Ecorr July 21, 2004

Brown joined Caraustar as president in January 1991, and in October 1991 he was also appointed chief executive officer. In October 1992 he spearheaded the company’s initial public offering and listing on NASDAQ. From sales of approximately $275 million in 1991, Caraustar has grown to revenues of almost $1 billion, with 107 facilities in 30 states as well as Mexico, Canada and the United Kingdom. Under Brown's leadership, Caraustar has grown, primarily through strategic acquisitions, to become a major recycled paperboard manufacturing and packaging company, serving all recycled boxboard packaging markets.

Mike Keough, who will replace Tom Brown as president and chief executive officer, joined Caraustar in March 2002 as senior vice president and chief operating officer, following a 26-year career with other major paper companies. Since coming to Caraustar, Keough has been deeply involved in the development and implementation of various key initiatives the company has undertaken to improve its operating efficiencies and financial performance for meeting today’s market challenges.

James E. Rogers, chairman of Caraustar’s board of directors, commented, "As Caraustar’s president and CEO, Tom Brown has done an outstanding job in managing the company’s strategic growth to position it for long-term industry leadership in recycled paperboard packaging. I am confident that under Mike’s leadership, Caraustar will continue on the path of improved overall performance and success."

GEORGIA-PACIFIC CORP.'S North American commercial business is packaging and shipping its products in a new way with Perfect Size(TM) product cases. Already in execution, Perfect Size product cases help distributors address industry-wide operational concerns by enabling time, space and cost savings that are important to a distributor's bottom-line success. The offering is part of Georgia-Pacific's continued commitment to address market challenges facing its distributor customers by targeting business-critical issues such as supply chain

According to G-P, the new packaging design directly assists distributors by mitigating the impact of new HOS regulations, implemented in January of this year by the Department of Transportation (DOT). While designed to improve highway safety and driver performance, HOS regulations reduce the amount of time truck operators may spend in transit and limit the time they can spend loading and unloading shipments. These regulations can result in higher operational and labor costs-potentially weakening the financial performance of the distribution channel.

The new Perfect Size product cases facilitate mechanical loading and unloading to help decrease driver wait time. Additionally, Perfect Size product cases better utilize available space in the truck and transport trailers used by most of today's leading distributors, allowing for improved ease of handling and more efficient case movement throughout the distributor chain.

Perfect Size product cases also help reduce damage to product during shipment. Case damage accounts for up to 63 percent of unsaleable costs and continues to be one of the major concerns distributors face in today's market. Because of the more efficient design, Perfect Size product cases fit snugly in trailers to maximize space, help reduce freight instability and improve handling and storage within the warehouse, trailer or end-user facility. With this innovative solution, GP's commitment to providing high- quality products is now protected through delivery.

To date, thousands of unit loads of GP's Perfect Size Compact(R) and Angel Soft(R) ps tissue cases, and Perfect Size(TM) towel cases have already shipped to hundreds of distributors nationwide, delivering efficiencies that:
Save Time

Reduces loading/unloading time (helping to mitigate the impact of the new HOS rules imposed by the DOT this year)
Can eliminate manual unloading while facilitating mechanical unloading

Save Space

Optimizes warehouse space for distributors who are configured for 40"- 48" footprint
Delivers smaller, more ergonomically "friendly" case sizes (for easier handling, storage and use within a customers' operations)

Reduce Waste

Reduces chance of product damage during transit
Creates more stable loads that promote labor and operational efficiencies

KIWIPLAN recently held its 18th annual User Group meeting in Lisbon, Portugal. This year, the two-day event offered users of the company’s high performance software solutions an opportunity to meet senior management not only from Europe and the United States but also from Kiwiplan’s parent company in New Zealand.

Included in the program of events was a guest presentation and discussion led by two senior managers of Weyerhaeuser USA, a leading global forest products company. The seminar focused on Weyerhaeuser’s experiences of using Kiwiplan’s complete suite of products, including the sales order management system, ESP (Enterprise Sales Processing) – a fully integrated program designed specifically for the corrugated industry.

The next User Group will take place in Prague, May 2005. For more information, contact Dirk Pastoor, Sales Manager, Kiwiplan Inc. Phone: +1 513-554-1500

ROCK-TENN CO., Norcross, Georgia, USA announced the closure of its Otsego, Michigan paperboard mill. The Otsego mill had annual capacity of 106,000 tons, which primarily served Rock-Tenn’s book and binder and laminated furniture components converting plants. Through the twelve months ended June 30, 2004, the mill’s production was approximately 98,000 tons, revenues were US$ 37 million and its pre-tax operating loss was US $3 million.

Rock-Tenn expects to transfer approximately 35,000 tons of the Otsego mill’s production to its other paperboard mills. In connection with the closing of the mill, Rock-Tenn expects to incur restructuring costs of approximately US$ 9 million, after-tax, during its fiscal 2004 third quarter, primarily for asset impairments, and US$ 1 million, after-tax, in subsequent quarters, primarily related to severance and equipment relocation costs. The Company estimates that it will realize incremental after-tax income of approximately US$ 4 million over the next twelve months as a result of greater capacity utilization, reduced costs and production occurring at more efficient operations.

Also in connection with the mill closure, Rock-Tenn is required by generally accepted accounting principles to test the Paperboard division’s goodwill for impairment. In the event that the Company determines that a portion of the goodwill is impaired, the associated write-off of the goodwill will result in a one-time, after-tax charge in the Company’s third fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2004.

In March 2004, Rock-Tenn announced the closure of its Wright City, Missouri laminated paperboard products facility. In June 2004, the Company announced the closure of select converting lines in its Aurora, Illinois facility. Both the Wright City facility and the closed Aurora converting lines had sourced paperboard from the Otsego mill.

Rock-Tenn Chairman and Chief Executive Officer James A. Rubright stated, "We continued to operate these three facilities to recover cash notwithstanding the pre-tax losses associated with operating these facilities, which aggregated approximately US$ 9 million for the twelve months ended June 30, 2004. Continued market contraction, uneconomic price levels and high fiber and energy costs made it no longer feasible to operate these facilities. We believe that our remaining Red Label(TM) solid fiber book and binder operations in Aurora, Illinois and our laminated paperboard furniture components operations in Columbus, Indiana, which will source paperboard from Rock-Tenn’s other paperboard mills, have competitive cost structures and will operate profitably in today’s market conditions."

Rock-Tenn Company provides marketing and packaging solutions to consumer products companies, with annual net sales of over US$ 1.5 billion and over 70 operating locations in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Chile.

SONOCO, Hartsville, South Carolina, USA and BSH Home Appliances Corporation, headquartered in Huntington Beach, Calif., have entered into a five-year supply agreement, it was announced today by Jim C. Bowen, senior vice president. BSH Home Appliances Corporation is a subsidiary of Bosch and Siemens Hausgeraete GmbH, Munich, Germany, which is a joint venture between Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart and Siemens AG, Munich, for home appliances. Under this agreement, Sonoco will be BSH's strategic packaging supplier for their New Bern, N.C. complex that manufactures Bosch and Siemens brand premium laundry, cooking and dishwasher appliances for the North American market. Sonoco will establish operations in New Bern adjacent to the BSH complex to manufacture molded foam and serve as a hub for sourcing and supplying all of BSH's packaging materials, including Sonoco's patented Sonopost(R) corner post technology. Sonoco will also provide BSH with packaging design and testing services supported by its state-of-the-art ISTA (International Safe Transit Association) certified Engineering & Testing Center in Nashville, Tenn.

UNITED STATES CONTAINERBOARD SHIPMENTS rose for the 7th consecutive month in June to the highest volume for the month in four years. Box shipments were 33.570 billion sq. ft. in June, up 6.2%, unadjusted, making the second quarter’s gain 4.2% on an equal workweek basis. Shipments had risen 3.3% in the first quarter and are now 3.7% higher for the first half of the year. Adjusted for an extra shipping day this June, shipments of 7.630 bsf were up 1.4% from a year earlier, and were down further from June 2002’s 7.918 bsf. For the second consecutive month, U.S. containerboard mills continued to run at their highest rate (97.7%) since the fall of 1999.

NEWS FROM TAPPI

AICC/TAPPI SuperCorrExpo® 2004
November 8-12, 2004
Atlanta, GA, USA

The Proving Ground for the Worldwide Corrugated Packaging Industry. For updated information on the conference, go to http://www.supercorrexpo.org.

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	In this Issue July 21, 2004 Contents Out of the Box: Industry News News from TAPPI Additional Resources CORRUGATING INTERNATIONAL SOLUTIONS! MAGAZINE ALL MAGAZINE ARCHIVES ONLINE SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES COMMENTS OR SUGGESTIONS For information on sponsoring this newsletter or other sponsorship opportunities with TAPPI, contact Vince Saputo at vsaputo@tappi.org or by calling +1 770-209-7529. Explore TAPPI's updated website for the latest in news, products and services, and all of your member needs at www.tappi.org. TAPPI assumes no responsibility for statements of fact and opinion; they are not intended nor should they be construed as a solicitation of or suggestion by TAPPI for any agreed-upon course of conduct or concerted action of any kind. To unsubscribe send an email with no subject to lyris@list.tappi.org. Put ci-ecorr in the body. To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-ci_ecorr_text-3967180O@list.tappi.org. Tell a friend to subscribe to TAPPI CI E-Corr or send a blank email to subscribe-ci-ecorr@list.tappi.org.	In Brief OUT OF THE BOX CARAUSTAR INDUSTRIES INC., Atlanta, Georgia, USA announced that Thomas V. Brown, president and chief executive officer, will be retiring from the company, effective with his 65th birthday on June 1, 2005. Michael J. Keough, senior vice president and chief operating officer, will be appointed president and chief executive officer, effective January 1, 2005. Brown joined Caraustar as president in January 1991, and in October 1991 he was also appointed chief executive officer. In October 1992 he spearheaded the company’s initial public offering and listing on NASDAQ. From sales of approximately $275 million in 1991, Caraustar has grown to revenues of almost $1 billion, with 107 facilities in 30 states as well as Mexico, Canada and the United Kingdom. Under Brown's leadership, Caraustar has grown, primarily through strategic acquisitions, to become a major recycled paperboard manufacturing and packaging company, serving all recycled boxboard packaging markets. Mike Keough, who will replace Tom Brown as president and chief executive officer, joined Caraustar in March 2002 as senior vice president and chief operating officer, following a 26-year career with other major paper companies. Since coming to Caraustar, Keough has been deeply involved in the development and implementation of various key initiatives the company has undertaken to improve its operating efficiencies and financial performance for meeting today’s market challenges. James E. Rogers, chairman of Caraustar’s board of directors, commented, "As Caraustar’s president and CEO, Tom Brown has done an outstanding job in managing the company’s strategic growth to position it for long-term industry leadership in recycled paperboard packaging. I am confident that under Mike’s leadership, Caraustar will continue on the path of improved overall performance and success." Caraustar, a recycled packaging company, serves the four principal recycled paperboard product markets: tubes, cores and cans; folding cartons and custom packaging; gypsum wallboard facing paper; and miscellaneous "other specialty" and converted products. GEORGIA-PACIFIC CORP.'S North American commercial business is packaging and shipping its products in a new way with Perfect Size(TM) product cases. Already in execution, Perfect Size product cases help distributors address industry-wide operational concerns by enabling time, space and cost savings that are important to a distributor's bottom-line success. The offering is part of Georgia-Pacific's continued commitment to address market challenges facing its distributor customers by targeting business-critical issues such as supply chain According to G-P, the new packaging design directly assists distributors by mitigating the impact of new HOS regulations, implemented in January of this year by the Department of Transportation (DOT). While designed to improve highway safety and driver performance, HOS regulations reduce the amount of time truck operators may spend in transit and limit the time they can spend loading and unloading shipments. These regulations can result in higher operational and labor costs-potentially weakening the financial performance of the distribution channel. The new Perfect Size product cases facilitate mechanical loading and unloading to help decrease driver wait time. Additionally, Perfect Size product cases better utilize available space in the truck and transport trailers used by most of today's leading distributors, allowing for improved ease of handling and more efficient case movement throughout the distributor chain. Perfect Size product cases also help reduce damage to product during shipment. Case damage accounts for up to 63 percent of unsaleable costs and continues to be one of the major concerns distributors face in today's market. Because of the more efficient design, Perfect Size product cases fit snugly in trailers to maximize space, help reduce freight instability and improve handling and storage within the warehouse, trailer or end-user facility. With this innovative solution, GP's commitment to providing high- quality products is now protected through delivery. To date, thousands of unit loads of GP's Perfect Size Compact(R) and Angel Soft(R) ps tissue cases, and Perfect Size(TM) towel cases have already shipped to hundreds of distributors nationwide, delivering efficiencies that: Save Time Reduces loading/unloading time (helping to mitigate the impact of the new HOS rules imposed by the DOT this year) Can eliminate manual unloading while facilitating mechanical unloading Save Space Optimizes warehouse space for distributors who are configured for 40"- 48" footprint Delivers smaller, more ergonomically "friendly" case sizes (for easier handling, storage and use within a customers' operations) Reduce Waste Reduces chance of product damage during transit Creates more stable loads that promote labor and operational efficiencies KIWIPLAN recently held its 18th annual User Group meeting in Lisbon, Portugal. This year, the two-day event offered users of the company’s high performance software solutions an opportunity to meet senior management not only from Europe and the United States but also from Kiwiplan’s parent company in New Zealand. Included in the program of events was a guest presentation and discussion led by two senior managers of Weyerhaeuser USA, a leading global forest products company. The seminar focused on Weyerhaeuser’s experiences of using Kiwiplan’s complete suite of products, including the sales order management system, ESP (Enterprise Sales Processing) – a fully integrated program designed specifically for the corrugated industry. The next User Group will take place in Prague, May 2005. For more information, contact Dirk Pastoor, Sales Manager, Kiwiplan Inc. Phone: +1 513-554-1500 ROCK-TENN CO., Norcross, Georgia, USA announced the closure of its Otsego, Michigan paperboard mill. The Otsego mill had annual capacity of 106,000 tons, which primarily served Rock-Tenn’s book and binder and laminated furniture components converting plants. Through the twelve months ended June 30, 2004, the mill’s production was approximately 98,000 tons, revenues were US$ 37 million and its pre-tax operating loss was US $3 million. Rock-Tenn expects to transfer approximately 35,000 tons of the Otsego mill’s production to its other paperboard mills. In connection with the closing of the mill, Rock-Tenn expects to incur restructuring costs of approximately US$ 9 million, after-tax, during its fiscal 2004 third quarter, primarily for asset impairments, and US$ 1 million, after-tax, in subsequent quarters, primarily related to severance and equipment relocation costs. The Company estimates that it will realize incremental after-tax income of approximately US$ 4 million over the next twelve months as a result of greater capacity utilization, reduced costs and production occurring at more efficient operations. Also in connection with the mill closure, Rock-Tenn is required by generally accepted accounting principles to test the Paperboard division’s goodwill for impairment. In the event that the Company determines that a portion of the goodwill is impaired, the associated write-off of the goodwill will result in a one-time, after-tax charge in the Company’s third fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2004. In March 2004, Rock-Tenn announced the closure of its Wright City, Missouri laminated paperboard products facility. In June 2004, the Company announced the closure of select converting lines in its Aurora, Illinois facility. Both the Wright City facility and the closed Aurora converting lines had sourced paperboard from the Otsego mill. Rock-Tenn Chairman and Chief Executive Officer James A. Rubright stated, "We continued to operate these three facilities to recover cash notwithstanding the pre-tax losses associated with operating these facilities, which aggregated approximately US$ 9 million for the twelve months ended June 30, 2004. Continued market contraction, uneconomic price levels and high fiber and energy costs made it no longer feasible to operate these facilities. We believe that our remaining Red Label(TM) solid fiber book and binder operations in Aurora, Illinois and our laminated paperboard furniture components operations in Columbus, Indiana, which will source paperboard from Rock-Tenn’s other paperboard mills, have competitive cost structures and will operate profitably in today’s market conditions." Rock-Tenn Company provides marketing and packaging solutions to consumer products companies, with annual net sales of over US$ 1.5 billion and over 70 operating locations in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Chile. SONOCO, Hartsville, South Carolina, USA and BSH Home Appliances Corporation, headquartered in Huntington Beach, Calif., have entered into a five-year supply agreement, it was announced today by Jim C. Bowen, senior vice president. BSH Home Appliances Corporation is a subsidiary of Bosch and Siemens Hausgeraete GmbH, Munich, Germany, which is a joint venture between Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart and Siemens AG, Munich, for home appliances. Under this agreement, Sonoco will be BSH's strategic packaging supplier for their New Bern, N.C. complex that manufactures Bosch and Siemens brand premium laundry, cooking and dishwasher appliances for the North American market. Sonoco will establish operations in New Bern adjacent to the BSH complex to manufacture molded foam and serve as a hub for sourcing and supplying all of BSH's packaging materials, including Sonoco's patented Sonopost(R) corner post technology. Sonoco will also provide BSH with packaging design and testing services supported by its state-of-the-art ISTA (International Safe Transit Association) certified Engineering & Testing Center in Nashville, Tenn. UNITED STATES CONTAINERBOARD SHIPMENTS rose for the 7th consecutive month in June to the highest volume for the month in four years. Box shipments were 33.570 billion sq. ft. in June, up 6.2%, unadjusted, making the second quarter’s gain 4.2% on an equal workweek basis. Shipments had risen 3.3% in the first quarter and are now 3.7% higher for the first half of the year. Adjusted for an extra shipping day this June, shipments of 7.630 bsf were up 1.4% from a year earlier, and were down further from June 2002’s 7.918 bsf. For the second consecutive month, U.S. containerboard mills continued to run at their highest rate (97.7%) since the fall of 1999. NEWS FROM TAPPI AICC/TAPPI SuperCorrExpo® 2004 November 8-12, 2004 Atlanta, GA, USA The Proving Ground for the Worldwide Corrugated Packaging Industry. For updated information on the conference, go to http://www.supercorrexpo.org. Free newsletter helps readers stay ahead Real-world mill information, special "advanced look" feature material, TAPPI's Weekly Poll results-all delivered FREE to you each week. There is no reason not to sign up for Ahead of the Curve! Don't miss the next issue of this free weekly electronic newsletter-go to http://www.tappi.org/tappi/email_signup.asp; or call TAPPI's Member Connection Center at 1 800 332-8686 (USA), 1 800 446-9431 (Canada) or +1 770 446-1400. You'll get valuable, free information delivered directly to your mailbox, to help you get ahead and stay there. TAPPI JOURNAL delivers For full-text, peer-reviewed research on vital topics in your industry, subscribe to TAPPI JOURNAL. Each month you'll receive full text research reports, author insights, and more, delivered directly to you in the format you choose. Create your own research library with the TAPPI JOURNAL print version; or choose the downloadable PDF for a convenient electronic archive. TAPPI members receive special rates. Select from these subscription options: TAPPI JOURNAL print version (US $100 members; $325 nonmembers) TAPPI JOURNAL in PDF format by email (US $20 members, $275 nonmembers) Subscribe today or contact TAPPI's Member Connection Center at 1 800 332-8686 (USA), 1 800 446-9431 (Canada) or +1 770 446-1400.

TAPPI is the leading technical association for the worldwide pulp, paper, and converting industry. 15 Technology Parkway South Norcross, GA 30092 1-800-332-8686 (US), 1-800-446-9431 (Canada), +1 770-446-1400. www.tappi.org © 2004, TAPPI's Corrugating International*E-Corr. All Rights Reserved. Please read our Privacy Policy.