January 22, 2008
Contents
Out of the Box: Industry News
News from TAPPI
News from TAPPI
Sponsored by
Additional Resources
For information on sponsoring this newsletter or other
sponsorship opportunities with TAPPI, contact Eric Fletty at efletty@tappi.org
or by calling +1 770-209-7535.
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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.
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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.
Tell a friend to subscribe to TAPPI CI E-Corr or send a blank email to subscribe-ci_ecorr@list.tappi.org.
OUT OF THE BOX
U.S. PAPERBOARD INDUSTRY REVENUES for 2007 totaled approximately $22.7 billion, with an estimated gross profit of 37%, according to a new report by Research and Markets of Dublin, Ireland. Titled "Paperboard Mills Industry in the U.S. and its Foreign Trade (1997-2009)," the 169-pg report includes an in-depth analysis of the industry's structure, competitive landscape, financial performance, and trends and opportunities. It contains complete 2006 data, forecast for 2007, and outlook into the year 2012.
Imports by the U.S. paperboard industry were valued at $118.6 million, from seven countries, the report notes. The industry also exported $76.6 million worth of merchandise to 28 countries. Adding import value to and subtracting export value from the industry's shipment value, the total domestic demand for the industry in 2007 was $22.8 billion. The report analyzes 395 downstream industries and 54 upstream industries, their channel and pricing structure, as well as the supply chain cost structure.
CARAUSTAR INDUSTRIES, Atlanta, Ga., USA, will increase prices on all paperboard-based converted products by 8%, effective with shipments on and after February 18. Steven Kelchen, VP, Converted Products Group, noted that "these increases are driven by higher fiber and energy costs, which remain near historic highs and are anticipated to continue to climb. While Caraustar continues to streamline its processes to gain operating and other efficiencies, they alone cannot keep pace with these rising costs."
FIBRE BOX ASSN (FBA) has announced participants in the Industry Leaders Panel during its Annual Meeting March 24 - 26 at the Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa in Palm Desert, Calif. The panel discussion, set for March 26, from 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m., will include Marc Andre Depin, president and CEO of Norampac, John Faraci, chairman and CEO of International Paper, James Hannan, president and CEO of Georgia-Pacific, Steven Klinger, president and COO of Smurfit-Stone Container Corp., Anthony Pratt, chairman and CEO of Pratt Industries, and Paul Stecko, chairman and CEO of Packaging Corp. of America. The group will address the current state of the industry and the direction they see it to be headed.
IN OTHER FBA NEWS, the association has released its 2007 Wage and Fringe Benefits Study, a comprehensive survey of labor-related information over and above the monthly labor report. It includes wage rates and increases (specific job classifications, average straight-time hourly rates), fringe benefits (holidays, vacation time), and insurance benefits (medical). FBA reports that participation in this study has increased 56% from the survey taken in 2006, with 212 plants participating in 2007, up from 136 plants in 2006.
IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE FBA ANNUAL MEETING in Palm Desert, the Association of Independent Corrugated Converters (AICC) will conduct its 2008 Spring Meeting March 26 - 29 at the Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa. Leadership and motivation experts will address the following issues: Is the entrepreneurial passion still burning within the leadership of your organization? Does the next generation of leadership possess this passion? How can you recruit, motivate, and retain the best of the next generation? The opening keynote speaker will be Harvey Mackay, author of five New York Times bestsellers, and currently chairman of Mackay Envelope Co., a $100 million firm he founded at age 26.
GRAPHIC PACKAGING CORP. reports that its stockholders have approved the previously announced combination with Altivity Packaging. More than 88% of the outstanding shares were cast in favor of the transaction. All related matters were also approved. The company also received approval from the New York Stock Exchange to list shares of the new public company, Graphic Packaging Holding Co., under the ticker symbol GPK.
ROCK-TENN CO., Norcross, Ga., USA, will acquire the stock of Southern Container Corp., a privately-held containerboard manufacturing and corrugated packaging business, for $851 million in cash. Rock-Tenn expects that Southern Container will have about $142 million in debt outstanding immediately after the acquisition, which is scheduled to be closed in late March. Southern Container operates the 720,00- tpy year Solvay mill, located near Syracuse, N.Y., one of the lowest-cost recycled containerboard mills in North America, as well as eight integrated corrugated box plants, two sheet plants, and four high impact graphics facilities. Consolidated net sales of the acquired business for the 52-week period ended September 8, 2007, were $538 million.
IN OTHER ROCK-TENN NEWS, the company announced a $40 per ton price increase on its CartonMate bleached paperboard. The price increase is effective with shipments beginning February 25. Rock-Tenn manufacturers packaging products, merchandising displays, and bleached and recycled paperboard. The company has annual net sales of approximately $2.3 billion and operating locations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Chile, and Argentina.
SONOCO, Hartsville, S.C., USA, has relocated its Charleston, S.C., recycling operation to a new, larger, state-of-the-art materials facility in North Charleston, S.C. The new, 30,000-ft2 facility (located on a five-acre site) accepts and processes most corrugated boxes and other grades of paper materials, metals, and plastics, and will have an annual recycling capability of approximately one-quarter billion pounds of recyclable materials. The facility accepts curbside material delivered by the public and offers flatbed pick up of baled material, van service for loose, palletized, or baled material and roll-off service for 30- and 40-yard open and closed top containers. Annually, Sonoco Recycling collects and processes about 3.5 million tons of recyclable materials through 46 locations in North America and Europe, using a fleet of trucks with 1,300 trailers.
IN OTHER SONOCO NEWS, the company announced that it will increase prices for its paper-based tubes and cores and related specialty products by 8% in the U.S. and Canada, effective with shipments on or after February 15. The company indicated the increase is prompted by a prolonged period of unprecedented raw material and energy inflation.
TETRA PAK is extending its carton recycling program to 2 million new U.S. households in 2008. The curbside collection program that was launched several years ago includes milk cartons, juice boxes, and other types of paperboard cartons. The company helped facilitate carton curbside recycling for more than 2 million U.S. households in 2007 by adding programs for more than 1 million new households and then expanding existing programs by 1 million more. In 2007, more than 40 new U.S. cities, including Chicago, Ill., Detroit, Mich., and Raleigh, N.C., added the recycling program. The new communities represented eight states--California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, and North Carolina. Twenty three U.S. states currently have a curbside program in place that accepts these cartons. The total now tops 20 million households with access to carton recycling, a 10% increase compared with 2006. Since 2003, carton recycling has grown by more than 50% overall.
VOIDFORM INTERNATIONAL, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, a producer of corrugated construction forms, is being acquired by Hartsville, S.C.-based Sonoco. Terms of the pending transaction have not been disclosed. VoidForm makes fiber-based void forms used in the construction of cast-in-place concrete foundations where expansive soils are present. While a concrete floor, beam or wall is being poured, a void form provides temporary support for the concrete until the concrete can support itself on caissons or drilled piles. As the concrete cures and gains its full strength, the void form is engineered to degrade as its structural integrity is no longer required, thereby allowing the soil to expand without causing damage to the foundation. The forms are made entirely of fiber-based corrugated paper and finished with a thin wax coating, making them lightweight and biodegradable.
TAPPI News
Chicago TAPPI hosts "What's New in Corrugated"
Join the Chicago TAPPI Local Section for an informal and informative evening program covering "What's New in Corrugated." The event is scheduled for February 5, 2008 and will feature program moderators Dave Mottram of Signode Industry Packaging Systems and Jose Rocha of Georgia-Pacific Corp. Brief presentations on key suppliers' latest offerings will make this a valuable session for attendees.
The venue for this single-evening program is the Marriott Oak Brook in Oak Brook, Illinois. The evening begins at 5:00 p.m. with networking, followed by dinner at 6:15 p.m. and the program at 7:15 p.m. To register, or for more details, contact Karen Small [kmsbox25@aol.com] at: 1 708-467-0729. Visit the Chicago TAPPI website to join the group or to stay up-to-date on upcoming activities.
SuperCorrExpo®2008: This is the year!
Touted as The Largest Corrugated Packaging Machinery Show in the Western Hemisphere, SuperCorrExpo®2008 truly offers something for everyone in the packaging industry. AICC and TAPPI will present the multi-faced event on September 22-26, 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. You will NOT want to wait another four years to be a part of it. TAPPI's Linda Cohen can answer all exhibit and sponsorship sales questions; contact her at lcohen@tappi.org, or at 1 914-944-0135.
Comprehensive fact sheets covering the details of SuperCorrExpo are now available in French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic and Russian on the www.SuperCorrExpo.org website. And, as has been the case from the initial launch, the entire website, along with corresponding fact sheets, is online in both English and Spanish.
PLUS: We want YOUR entries for CORRPAK® 2008!
TAPPI's Corrugated Packaging Division is now accepting entries for the CorrPak® 2008 Competition. This competitive event is held to select and recognize the finest commercially produced corrugated package products manufactured between August 1, 2006 and August 1, 2008. The CorrPak® 2008 Competition is open to all corrugated manufacturers worldwide, and is held every two years.
The CorrPak Competition is divided into two distinct classifications: Structure and Printing. Within each classification, competitors may select from a number of traditional and new competitive categories. Each company location may enter more than one design per category and take advantage of reduced fees for multiple entries. For inspiration, you can check out the 2006 CorrPak Competition winners.
Additional information about CorrPak® 2008 will be available soon at www.tappi.org. All technical questions relating to entry eligibility or category clarification should be directed to Cordes Porcher, CorrPak® Chairman, via email at fcporcher@aol.com. Be sure to indicate CorrPak Competition in the subject line. Questions regarding entry requirements should be directed to Apryl Alexander at +1 770-209-7250 or via email at aalexander@tappi.org.
TAPPI and CETEA cosponsor Flexible Packaging Conference
The CETEA - Packaging Technology Center and the PLACE Division of TAPPI are cosponsoring the Third International TAPPI/CETEA Conference on Flexible Packaging in the city of Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil, on March 26-27, 2008.
The technical program will include papers covering marketing trends for flexible packaging; barrier resins and technologies used in food packaging; adhesives, sealants, and primers; conversion technology, including coextrusion and lamination; and processing additives offered by North American, European, and Brazilian suppliers.
The target audience includes converters and end users from Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Venezuela. Employees of any organization that makes flexible packaging materials or converts them should attend this meeting to stay updated about the latest technology.
The event will take place at the Auditorium of ITAL - Institute of Food Technology, in Campinas, SP, Brazil, on March 26-27, 2008. Simultaneous translation of the lectures will be offered.
TAPPI/FBA partner on Productivity and Waste Survey
The Fibre Box Association (FBA) and TAPPI have recently released a biennial Productivity and Waste Survey. This survey provides useful benchmarking data that is otherwise unavailable from any other source. With the information provided in this report, companies can evaluate their productivity, waste and starch consumption data against participating plants. Surveying top performers, it includes information on machinery and labor operations, as well as waste from box plants from primarily U.S. operations as well as several international plants.
The Productivity and Waste Survey contains a summary report for converting equipment; detailed reports for converting equipment, basis weight, starch consumption; total plant productivity; and equipment listings by plant.
The survey is available for purchase on the TAPPI website [www.tappi.org/corr]. The cost is $350 for TAPPI members and $500 for TAPPI non-members.
Ahhh, memories….
A complete post-conference review of the 2007 Corrugated Packaging Conference/CorrExpo has been posted on the TAPPI website's Corrugated pages. Program highlights and award winner photos are included in the comprehensive write-up. Check it out to relive the experience of 2007's successful event.
Show your Packaging Pride!
Last spring, all TAPPI members received stickers printed with one of three "TAPPI Pride" slogans: Pride in Papermaking, Pride in Packaging, or Pride in the Profession. Our goal was to share with members the pride we feel in serving the pulp, paper and packaging industries, and to make it easy for members to echo that pride.
Following the positive reaction we received, we at TAPPI are interested in seeing how you put your Pride Stickers to good use. Whether slapped on a hardhat, gracing a car bumper, or tacked to your bulletin board - show us your pride, applied! Please take a moment to send us a photo of where you used your Pride Sticker. The person who has the most original use will receive a TAPPI umbrella, and will have the picture they submit published in an upcoming issue of Paper360°. Email submissions to DBell@tappi.org - and stay on the lookout for Pride Stickers at your workplace.
TAPPI Corrugated Maintenance Workshop Provides Hands-On Learning Experience
Could your staff benefit from some hands-on maintenance training? TAPPI's Corrugated Press Hands-On Maintenance Workshop, April 16 - 18, 2008, in Charlotte, NC at Harper Machinery Corporation provides on-site, hands-on maintenance education geared toward corrugated industry plant managers, superintendents, engineers, supervisors, maintenance foremen, machine operators and maintenance staff.
Participants will acquire practical knowledge that they can apply immediately. This interactive course utilizes actual real world converting machinery, and is being held on the facility floor of Harper Machinery Corporation. The course combines classroom learning with hands on experience and is taught by Rick Croker and John Troyke of Georgia Pacific Corporation. This is an unprecedented opportunity to be one on one with experts in the industry! Contact Kristi Ledbetter at kledbetter@tappi.org or 770-209-7319 for more details!
Corrugated Packaging Division Calendar of Events
February 5, 2008
Chicago TAPPI Local Section Meeting
"What's New in Corrugated"
Moderators: Dave Mottram, Jose Rocha, Elaine Dea
Marriott, Oakbrook, IL
March 4, 2008
Chicago TAPPI Local Section Meeting
"Workshop"
Moderators: Dan Dolehide, Bill Heintz
Marriott, Oakbrook, IL
April 16-18, 2008
Corrugated Press Hands-On Maintenance Workshop
Harper Machinery Corp
Charlotte, NC
May 6, 2008
Chicago TAPPI Local Section Meeting
"Trade Fair"
Moderator: Keith Carman, Gil Buescher
Marriott, Oakbrook, IL
August 19, 2008
Chicago TAPPI Local Section Meeting
8th Annual Golf Outing
Ruffled Feathers, Lemont, IL
September 22-26, 2008
SuperCorrExpo2008
GWCC - Atlanta, GA, USA
TAPPI is the leading technical association for the worldwide pulp, paper, and converting industry.
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