PACKAGING BRIEFS Tuesday, Feb. 28

PLMA plans Annual Meeting and Leadership Conference
The Private Label Manufacturers Assn. is holding its 2012 Annual Meeting and Leadership Conference March 22-25 in Aventura, FL. The event brings together speakers providing an overview of the PL industry and issues impacting it, and a look at what lies ahead. Presenters include Roby Waters, former vp of trend, design and product development for Target; business author Marc Levinson; Doug Stephens, president of Retail Prophet Consulting; A.K. Pradeep, president of Neurofocus Inc., Karl Schoemer, president of VisionQuest; and Jay Forbes, president of the Forbes Connection. For more information or to register, visit the PLMA website.

Gruppo Campari to open $40+ million bottling facility
Gruppo Campari plans to build a new packaging facility at its famous Wild Turkey site in Lawrenceburg, KY. The Commonwealth of Kentucky preliminarily approved up to $2.35 million in economic incentives to help create jobs through the up to $44 million construction project, which will provide full bottling and packaging capabilities for all of Gruppo Campari's U.S.-distilled spirits brands, including Wild Turkey Whiskey and SKYY Vodka. Slated to open in fall of 2013, the new Wild Turkey Distillery packaging facility is designed to initially handle up to four million 9-liter cases of product annually and has the capacity to support the company's North American packaging platform well into the future.

Crown to build new beverage can plant in central Vietnam
Crown Holdings Inc., a leading supplier of metal packaging products worldwide, will build a new beverage can plant in Danang, a major port city in central Vietnam. The new plant is expected to be operational in the second quarter of 2013 and will have an initial annual production capacity of 750 million two-piece 33cl cans.

Synergy Tooling Systems joins PPC
Synergy Tooling Systems has joined The Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC) as an associate member. Located in Amherst, NY, and Memphis, TN, the company is primarily focused on the engineering and manufacture of press-ready tooling systems for high-speed diecutters.

Plastic Ingenuity receives SQF certificates
Plastic Ingenuity's Cross Plans and Mazomanie, WI, facilities have received SQF, level 3 certification. The SQF (Safe Quality Food) program is a leading, global food safety and quality certification and management system, designed to meet the needs of buyers and suppliers. The program provides independent certification that a supplier's food safety and quality management systems comply with international and domestic food safety regulations. This enables suppliers to assure customers that food has been produced, processed, prepared, and finally, handled according to the highest possible standards, at all levels of the supply chain. There are three separate levels of certification for Safe Quality Food programs; Levels one, two or three. Plastic Ingenuity received the highest level of certification, level three. It provides buyers and suppliers with the confidence and reassurance that audits are performed in a standard, efficient manner.

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