Jack Mans

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The faster I go, the behinder I get

Packaging lines bring out the speed drivers in all of us. Eons ago, back when I was a project engineer at Kraft Foods (as it was known then), our objective for every packaging line was to increase output. And the obvious way to do that was to run the line faster. Unfortunately, at some point, as you increase operating speed, production actually decreases, because you lose more product to... More

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Making a silk purse out of a sow’s ear

This is certainly an overworked phrase, but occasionally you run into a situation where it seems particularly relevant. On a recent trip to the Los Angeles area, I had the opportunity to visit a state-of-the-art PET recycling facility that, in my opinion, qualifies. Owned by Global P.E.T Inc., the plant, which is located in Perris, CA, recycles 60 million lbs of PET bottles/year. All are... More

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Let the sunshine in

I was visiting the Black Bear Bottling Group plant in Oak Creek WI a few weeks ago to get information for this month’s story in Packaging Digest, and president Pete Caruso was telling me about their efforts in sustainability. We were walking through their warehouse, and he pointed up to what I thought were electric lights, and he explained these were really solar units. It turned out... More

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A man's got to know his limitations - so does a company

My main job at Packaging Digest is writing packaging line stories, most of which I get first hand by visiting plants. A short time ago, a person told me what a great job King Juice, Milwaukee, WI, was doing as a contract packer for one of its specialty juice products. Adding to the allure was the fact that King Juice had just installed a new bottling line, so this week I paid them a... More

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It works for the casinos, but how does it affect you?

Bar codes and RFID are now common elements in packaging operations, as well as in many everyday situations. A recent article in Popular Mechanics magazine describes how they are being used as part of the security and surveillance operations at casinos. According to the article, Las Vegas’s gaming industry invests in the best surveillance and behavioral monitoring technology in the... More