SD • Dallas Sheet Feeder - KapStone Container Corporation, Fort Worth, TX • Danbury Square Box Co. Inc., Danbury, CT • Danhil Container II, Ltd., Brownwood, TX • DanHil Containers II, Ltd., Temple, TX • Danhil De Mexico S.A. De C.V., Reynosa, TAM • DanHil De Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Juarez, CH • DanHil De Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Apodaca, NLE • DeLine Box Co., Denver, CO • Delta Containers Division, Bay City, MI • Delta Packaging, Inc., York, PA • Dicar Inc., Pine Brook, NJ • Dismas Distribution Services, Columbus, OH • Dixon Container Company, Inc., Boise, ID • The Drake Company, Houston, TX • DuPont Packaging Graphics, Wilmington, DE • Dusobox Corporation, Orlando, FL • Dynamic Dies, Inc., Holland, OH • Eaglewood Technologies, Minneapolis, MN • EAM-MOSCA Corp., Hazle Township, PA • EAM-MOSCA De Mexico S. De RL De C.V., Monterrey, NLE • Elegant Packaging, Cicero, IL • Elof Hansson, Bensalem, PA • EMBA Machinery Inc., Westlake, OH • Emmeci USA, LLC, East Providence, RI • Empaques De Carton United (Grupo Gondi), D.F., MEX • Empaques Del Norte, S.A. De C.V., San Nicolas De Los Garza, NLE • Empaques Modernos De Guadalajara, S.A., El Salto, JAL • Empaques Plegadizos Modernos S.A. De C.V., La Paz, MEX • Empaques Rio Grande, S.A. De C.V., Matamoros, TAM • Empire Packaging & Displays, Carson, CA • Empire State Container, Inc., a BCI Company, Syracuse, NY • Englander DZignPack, LLC, Waco, TX • Englander DZignPak, LLC, Carrollton, TX • Englander DzignPak, LLC, Rogers, AR • Epicor Software Worldwide Headquarters, Vancouver, BC • Epicor Software Worldwide Headquarters, Dublin, CA • Equipment Finance Corporation, Alpharetta, GA • Erdie Industries, Inc., Lorain, OH • Erhardt & Leimer Inc., Duncan, SC • Escada Systems, Inc., Decatur, GA • ESKO, Miamisburg, OH • Evergreen Fibres, Inc., Branford, CT • Ferguson Containers, Phillipsburg, NJ • Ferguson Supply and Box Manufacturing Company, Charlotte, NC • Fibre-Tec Partitions, LLC, Chicago, IL • FibreCorr Ltd, Ajax, ON • Fisher Paper Box, Minneapolis, MN • Fitzpatrick Container Co., Allentown, PA • Five Star Sheets, LLC, New Carlisle, IN • Fleetwood-Fibre Packaging and Graphics, City of Industry, CA • Flexo Concepts, Plymouth, MA • Flutes, Inc., Indianapolis, IN • Forest Packaging Corp., Elk Grove Village, IL • Fosber America Inc., Green Bay, WI • Fruit Growers Supply Co., Van Nuys, CA • Fruit Growers Supply Co., Ontario, CA • The Garvey Group, Niles, IL • Gemini Corrugated, Birmingham, AL • General Container Corp., Buena Park, CA • General Packaging Corp., Richardson, TX • Geo. M. Martin Co., Emeryville, CA • GeorgiaPacific, West Chester, OH • Georgia-Pacific, West Chester, OH • Georgia-Pacific, West Chester, OH • Georgia-Pacific, Albert Lea, MN • Georgia-Pacific Corp., Lake Zurich, IL • Georgia-Pacific Corp., Spartanburg, SC • Georgia-Pacific Corp., Easton, PA • Georgia-Pacific Corp., Atlanta, GA • Georgia-Pacific Corp. (Atlanta, GA), Atlanta, GA • Georgia-Pacific Corp. (Atlanta, GA), Atlanta, GA • Georgia-Pacific Corp. (Mt. Olive, IL), Mt. Olive, IL • Gerber Innovations, Tolland, CT • Gerrity Corrugated Paper Products Ltd., Concord, ON • GF Puhl, Gallatin, TN • Global Equipment USA, Limited, Vernon Hills, IL • Global Printing Solutions, Acworth, GA • Global Sourcing Solutions, Fort Collins, CO • Global Sourcing Solutions, Hurst, TX • GLT Packaging, Kentwood, MI • GM Training & Consulting Group, Amherst, NY • Go Packaging, Lombard, IL • Golden Kraft, La Mirada, CA • Grand Forks Sheet Plant -Kapstone Container Corporation, Grand Forks, ND • Grand Traverse Container, Inc., Traverse City, MI • Graphic West Packaging Machinery, LLC, Manchester, CT • Great American Paper, Inc., Inman, SC • Great American Paper, Inc., Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua • Great Lakes Packaging Corp./ Green Bay, Germantown, WI • Great Little Box Company Ltd., Richmond, BC • Great Northern Corporation, Appleton, WI • Great Northern Corporation, Racine, WI • Great Northern Corporation, Chippewa Falls, WI • Great Northern Corporation, Minneapolis, MN • Great Southern Industries, Jackson, MS • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Tulsa, OK • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Kalamazoo, MI • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Chickasha, OK • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Hunt Valley, MD • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Wausau, WI • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Franklin Park, IL • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Morrilton, AR • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Coon Rapids, MN • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Green Bay, WI • Green Bay Packaging Inc., Green Bay, WI • Green Bay Packaging, Inc., Fremont, OH • Green Bay Packaging, Inc., Green Bay, WI • Green Bay Packaging, Inc., Lebanon, OH • Green Bay Packaging, Inc., Green Bay, WI • Green Bay Packaging, Inc., Fort Worth, TX • Greene House Group, Brea, CA • Greif Inc., Delaware, OH • Greif Inc., Amherst, VA • Griffin Communications, Inc., Towson, MD • Grupo Gondi, DIF, MEX • Grupo Gondi - EMSP, Tlalnepantla, MEX • Gulf Packaging, Inc., Bay Minette, AL • H. P. Neun Co. Inc., Lyons, NY • Haire Group, Merrillville, IN • Hampden Papers, Inc., Holyoke, MA • Hansol America, Inc., Fort Lee, NJ • Harbor Packaging Inc., Poway, CA • Harper/Love Adhesives Corp., Charlotte, NC • Harris Packaging Corp., Haltom City, TX • Hartford City Paper, Hartford City, IN • Hawk Converting LLC, Lewisburg, TN • Henkel Corporation, Nashville, TN • Heritage Packaging LLC, Lincoln, IL • Heritage Paper, Livermore, CA • Highland Containers Inc., Jamestown, NC • Hitek Equipment, Inc., Kenosha, WI • Hood Container Corporation, Lakeway, TX • Hoosier Container Inc., Richmond, IN • HP., Alpharetta, GA • HRMS, Inc., Lombard, IL • Hughes Decorr Design and Display, Concord, ON • Huston Patterson Printers, Decatur, IL • Hycorr, LLC., Cleveland, OH • Ibox Packaging Ltd., Delta, BC • IC Industries, Hialeah, FL • ICASA, Monterrey, NLE • IDEAL, Chicago, IL • Ideon Packaging Ltd., Richmond, BC • Illinois Valley Container, Peru, IL • Impress Packaging, Emmaus, PA • Independent Corrugator Inc., Mississauga, ON • Independent II, LLC, Louisville, KY • Indiana Box Co., Greenfield, IN • Indiana Corrugated Inc., Marion, IN • Induspac / Estapack, S.A. De C.V., Tlaquepaque, JAL • Ingredion Canada Incorporated, Mississauga, ON • Ingredion Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Guadalajara, JAL • Ingredion Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Tlalnepantla, MEX • Innerpak of Wisconsin, Watertown, WI • Innovative Fiber, Delafield, WI • Innovative Packaging Inc., Huntington, IN • Innovative Packaging Solutions, York, PA • Integrity Fiber Supply, Indianapolis, IN • Inter-Continental Corp., Newton, NC • Inter-Papier Handelsgesellschaft MbH, Hamburg, DE • Intercontinental Celulosa De Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Mexico, MEX • Interstate Container Brunswick, LLC, North Brunswick, NJ • Interstate Corrpack LLC, Cambridge, MD • Interstate Paper LLC, Riceboro, GA • Interstate Resources Inc., Arlington, VA • Isowa America Inc., Erie, CO • J.M. Fry, Port Vue, PA • J.S. Machine, Hunt Valley, MD • Jacob Corrugated Services, Califon, NJ • Jamestown Container Companies, Falconer, NY • Jamestown Container Companies, Rochester, NY • Jamestown Container Companies, Macedonia, OH • Jamestown Container Specialty Products, Buffalo, NY • Jamil Packaging Corp., Mishawaka, IN • Jan Rohde Consulting, Inc., Tustin, CA • Jaycox Consulting, LLC, Saint Louis, MO • Jayhawk Boxes, Inc., Fremont, NE • JB Machinery Inc., Weston, CT • Jessup Paper Box, Brookston, IN • Jet Container Co., Columbus, OH • Jet Corr Inc., Conyers, GA • Johnson Kendall and Johnson, Inc., Newtown, PA • K & G Box Co., Jacksonville, FL • K & H Corrugated / Unicorr Packaging Group, Walden, NY • K.B. REITER, LLC, Vernon Hills, IL • Kadant Johnson Systems Division, Knoxville, TN • Kampack Inc. (HQ), Newark, NJ • Kampack Inc. (Newark), Newark, NJ • KapStone Container Corporation, Charleston, SC • KBA North America, Brentwood, TN • KBA North America, Inc., Dallas, TX • Kelly Box & Packaging Corp., Fort Wayne, IN • Kemi Art U.S., Inc., Mount Pleasant, SC • Key Container Corp., Pawtucket, RI • Kiwiplan Inc., Cincinnati, OH • Klingher Nadler LLP, Englewood Cliffs, NJ • Koch Container, a BCI Company, Victor, NY • Kodiak LLC, Chicago, IL • Kohler Coating, Uniontown, OH • KPAQ Industries, LLC, St Francisville, LA • Krafcor Industries, Baltimore, MD • Krupack Packaging - a Division of Kruger Inc., Montreal, QC • Krupack Packaging - a Division of Kruger Inc., LaSalle, QC • Kubin Nicholson, Milwaukee, WI • L & M Corrugated Container Corp., Platteville, WI • L & M Corrugated Container Corp., Platteville, WI • L.D. Davis Industries, Inc., Jenkintown, PA • Lakeside Container Corp., Plattsburgh, NY • Lanco York, Inc., Commack, NY • Lanco York, Inc., Paterson, NJ • Landaal Packaging Systems, Flint, MI • Las Vegas Container, Chandler, AZ • Latitude Machinery USA, LLC, Kalamazoo, MI • The Lawrence Paper Company, Lawrence, KS • Lawrenceburg Sheet Plant - KapStone Container Corporation, Lawrenceburg, KY • LBP Manufacturing, Cicero, IL • Leaman Container Inc., Fort Worth, TX • LeFleur Paper, Richland, MS • Lewisburg Container, Lewisburg, OH • Lewisburg Printing Company, Lewisburg, TN • Liberty Carton North, Brooklyn Park, MN • Liberty Carton Packaging, Calexico, CA • Liberty Diversified International, Minneapolis, MN • Liberty Paper, Inc., Becker, MN • Litho Press Inc, Indianapolis, IN • Lithotech-Division of Norampac, Scarborough, ON • Lone Star Corrugated Container Corp., Irving, TX • Longreach International, LLC, Riner, VA • Longview Box Plant- KapStone Container Corporation, Longview, WA • Longview Fibre Paper and Packaging, Inc., Longview, WA • Longview Fibre Paper and Packaging, Inc., Yakima, WA • Louisiana Corrugated Products, Monroe, LA • Love Box Company -Pratt Industries, Wichita, KS • Love Box Company/Independence, Independence, MO • LPM Global Inc., Miami, FL • Majic Corrugated, Batavia, NY • Mall City Containers Inc., Kalamazoo, MI • Manufactured Packaging Products (Brea), Brea, CA • Manufactured Packaging Products (LA), Alhambra, CA • Manufactured Packaging Products (Union City), Union City, CA • Manufactured Packaging Products (San Diego), San Marcos, CA • Manufactured Packaging Products (Sycamore), Sycamore, IL • Maquinaria Boix Mexico S.A. De C.V., Leon, GTO • Maritime Paper, Dartmouth, NS • Mark Trece, Inc., Joppa, MD • MarquipWardUnited, Monterrey, NLE • MarquipWardUnited, Phillips, WI • Marshall & Bruce Company, Inc., Nashville, TN • Martin Partitions, Inc., Carroll, OH • Maschinenbau Prazisionswerkzeuge GmbH Wilheim Bahmueller GmbH, Pluderhausen, • Massachusetts Container Corp. / Unicorr Packaging Group, Marlborough, MA • Master Packaging, Dieppe, NB • MAXCO Supply Inc., Parlier, CA • MaxPak Inc., Lakeland, FL • McElroy Packaging Inc., Wooster, OH • McLean Packaging Corp., Pennsauken, NJ • McLean Packaging Corp.- Folding Carton Division, Moorestown, NJ • McLeish Containers/Coyle Packaging Group, Rexdale, ON • Menasha Packaging - Brooklyn Park Plant, Lakeville, MN • Menasha Packaging - Fanfold Coloma Plant, Coloma, MI • Menasha Packaging - Green Lake Plant, Green Lake, WI • Menasha Packaging - Hartford Plant, Hartford, WI • Menasha Packaging - Latrobe Plant, Latrobe, PA • Menasha Packaging - Muscatine Plant, Muscatine, IA • Menasha Packaging - Neenah Plant, Neenah, WI • Menasha Packaging - Philadelphia Contract Packaging, Philadelphia, PA • Menasha Packaging - Philadelphia Plant, Philadelphia, PA • Menasha Packaging - St. Cloud Plant, St. Cloud, MN • Menasha Packaging Company, LLC, Neenah, WI • Menasha PrePrint, Neenah, WI • MeredithWebb Printing Company, Burlington, NC • Merrill Industries LLC, Ellington, CT • Mesquite (Dallas) - KapStone Container Corporation, Mesquite, TX • Metsä Board - Canada, Montreal, QC • Metsa Board Americas Corporation, Norwalk, CT • Metsä Board Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Col. Napoles, DIF • Metsa Board OYJ, FI-02100 Metsa, • Miami Valley Packaging Solutions Inc., Dayton, OH • Michcor Container, Grand Rapids, MI • Michelman Inc., Cincinnati, OH • Michiana Corrugated Products Co., Sturgis, MI • Michigan Box Co., Detroit, MI • Michigan City Paper Box Co., Michigan City, IN • Michigan Packaging (Mason, MI), Mason, MI • Micon Packaging, Inc., Oldsmar, FL • Microchoice, Cincinnati, OH • Mid-Atlantic Packaging Inc., Montgomeryville, PA • Mid-North Containers Ltd., New Liskeard, ON • Mid-States Packaging Inc., Lewistown, OH • Midland Packaging and Display, Franksville, WI • Midwest Container Corporation, Fairfield, OH • Miller Container Corp., Milan, IL • Minneapolis - KapStone Container Corporation, Fridley, MN • Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Hunt Valley, MD • Moonlight Packaging, Oil City, PA • Moore Packaging Corporation, Barrie, ON • Mount Tom Box Co. Inc., West Springfield, MA • Multicorr Corp., Louisville, KY • My Press Needs, LLC, Tampa, FL • National Fiber Supply Company, Fayetteville, GA • Nelson Container Corp., Germantown, WI • New Direction Partners, LLC, Southport, NC • New England Sheets, Devens, MA • New England Wooden Ware Corp., Gardner, MA • New-Tech Packaging Inc., Memphis, TN • Newark America, Fitchburg, MA • The Newark Group, Inc., Wheeling, WV • Newark Pacific Paperboard Corp., Los Angeles, CA • NewCorr Packaging Ltd., Northborough, MA • Newfoundland Containers Limited, St. John’s, NF • Newman & Co. Inc., Philadelphia, PA • NewPage Corporation, Schaumburg, IL • Newport Timber LLC, Riceboro, GA • Niagara Sheets, LLC, North Tonawanda, NY • Norampac Avot-Vallee S.A.S., Blendecques, France • Norampac Inc., St. Marys, ON • Norampac Inc., Saint-Bruno, QC • Norampac Inc., Schenectady, NY • Norampac Inc., Art and Die Division, Etobicoke, ON • Norampac Inc., Art and Die Division, Etobicoke, ON • Norampac Inc., Belleville Division, Belleville, ON • Norampac Inc., Cabano Division, St-Louis-du-Ha-Ha, QC • Norampac Inc., Calgary Division, Calgary, AB • Norampac Inc., Drumondville Division, Drummondville, QC • Norampac Inc., Jellco Division, Barrie, ON • Norampac Inc., Kingsey Falls Division, Kingsley Falls, QC • Norampac Inc., Mississauga Division, Mississauga, ON • Norampac Inc., Moncton Division, Moncton, NB • Norampac Inc., Monterrey Division, S.A. De C.V, Guadalupe, NLE • Norampac Inc., New York City Division, Maspeth, NY • Norampac Inc., North York Division, North York, ON • Norampac Inc., Quebec Division, Quebec, QC • Norampac Inc., Richmond Division, Richmond, BC • Norampac Inc., Saskatoon Division, Saskatoon, SK • Norampac Inc., Technical & Development Centre, Mississauga, ON • Norampac Inc., Trenton Division, Trenton, ON • Norampac Inc., Vaudreuil Division, Vaudreuil, QC • Norampac Inc., Vaughan Division, Vaughan, ON • Norampac Inc., Victoriaville Division, Victoriaville, QC • Norampac Inc., Winnipeg Division, Winnipeg, MB • Norampac Industries Inc., Niagara Falls Division, Niagara Falls, NY • Norampac Thompson, Inc., Thompson, CT • Northeast Box Co., Ashtabula, OH • Northern Sheets, Mcclellan, CA • Northwest Packaging Inc., Saint Paul, MN • Northwest Paper Box Mfrs. Inc., Portland, OR • NuPak Printing, LLC, Red Lion, PA • Nutmeg Container Corp./ Unicorr Packaging Group, Putnam, CT • Oakland Box Plant- KapStone Container Corporation, Oakland, CA • Ohio Blow Pipe Co., Cleveland, OH • Ohio Packaging Corp., Massillon, OH • Ohio Paperboard Corporation, Baltimore, OH • Oklahoma Interpak, Muskogee, OK • OM Partners, USA, Atlanta, GA • Omaha Box Company, Omaha, NE • Orora North America, Buena Park, CA • Ox Box, Addison, IL • P2, Kirkland, WA • Pacific Container Corp., Tacoma, WA • Pacific Quality Packaging Corp., Brea, CA • Pacific Southwest Container LLC, Visalia, Visalia, CA • Pacific Southwest Container LLC, Modesto, CA • Pacific Western Container, Santa Ana, CA • Package Crafters, Inc., High Point, NC • Packagex, Inc, Encino, CA • Packaging and Pads-R-Us, LLC, Milan, OH • Packaging Atlanta Corp., Alpharetta, GA • Packaging Design Corp., Burr Ridge, IL • Packaging Express, Colorado Springs, CO • Packaging Innovators Corp., Livermore, CA • Packaging Logic Inc., Laporte, IN • Packaging Services, Greeneville, TN • Packaging Services of Maryland Inc., Williamsport, MD • Packaging Specialties Inc., Warren, MI • Packaging Technologies Inc., Concord, ON • Packland, L.L.C., Miami, FL • Packrite LLC, High Point, NC • Paige Packaging, Inc., Elmwood Park, NJ • Palmetto Packaging Corp., Florence, SC • Pamarco Global Graphics, Atlanta, GA • Pamarco/Bingham, Batavia, IL • Paper Alliance, LLC, Emerson, NJ • Paragon Acquisitions, LLC, Girard, PA • Parry Machine Company, Inc., Palmyra, NY • Pax Corrugated Products Inc., Lebanon, OH • Peachtree Packaging, Lawrenceville, GA • PearceWellwood Inc., Brampton, ON • People’s Capital and Leasing Corp., Waterbury, CT • PhilCorr LLC, Vineland, NJ • Philpac Corp., Buffalo, NY • Phoenix Packaging Inc., Winston Salem, NC • Pinnacle Corrugated, LLC, Landis, NC • Pinto-Packaging Limited, London, ON • Planet Paper Box Inc., Concord, ON • Plymouth Packaging Inc., Battle Creek, MI • Plymouth Packaging, Inc., Plymouth, MI • Poteet Printing Systems, Charlotte, NC • Pragati Pack India PVT., Ltd., Andhra, Pradesh • Pratt Industries - New Orleans, Harahan, LA • Pratt Industries De Monterrey, Guadalupe, NLE • Pratt Industries USA, Oklahoma City, OK • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Greenville), Simpsonville, SC • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Richmond), Ashland, VA • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Plymouth), Livonia, MI • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Albany), Albany, GA • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Birmingham), Bessemer, AL • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Ocala), Ocala, FL • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (New Orleans), Harahan, LA • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Atlanta), Atlanta, GA • Pratt Industries USA Converting Division (Raleigh), Raleigh, NC • Pratt Industries USA Corporate Office (Conyers), Conyers, GA • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Conyers), Conyers, GA • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Springfield), Springfield, OH • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Statesville), Statesville, NC • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Dundee), Dundee, FL • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Conyers - Sigman Rd.), Conyers, GA • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Moultrie), Moultrie, GA • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Grand Rapids), Grand Rapids, MI • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Humboldt), Humboldt, TN • Pratt Industries USA Corrugating Division (Valparaiso), Valparaiso, IN • Pratt Industries USA Display Division (Conyers - West), Conyers, GA • Pratt Industries USA Mill Division (New York), Staten Island, NY • Pratt Industries USA Mill Division (Conyers), Conyers, GA • Premier Corrugated, Albion, MI • President Container Inc., Wood Ridge, NJ • PRI Technologies, Dallas, TX • Prime Converting Corporation, Rancho Cucamonga, CA • Printron, Neenah, WI • Prisco Digital, Newark, NJ • Pro-Pak Industries, Maumee, OH • Profero Systems, Lexington, KY • Profero Systems, Inc, Dallas, NC • Progress Container & Display, Winder, GA • PSI Container, Inc., McAdoo, PA • PSI Packaging Services, Connellsville, PA • QB De Mexico, S.A. De C.V., Mexico, DIF • Qualitek Solutions, Tucker, GA • Quest Graphics LLC, Maryland Heights, MO • Quest7, Inc, Machesney Park, IL • Questcor, Bedford Park, IL • R & R Corrugated Container Corp., Bristol, CT • Rand-Whitney Group LLC, Lancaster, MA • Rand-Whitney Group LLC, Newtown, CT • Rand-Whitney Group LLC, Worcester, MA • Rand-Whitney Group LLC - Northeast LLC, Portsmouth, NH • Rand-Whitney Group LLC- Southeast LLC, Pawtucket, RI • Rapid Bond / LTI, Mexico City, MX • Rapid Bond / LTI, Chula Vista, CA • Ray Products, Inc., Parsons, KS • Register Print Group, Clifton, NJ • Reliable Container Corp., Santa Fe Springs, CA • Reliable Container Inc., Addison, IL • Revicart Srl, 20037 PADERNO DUGNANO, Milan • Rex Carton Co. Inc., Chicago, IL • Rexdale Container Corporation, Brampton, ON • RFC Container Corp., Vineland, NJ • Richmond Corrugated Box Company, Sandston, VA • Richmond Corrugated Inc., Sandston, VA • rightPAQ, Santa Ana, CA • Rios Corrugadora, S. A DE C. V, Escobedo, NLE • Riverdale Packaging Corp., Hazelwood, MO • Roberds Converting Co., Inc., Loveland, OH • Robert Mann Packaging Inc., Salinas, CA • Rock Tenn- Cullman, AL, Cullman, AL • Rock Tenn- Simpson Tacoma Kraft Co, LLC, Tacoma, WA • RockTenn, Norcross, GA • RockTenn - Gallatin, Gallatin, TN • RockTenn, Sheet Feeder, Milwaukee, WI • RockTenn-Athens, Athens, GA • RockTenn-Camillus, Camillus, NY • RockTenn-Deer Park, Deer Park, NY • RockTenn-Devens, Devens, MA • RockTenn-Graphcorr, Dayton, NJ • RockTenn-Hebron, Hebron, KY • RockTennLancaster, Lancaster, PA • RockTenn-Mooresville, Mooresville, NC • RockTenn-Norcross, Norcross, GA • RockTenn-Olive Branch, MS, Olive Branch, MS • RockTenn-Solvay Mill, Syracuse, NY • RockTenn-Spartanburg, Spartanburg, SC • RockTenn-St. Paul Mill, St. Paul, MN • RockTennStockton, Stockton, CA • Romanow Container, Westwood, MA • Royal Containers Ltd., Brampton, ON • Royal Containers Ltd. (London,Ontario), London, ON • The Royal Group, Cicero, IL • The Royal Group - Addison, Addison, IL • The Royal Group -Halls, Halls, TN • RTS Packaging, LLC, Hillside, IL • RUSCORR, Cullman, AL • Rusken Packaging Inc., Cullman, AL • S.E. MO. Box Co., Cape Girardeau, MO • Samuel Strapping Systems, Woodridge, IL • Sanchez, S.A. De C.V., Mexico City, DIF • Sauer System, Saint Louis, MO • SC Environmental, LLC, Addison, IL • Schwarz Partners, LLC, Indianapolis, IN • Scope Packaging, Inc., Orange, CA • Scotland Container Inc., Laurinburg, NC • Seattle Box Plant- KapStone Container Corporation, Seattle, WA • Semper/Exeter Paper Company, LLC, Crestview, KY • Serenity Packaging Corporation, Saint Charles, IL • Seward Sheet Plant - KapStone Container Corporation, Seward, NE • Shamrock Specialty & Packaging - Juarez, Juarez, Chihuahua • Shamrock Specialty & Packaging, Elgin, IL • Sharp International • Friese Corrugating Rolls, Chesapeake, VA • Shillington Box Co., LLC, Saint Louis, MO • Shipmaster Containers Limited, Markham, ON • Shipping Container Corp., Redford, MI • Signode Industry Packaging Systems, Chesterfield, MS • Simon Miller Paper & Packaging, Franklin, VA • Skybox Packaging LLC, Mansfield, OH • Smith Induspac Limited, Ottawa, ON • Smith Induspac Packaging Mississauga, Mississauga, ON • Smurfit Kappa, Forney, TX • SOLPACK SA De CV, Monterrey, NLE • Somerset Sheet Plant - KapStone Container Corporation, Somerset, KY • Sonoco Products Company, Hartsville, SC • Sooner Packaging, Inc., Tucsa, OK • Sound Packaging, LLC, Chandler, AZ • SouthCorr Packaging LLC, Greeneville, TN • Southeastern Packaging Co., Harrisburg, NC • Southern Carton Company, Inc., Lewisburg, TN • Southern Missouri Containers, Inc. • SMC Packaging Group, Springfield, MO • Southland Box Co., Vernon, CA • SP Fiber Technologies, LLC, Dublin, GA • Spanish Fork Box Plant- KapStone Container Corporation, Spanish Fork, UT • SPB Canada, Division of Norampac, Montreal, QC • Specialty Adhesives and Coatings, Inc., Memphis, TN • Specialty Industries Inc., Red Lion, PA • Spectrum Packaging, Evansville, IN • Spring Cove Container, Roaring Spring, PA • Springfield - KapStone Container Corporation, West Springfield, MA • St. Catharines Corrugated Containers, Allanburg, ON • St. Clair Packaging Inc., Marysville, MI • Stafford Corrugated Products Inc., Indian Trail, NC • Stafford Cutting Dies, Inc., Indian Trail, NC • Stand Fast Packaging Products Inc., Addison, IL • Standard Printing Company of Canton, Canton, OH • Sterling Coatings West, Fresno, CA • Stickle Steam Specialties Co., Inc., Indianapolis, IN • Stone Container Corp., Columbus, IN • Strapack, Inc., Hayward, CA • Strategic Link Consulting, Inc., West Chester, PA • Stronghaven Containers Inc., Matthews, NC • Stronghaven, Inc., Austell, GA • Sumter Packaging Corp., Sumter, SC • SUN Automation Group-UK Office, Bristol, • Sun Source 1 LLC, Sparks, MD • Suntek SA De CV, Mexico, DIF • Superior Lithographics, Los Angeles, CA • SupplyOne, Clearwater, FL • SupplyOne, Oklahoma City, OK • SupplyOne, Rockwell, NC • SupplyOne Albuquerque, Albuquerque, NM • SupplyOne Albuquerque, Albuquerque, NM • SupplyOne Carolina, Rockwell, NC • SupplyOne Tulsa, Tulsa, OK • SupplyOne Weyers Cave, Weyers Cave, VA • SupplyOne Wisconsin, Jackson, WI • SupplyOne, Inc., Devon, PA • Sustainable Corrugated, Sylva, NC • Sutherland Packaging Inc., Andover, NJ • Systec Conveyors, Indianapolis, IN • Tarmac International, Inc., Lees Summit, MO • Tavens Packaging & Display Solutions, Bedford Heights, OH • Technoflex, Inc., Hiram, GA • Tecumseh Corrugated Box Co., Tecumseh, MI • Tecumseh Packaging Solutions - Van Wert Division, Van Wert, OH • TenCorr Packaging Inc., Brampton, ON • Tennessee Packaging, a BCI Company, Loudon, TN • Terrace Paper, Cicero, IL • Thacker Industrial, Fort Worth, TX • That Box Design, LLC, Fort Mill, SC • Tilsner Carton Co., Saint Paul, MN • TimBar Packaging & Display Headquarters, Hanover, PA • TimBar Packaging and Display - Tampa Division, Tampa, FL • TimBar Packaging and Display -Miami Division, Miami, FL • TimBar Packaging and Display - Gallatin Division, Gallatin, TN • TimBar Packaging and Display - Spartanburg Division, Spartanburg, SC • TimBar Packaging and Display - Oxford Division, New Oxford, PA • TimBar Packaging and Display - Valley Forge Division, Collegeville, PA • TimBar Point of Purchase Packaging and Display Group, New Oxford, PA • Touchpoint Packaging, Seymour, IN • Tri-State Container, Bensalem, PA • Triad Packaging Design & Display, Inc., Bristol, TN • Triad Packaging Design & Display, Inc., Bristol, TN • Triple A Containers Inc., Cerritos, CA • Trojan Litho, Renton, WA • Troqueles Rotativos De Precision S. De R.L. De C.V., Zapopan, Jalisco • Twin Falls Box Plant- KapStone Container Corporation, Twin Falls, ID • Tyoga Container Co., Tioga, PA • U.S. Specialty Packaging, Aurora, IL • UK Office - W. H. Leary Co., Inc., Basildon, Essex • United Corrstack LLC, Reading, PA • Universal Container Corp., Ferndale, MI • US Corrugated, Coal Center, PA • US Corrugated, Coal Center, PA • US Corrugated (Bethesda), Bethesda, OH • US Corrugated (Lancaster), Lancaster, OH • US Display Group (Kampack), Tullahoma, TN • US Display Group (Kampack), Newark, NJ • Utah Paperbox, Salt Lake City, UT • Vail Industries, Navarre, OH • Valco Melton, Inc, Cincinnati, OH • Valley Container Inc., Bridgeport, CT • Valley Packaging Corporation, Pulaski, TN • Vanguard Packaging, Kansas City, MO • Vermont Container, Bennington, VT • Viking Industries Inc., New Paltz, NY • Viking Paper Corp., Toledo, OH • Viking Paper Corporation, Plymouth, IN • Vineland Packaging, Vineland, NJ • Vision Packaging and Graphics, Kalamazoo, MI • Vista Corrugated, Santa Teresa, NM • Volk Packaging Corp., Biddeford, ME • Volunteer Box, LLC, Gallatin, TN • VT Graphics, Inc., Yeadon, PA • W.H. Leary Co., Inc., Tinley Park, IL • Wasatch Container, North Salt Lake, UT • Washington Box, S De RL De C.V., Garza Garcia, NLE • Watertown Box Corp., Watertown, SD • Weber Display & Packaging, Philadelphia, PA • Webster West Packaging, Inc., North Vernon, IN • Welch Packaging Group - Chicago Division, Countryside, IL • Welch Packaging Group - Cleveland Division, Valley View, OH • Welch Packaging Group - Columbus Division, Columbus, OH • Welch Packaging Group - Indianapolis Division, Indianapolis, IN • Welch Packaging Group - Toledo Division, Toledo, OH • Welch Packaging Group, Inc., Elkhart, IN • Welch Packaging Group, Inc., Elkhart, IN • Welch Packaging Marion DBA Nova Packaging Inc., Marion, IN • Wertheimer Box Corporation, McCook, IL • Wes-Pak Inc., Alexander, AR • Western Computer, Oxnard, CA • Western Corrugated Design, Santa Fe Springs, CA • Western Industries Corp., Austin, TX • Western Industries Corp., Austin, TX • Wilmington Box Company, Burgaw, NC • Wisconsin Packaging Corp., Fort Atkinson, WI • Wisconsin Paperboard Corporation, Milwaukee, WI • Wonder State Box Company, Inc. SMC Packaging Group, Conway, AR • Wright Brothers Paper Box Company Inc., Fond du Lac, WI • WSA USA, LLC, Cincinnati, OH • Wunderlich Fibre Box Company, Saint Louis, MO • Xante Corporation, Mobile, AL • Yakima Box Plant- KapStone Container Corporation, Yakima, WA • York Container Co., York, PA • Young Shin, USA Limited, Schaumburg, IL • Zeres, Inc., Bowling Green, OH

WITH ADMIRATION WE SALUTE AICC ON 40 YEARS OF SERVICE.

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