Ahead of the Curve Archive

Creating a National Bipartisan Forest Products Workforce Council

19 Sep 2025 This article will appear in the forthcoming September/October 2025 issue of Paper360°, which contains exclusive content addressing our industry's workforce issues. It is being shared here as a special "sneak preview" for AOTC readers. Bookmark Paper360.TAPPI.org to access the issue as soon as it is released.

Digital twins make future forests accessible to everyone

13 Sep 2025 This article was originally shared on the news page of VTT, a leading Finnish research institution. It is being excerpted here for AOTC readers interested in innovation supporting forest health and the sustainability of the global forest products industry.

Paper’s next chapter: innovation, sustainability, and growth

04 Sep 2025 This article was originally shared on the "Newsroom" page at Duomedia, an international Business-to-Business (B2B) communications agency based in Brussels, and is being shared here with AOTC readers interested in learning more about innovations in paper.

Bipartisan Legislation Aims to Spur Innovation for Georgia’s Forestry Industry

02 Sep 2025 This article was prepared from information released on the news page of warnock.senate.gov, as well as the text of the Act itself, and is being shared here for AOTC readers with an interest in legislation affecting the forest products industry.

Amazon to deploy automated packaging machines across Europe, reducing waste for millions of customer orders

06 Aug 2025 Amazon has announced that will deploy advanced automated packing technology across its European network to improve packaging for its customers and reduce waste. Through its largest European investment in sustainable packaging, Amazon will bring custom-box making technology to Europe for the first time, so that more customers receive items in made-to-fit packaging.

Why Your Students Should Read Books, Not Screens

30 Jul 2025 While observing classrooms, it’s common for me to see students staring at screens during independent reading time. Chromebooks, mainly, but also tablets and, in some cases, even phones.

The Great Magazine Comeback: Remembering the Appeal of Print

23 Jul 2025 Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is an environmental policy approach that intends to hold brand owners, licensees, importers, and distributors accountable for the entire lifecycle of their products, especially the take-back, recycling, and final disposal. This strategy aims to incentivize producers to design environmentally friendly products by making them responsible for the costs associated with the end-of-life management of their products.

5 Steps: A Clear Path Toward Reliability Improvement

12 Jan 2022 Previously, I have argued that maintenance should be responsible primarily for “equipment reliability” and work in close partnership with operations; that the primary responsibility of operations is “process reliability”; and that engineering would control life cycle cost (LCC). Today, I will suggest how plant management can plan a clear path toward reliability improvements.

Check Out 2021’s Top 5 Episodes of ‘Better Together’

05 Jan 2022 Welcome to 2022—a year that is already promising challenges and change for the pulp, paper, and packaging industries. While we’re still basking in that New Year glow and writing “2021” on all our checks, let’s take a look back at some of the biggest hits of the past year. No, these are not Billboard chart-toppers or Broadway spectaculars; instead, we have rounded up the five most downloaded episodes of our industry podcast, “Better Together: Conversations with Innovative Leaders.” To make sure you’re leaving 2021 on a high note, check out these episodes you may have missed—and subscribe to the podcast for fresh new monthly content in 2022.

A Papermakers’ Last-Minute Gift Guide

22 Dec 2021 Each year through the month of December, we are inundated with articles touting “the perfect gift for…” every type of person on your shopping list. This year, why not give them the perfect gift FROM… a papermaker!