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Update on the Paperboard Packaging Council

April 1, 2007 By: Packaging online staff Paperboard Packaging

The Paperboard Packaging Council is a leading trade association serving suppliers of folding cartons and other forms of paper-based packaging, such as laminated small flute cartons, cylinders and rigid setup boxes. Members include converters of packaging as well as suppliers of equipment and materials used in the converting process. PPC's stated mission is to (1) grow, promote and protect the paperboard packaging industry, and (2) provide member companies with tools to compete effectively in the marketplace. To learn more, call PPC at 703-836-03300 or visit www.ppcnet.org.

PPC Sustainability Task Force Sets Action Plans

PPC's Task Force on Sustainability met on March 8 in Nashville, Tenn., to review action plans for achieving sustainability goals. Key elements of next steps include:

1. Material Briefs: Drafts of documents outlining claims for principal grades of cartonboard are being reviewed for comment by task force representatives. Coated and uncoated grades have been drafted by the Recycled Paperboard Alliance and posted to the Wal-Mart site. Drafts of the virgin grades, both bleached and unbleached, are being reviewed following insertion of impacts from the National Council Air and Stream Improvements as supplied by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA). We are awaiting new data on water effluents. It was agreed in the discussions that briefs need to be useful to decision-makers who are not experts in chemistry, and need to be as simple and factually stated as possible.
2. Life Cycle Assessments: Wal-Mart has steadfastly declared LCAs are the preferred measure of carbon impacts of the value chain. There was much discussion of the limits of LCA data noting comments by Dr. Matthew Realff of the National Science Foundation. Other consumer packaged goods producers and retailers are looking for more varied data. A task force subgroup has been assigned to review available LCA data that is current, as well as status of the "Merge" tool being developed by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC).
3. Sustainable Packaging Brochure: All members received draft copies of a new brochure by the Paperboard Packaging Alliance, a joint venture of PPC and AF&PA. Submission of comments is needed to finalize this new piece, which is intended for use as sales collateral. Sustainable Packaging Coalition's "Design Guidelines for Sustainable Packaging" are available from Packaging Digest magazine.
4. Partnering with Others: PPC is working with the following allied groups: TAPPI, RPA100%, Recycled Paper Trades Association, Fibre Box Association, and AF&PA. AF&PA's Paper Industry Associations Council is being used as a forum for discussion and action planning. There was consensus that PPC should explore opportunities for cooperating with other groups as well.

Spring Technical & Production Forum: The Sustainable Plant

Gary Jones, the environmental safety and health expert from Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (PIA/GATF), will lead off the upcoming T&P Forum with a presentation on "Demystifying Sustainability and Its Impact the Printer/Converter's Business."

The forum, set for May 15 at the Marietta, Ga., Conference Center, is a joint venture of PPC and PIA/GATF. All printers and converters are invited to attend. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis as space is limited.

Jones will argue that understanding "sustainability" requires printers and converters to grasp how the concept affects their business from the vantages of process, products, and plant environment. Many business managers can claim credit for past achievements, but according to Jones they "need to be able to name it in order to claim it."

The conference will include a roundhouse review of sustainability at the plant level so that attendees will have a good starting point in organizing to answer information requests of customers and develop their own business objectives. Among the presenters lined up for the event are:

1. John Bernardo of Sustainable Innovations, an expert in sustainable operations;
2. Stuart Lurie of Wilmington Paper Co. on waste removal systems approaches;
3. Kay Cooksey of Clemson University on designing for sustainable packaging; and
4. Gary Jones of GATF on sustainability aspects of plant health and safety practices.

Wal-Mart has announced that its Packaging Scorecard, now focused on raw materials and source processes, will be broadened in 2008 to cover the converting process. PPC and GATF are getting a jump on this subject with supplier panels on sustainability of substrates, inks and coatings:

1. Paperboard Substrate Panel: Cascades Boxboard Group, M-Real, International Paper, Joe Piper Inc., MeadWestvaco, and Potlatch.
2. Inks, Coatings Panel: Flint Ink and National Adhesives.
3. Pacesetters Panel: The day-long event will conclude with a panel featuring printers and converters who have distinguished themselves for sustainability achievements.

To register, send an email to Steve Smith at ssmith@ppcnet.org. Space is limited and on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Human Resources Workshop to Review Best Practices

Program Will Feature Planning for Business Continuity

HR Committee Chairman Dan Petrella, of Walter G. Anderson, has decided to cover a wide range of issues at the next workshop meeting. The meeting is slated for Aug. 28-29 in Alexandria, Va.

Among the topics to be covered at the 2007 Best Practices review are business continuity planning, which has risen in importance with such natural disasters as Hurricane Katrina, business disruptions such as the 2005 fire at Colonial Carton (Paperboard Packaging cover story, March 2007), and continuing concern over impacts of a possible H5N1 flu pandemic.

The American Red Cross will share experiences and participants will review model contingency plans. The group will be updated on policy issues such as "Freedom of Choice" union organizing proposals, health care reforms, and retirement benefits legislation.

A highlight of the meeting, as always, will be an "open forum" discussion of best practices that will be facilitated by Mary Walker Midkiff, a specialist in human resources management.

PPC Establishes New Generation Leaders Network

New to the industry? Just starting out in the converting or supply business? Feeling a need to have a personal network of advisors to help you cope with business issues and hit the deck running? Then check out the Network or, more precisely, the New Generation Leaders Network (NGLN). PPC's Board of Directors formally endorsed the highly successful network at its meeting on March 6 in Nashville. Ben Graham of Bell Inc. has been appointed to serve as group chairman.

The NGLN group was organized in early 2006 to bring together the next generation of leaders of member companies and the association. Participants benefit by having a forum for developing their own network of peers who are at a similar career stage. Group sessions are designed to bring about personal improvement and business insight. Some participants in the NGLN already carry significant responsibilities within their company and agree to play a mentoring or support role with others in the group.

Mark Your Calendars

Ben Markens of The Markens Group serves as moderator for topics chosen by participants. Meetings are held in conjunction with PPC general meetings. At the Spring Meeting, the group discussed the topic of managing difficult people based upon a case study from the Harvard Business Review. At the 2006 Fall Meeting they viewed a video and discussed management concepts of best selling author Marcus Buckingham (Now Discover Your Strengths, The One Thing You Need to Know About Great Managing). The group also participated in The Greenbrier's orienteering challenge to develop a better understanding of teambuilding and teamwork.

PPC members interested in nominating an individual for the NGLN should contact PPC staffer Steve Smith to get more information.

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