PACKAGING BRIEFS Thursday, April 14

McDowell Label celebrates 30 years
McDowell Label & Screen Printing, a converter of high-end prime labels headquartered in Plano, TX, celebrates its 30th year in business in 2011. The company started off the anniversary in patriotic style: U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson presented founder Dave McDowell and his team with a flag of the United States of America, a flag that was flown over the U.S. Capitol, in recognition of McDowell Label for 30 years of innovation and manufacturing in the USA.

Schott North America appoints Linda Mayer as president/CEO
Effective April 1, 2011, Linda Mayer takes over as president and CEO at Schott North America Inc. Mayer is the first woman to head the 2,800-employee strong North American operations of the specialty glass and materials technologies manufacturer. She succeeds former president/CEO Dr. Gerald Fine who in January became a director of Schott Corp. and a member of the company's North American Advisory Board.

Wheaton opens European warehouse
Wheaton-a leading provider of quality products and services for the laboratory research, diagnostic packaging and specialty pharmaceutical industries-has begun shipping products to European customers from a new supply chain service provider located in Veldhoven, the Netherlands.

A. Schulman to expand Brazilian plant
A. Schulman Inc. plans to add one manufacturing line in its Sao Paulo, Brazil, plant to accommodate increased demand for the company's masterbatch and engineered plastics products. The company expects the line to be installed and operational by November 2011. A. Schulman acquired the plant as part of its Oct. 18, 2010, purchase of Mash Compostos Plasticos, a masterbatch additive producer and engineered plastics compounder.

Menasha Packaging wins 11 awards for effective retail displays
Menasha Packaging recently won 11 awards at the 53rd annual POPAI Outstanding Marketing at-Retail Achievement (OMA) Awards Competition, held during GlobalShop 2011 in Las Vegas. The OMA awards recognize the most innovative and effective at-retail displays and programs, which lift sales and make products memorable and enticing to consumers. Menasha received one gold, four silver and six bronze awards, in nine temporary, semi-permanent and permanent display categories.

UFLEX to build large film plant in the U.S.
The India-based UFLEX Group, one of the world's leading manufacturers of flexible packaging, is taking a major step forward in extending its global manufacturing footprint by investing in a greenfield facility in Kentucky for the manufacture of hi-tech packaging films. The first phase of this $180 million project will see the setting up of an 8.7 meter wide, 500 meters/minute biaxially oriented polyester (BOPET) film line and a complementary plasma enhanced high-barrier metalliser. The film line, one of the world's largest, will turn out about 70 million lbs. of film per year and is expected to be on stream by the end of 2012. The plant in Elizabethtown will be larger than any other film line presently operating in the U.S. and could employ up to 250 people within three years.

Britton Flexibles Ltd. bought by affiliate of Sun European Parners LLP
Sun European Partners LLP, the European adviser to Sun Capital Partners, Inc., has announced that one of its affiliates has acquired Britton Flexibles Ltd., a U.K.-based flexible plastic packaging specialist from the Direct Principal Investments division of HSBC. The Britton Group is a leading provider of flexible packaging solutions in the U.K. with extrusion, printing, lamination and conversion capabilities that serve a variety of markets including consumer goods, banking, healthcare, construction and technology.

Hybrid Integration's print management portal now includes EskoArtwork's WebCenter
Hybrid Integration, a leading developer of print management software for the commercial printing, labels and packaging, and specialty markets, has launched a new version of its GoPrint print management web portal. Hybrid GoPrint now provides integration with the viewing and approval technologies of EskoArtwork's WebCenter online collaboration tool, offering a seamless user experience.

Reckitt Benckiser appoints new CEO
The board of Reckitt Benckiser Group plc has announced the retirement of Bart Becht as CEO and the appointment of Rakesh Kapoor as CEO designate. Kapoor has a 25 year career with RB and is currently evp global category development at RB and an Executive Committee member. Kapoor becomes CEO effective Sept. 1, 2011, with Becht staying on as part time adviser to Kapoor and the board until September 2012 to ensure a smooth transition.

Korsnäs provides eco info according to international EPD standard
Korsnäs is the first company in the forest industry to supply the market with complete environmental declarations for a range of products according to the international EPD standard. The international EPD system sets a standard for the methodology of measuring, compiling and presenting the particulars of environmental performance. An EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) is a document that comprises a full record of the environmental impact of a product based on a life-cycle analysis in accordance with ISO 14044. The aim is to provide relevant, verified and comparable environmental information to help organizations and companies to communicate the environmental performance of their products in a credible and understandable way. All data are verified by an independent body, in this case Det Norske Veritas.

Henkel supply chain expert cites adhesive trends
Brian Waldron, director of strategic pricing of Henkel Packaging, Consumer Goods and Construction Adhesives, addressed attendees at the PSSMA (Paper Shipping Sack Manufacturers' Association) meeting held April 12-14 in Vancouver, WA. Waldron discussed global drivers and the changing landscape affecting adhesives, as well as material-by-material assessments of cost drivers, factors and forecasts. According to Waldron and his Henkel colleagues focused on the supply chain, the adhesive raw material situation is one of uncertainty and concern. Key raw material costs continue to escalate dramatically. Double-digit increases in primary chemicals, rosins and resins, have put tremendous strain on the feedstock supply for critical ingredients used in the manufacture of adhesives. Heavy demand from emerging economies, combined with lack of capital investment for new capacity, has intensified the effect on the adhesives supply chain over the last 18 months, and the situation is expected to persist through 2011.

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