Have you ever heard of a 120-year-old company (in our industry) with more than 5,000 employees in 28 countries, who had red ink in only one year? I am sure there are others but my memory escapes me at the moment. You may know them as BOBST, FISCHER & KRECKE, KOCHSIEK, ROTOMEC, TITAN, ATLAS, GENERAL, ASITRADE, or MARTIN. (And by the way, the 2010 Flexographic Technical Innovation Award winner for F&K’s smart GPS exclusive Graphic Positioning System.)

I know them as BOBST GROUP, Sustaining TAPPI member for 44 years, great supporters of our corrugated events, and this week as Mike D’Angelo, Vice President Business Unit Web Fed, and Steve Creasey, Business Director Business Unit Sheet Fed. They are two members of a worldwide leading supplier of equipment and services to packaging manufacturers in the folding carton, corrugated board and flexible materials industries. 

On Wednesday August 18, 2010, Eric Fletty and I had the privilege of visiting Bobst Group North America headquarters in Roseland, NJ.

Steve Creasey  has been with Bobst for 16 years. He is originally from the UK but most recently he is a transplant from Shanghai, China, where he was a key player with their folding carton operations. Bobst has had plants in China since 1997. Their main product lines dealt with tobacco, general packaging and pharmaceuticals. Steve will take over for Mike D’Angelo as he moves into the Flexible Packaging business segment arena. Although Bobst has been involved in flexible packaging since 1988, the company is still viewed as a relative newcomer to many people. Mike is in his 28th year with Bobst and still maintains a very positive spirit towards our industry. He has also been a loyal TAPPI member since 1983.

The New Jersey location was formerly a manufacturing plant for many years. After consolidation it now serves their customers in the following distinct areas:

• Product Demonstration Center
• Training Center
• 24/7 Customer Service
• 24/7 Technical Service Support Center
• Parts Warehouse and Distribution Center

The 80-plus employees in NJ seem to like what they are doing very well as they support all 280 employees in North America. Some of them have been around for 40 years. The smiles from everyone I spoke to was also a big tip off.

Mike's Top Three views on TAPPI membership are as follows:

• TAPPI definitely suits the needs for networking with customers on a global stage. The local sections also provide a very good venue for networking on the local stage.

• We need a clearing house for industry information and TAPPI fills that need.

• TAPPI provides an opportunity to serve the industry. This allows Bobst to reinforce our image as a good industry neighbor. We have supported many TAPPI events and served on several committees over the years in the corrugated sector. Now with a whole new TAPPI, we want to branch out into the Nonwovens and Flexible packaging divisions as well.

You can come and see what Bobst has to offer at Corrugated Week 2010 in Baltimore, MD, October 4-7, 2010.

For more information on Bobst Group go to www.bobstgroup.com.

For more information on TAPPI please go to www.tappi.org.

There are two types of people in this industry, TAPPI members and those who should be.

Until next time,
Larry

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Herbert O. Teeple passed away on August 7, 2010, at age 97 in Morristown N.J. After graduation from the University of Michigan in 1937, Mr. Teeple worked for Westvaco Chemical Co. in Charleston WV for five years and then joined the International Nickel Co. (INCO)in New York.  During the course of that employment one of the fields he was assigned to cover was the pulp and paper industry and he called on mills in the U.S. and Canada. He became quite active in TAPPI, being INCO's Sustaining Member as well as with technical committee activities, particularly in the Engineering Division.  Because of his contacts with the Canadian mills he joined the Technical Section, CPPA, and in 2001 Mr. Teeple was awarded a plaque marking his 50th year as a member of PAPTAC.

In 1954 he joined TAPPI as an individual member and in 1958 he accepted a TAPPI job as Division Administrator. His 20 years of rewarding work was augmented by several heart-warming awards, including in 1971 an Engineering Division award for services performed, and in 1977 another Engineering award for keeping the Division rating as "Number One." Teeple retired from TAPPI in 1978 and continued work with TAPPI as a consultant to the TAPPI JOURNAL advertising manager.

In 1954 Mr. Teeple received a "Proclamation" for being a "Doer of Good Things" for the Association, and in 1994 he was elected a TAPPI Fellow. In 2005 he received a "Golden Award" plaque for his 50 years as a TAPPI member, which gave him lots of satisfaction because along the way he had accumulated many friends whose kind help was greatly appreciated.

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The 2010 TAPPI International Conference on Nanotechnology for the Forest Products Industry is scheduled for 27-29 September 2010 at the Dipoli Congress Centre in Espoo Finland. TAPPI, along with programming partner VTT, has created a technical program that contains more than 80 peer-reviewed papers, 40 posters, and three keynote presentations. Learn more about the event by viewing the conference brochure.

The early bird registration deadline for this conference is 31 August 2010. Register  today for the best rates. Make your reservation at the Sokos Hotel Tapiola Garden by 26 August to receive the special conference rate.

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Formerly TAPPI Engineering, Pulping and Environmental (EPE) Conference, the TAPPI PEERS Conference answers the most pressing business and technical questions faced by pulp and paper companies as they manage raw materials, assets, regulatory requirements and production assets. With eight focused tracks and more than 40 sessions, this year’s updated conference offers peer-reviewed papers, expert speakers, exclusive networking opportunities and new technologies that can help mills optimize operations.

Access the complete Conference Brochure.

What’s new and different about these events?

A Sustainability Program, organized by PIMA Management Division, focusing on business conditions, the future of fiber, and the impact of sustainability efforts on the pulp and paper industry.

Since PEERS is co-located with the 9th Research Forum on Recycling, you’ll benefit from this bonus programming and critical information for applying new research within the mill and covering a range of topics, from deinking and screening to improving recyclability and quality of recycled papers. The Research Forum on Recycling is open to all PEERS Conference participants.

A full Biorefinery Program that focuses on the latest technical advances in hemicellulose extraction for maximizing biofuel production and minimizing interference with pulp yield and characteristics.

The new Practical Mill Engineering is full of solutions for complex problems. Through workshops and roundtable discussions, mill personnel can learn workable engineering options that they can take back and apply.

No other industry event this year brings together such a vast array of technical knowledge, insight and experience. 

Make sure you’re there in October!

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Sponsored by TAPPI’s NET (Nonwovens Engineers & Technologists) Division and the Nonwovens Institute (NWI), the Innovative Nonwovens Conference (NETInc), November 10-12, 2010 in Raleigh, NC USA, is the only technical conference developed by engineers and technologists to help you understand the innovation behind the science and how it impacts the market.  View the Technical Program for this breakthrough event.

NETInc is unlike any other nonwovens conference because the program is developed by the industry experts that drive innovation and new technology in the nonwovens arena. The NET Division volunteers have strived to build a strong technical program that you have come to expect from TAPPI as well as poignant keynote sessions, cutting edge technology and a tour of NWI’s Pilot Plant facility. For more details about this event, including registration, visit www.netincevent.org.

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The TAPPI PEERS Conference features five technical workshops to help you keep current with new technologies, methods and techniques.  Two are pre-conference events (and involve an additional fee) and three take place during the conference and are included in your conference registration.  All are an excellent investment in your career!  Register by September 20 for the best rates.

Workshops include:

Advances in Paper Recycling Workshop
12:30 pm - 5:30 pm, Sunday, October 17

Bleach Plant Operations Workshop
8 am - 4 pm, Sunday, October 17

BioSat Workshop
1:30 pm - 3 pm, Monday, October 18

Piping System Simulation Workshop
8:30 am - 10:30pm, Tuesday, October 19

Pumping System Assessment Workshop
1:30 pm - 5 pm, Tuesday, October 19

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Keynote Speaker Terence R. "Terry" McAuliffe will speak to conference participants 8:30 to 10 a.m., Monday, October 18.

Terry McAuliffe, a leader in politics, business, and the promotion of green energy, is Chairman of Greentech Automotive (GTA), established to carry out his vision that "no green technology is truly green unless it is affordably green." McAuliffe is also an active investor in and developer of renewable energy companies and projects.

He is involved in a next-generation fuel cell company, a wind project in the southwest and is currently investigating the repurposing of shuttered paper mills for bioenergy production. McAuliffe will share how his vision applies to the pulp and paper industry and the future of renewable energy.

Learn more about TAPPI PEERS Conference and the Research Forum on Recycling.

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The Hands-On Workshop for Pulp and Paper Basics is open for registration.  This training program, scheduled for October 4 - 8 in Raleigh, N.C., will be the last opportunity this year to take advantage of this popular training program.  Co-sponsored by TAPPI and North Carolina State University, this five-day workshop is ideal for process engineers, manufacturing operators and technicians, sales and service personnel, machine operators and maintenance personnel -- everyone who wants a better understanding of the pulp and paper business.

You can expect to learn more about pulping, bleaching, chemical recovery, recycling, papermaking and converting all in the short span of one week.  The workshop balances lectures with labs and helps you acquire a lasting background to pulp and paper technology, operations and markets.  And, for those of you seeking CEU credits, this workshop offers 3.7 continuing education units (CEUs) to participants who attend at least 80 percent of the education sessions and complete a final program evaluation.  Register by September 20 to ensure your involvement in this comprehensive workshop.

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Conference attendee registration for BioPro Expo & Marketplace 2011, the largest conference and exposition in the Southeast covering ‘ready for market’ technologies and processes for the biomass production and consumption process, has officially opened.

This event registration also includes the International Bioenergy and Bioproducts Conference (IBBC), which is co-located with the BioPro Expo event.

BioPro Expo & Marketplace 2011 and IBBC will be held on March 14-16, 2011, at the Atlanta Hilton in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. This event will provide suppliers of agricultural, municipal and wood wastes, as well as producers of dedicated energy crops and food processing facilities, with in-depth educational sessions and a comprehensive trade show and marketplace focused on practical ways to transition products, residues and waste streams to energy along with critical biofuel/bioproduct resources.

Visit BioPro Expo & Marketplace or IBBC to learn more about these events and to register to attend.

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TAPPI is proud to be a co-sponsor of Paper Middle East 2010 to be held at the Cairo International Convention Centre, Egypt, September 18-20, 2010.

The paper industry has a long history in the region and is been as one of the major strategic industrial sectors that have great impact on the national economy of many Arab states. That is why PaperME Exhibition was born to meet the strong growth and the market demand in all the Middle East and Africa.

Paper Middle East Exhibition (PaperME 2010) is now well on the way to be the largest and most specialized international exhibition held in the Middle East and Africa for the paper, board, tissue industry. It is viewed as one of the must-attend and most authoritative exhibitions for highly qualified business dealings and a place where all companies can sign important commercial partnerships.

More information about this program is available at www.papermideast.com/

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This November 10-11, join your colleagues in Chicago, Ill. USA for Specialty Papers 2010 -- the only conference devoted exclusively to the latest developments in the specialty papers sector.

The technical program includes 18 presentations from a cross-section of industry experts from organizations like Suntech Resources LLC, Hewlett Packard, Kimberly Clark, FPInnovations and Western Michigan University. You will find two days of in-depth coverage of global market trends; insights into how to improve the manufacturing process, reduce costs and increase competitiveness; the latest technology developments and the forecast for sustainability and LCA. The conference includes two round-table lunches covering the industry's hot-button topics (as determined by attendees!) where attendees can share and learn from successes and setbacks.

Register before August 27, 2010 to take advantage of the 'Super Early Bird' savings!

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Call for papers now open!  Exhibition & Sponsorship opportunities now open!

TAPPI is proud to once again be a co-sponsor of 65th Appita Annual Conference and Exhibition to be held at the Energy Events Centre, Rotorua, New Zealand, April 10 - 13, 2011.

Papers are now being invited for presentation at the 65th Appita Annual Conference & Exhibition. The 65th Appita Annual Conference & Exhibition showcasing the latest innovations, technologies and techniques is to be held on April 10 - 13 in Rotorua, New Zealand.  The 2011 event, themed "Innovate for the Future" – Resources-Pulp-Paper-Print-Packaging, will cover all aspects of the industry through the supply chain, from resources through to print and packaging. The Conference will explore new opportunities and techniques to drive innovation in manufacturing and converting processes.

Closing Date for Offers: 5 November 2010.

More information is available at www.appita.com.au/conference65.

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"The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese." – (anon.)

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