PACKAGING BRIEFS Tuesday, April 26

SPI Bioplastics Council announces new member
The Bioplastics Council, a special interest group of SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association, announced today that Merquinsa, a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) producer with global headquarters in Barcelona, Spain, and regional centers in Asia and North America, has officially been approved as a new member. Founded in 1964, Merquinsa is TPU specialty producer, providing products for injection molding, extrusion, calendering, melt coating, compounding and adhesive applications.

Inland Label Awarded Best in Show by Packaging & Label Gravure Association

nland Label of La Crosse, WI received top honors at the Packaging & Label Gravure Association's Global Print Quality Awards by bringing home Best in Show for their injection in-molded KISS cup label. The cup label features an injection in-mold label that showcases Inland's ability to print mirror-like metallic inks on IML labels. In addition to the Kiss cup, which took first place in the In-Mold film label category as well as the Best in Show award, Inland also received an Honorable Mention in the Glue Applied Label category for their Molson Export Ale label.

Richard G. Holder, past chairman & CEO of Reynolds Metals Company, passes
Richard G. Holder, a long-time veteran of Reynolds Metals Co., who rose to become the company's chairman of the board and Chief Executive Officer, died at his home in Midlothian, VA, on Friday, April 22, 2011, at the age of 79. Mr. Holder served in the top post at Reynolds from May 1, 1992 until October 1, 1996, when he retired from the company at the regular retirement age of 65. Mr. Holder was the fifth Chairman of Reynolds in the company's 81-year history and the second executive outside of the Reynolds family to hold the position.

Portola Packaging is awarded SQF certification for its three U.S. closure manufacturing facilities
Portola Packaging, Inc. achieved Safe Quality Food (SQF) Institute certification recently for its three U.S. closure manufacturing facilities-Batavia, Ill; Kingsport, TN. and Tolleson, AZ. Portola was the first closure manufacturer to achieve the SQF 2000 Level 2 certification. This means that the company successfully demonstrated how its operations comply with federal food safety legislation, including certified Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points (HACCP), and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs). The certification process took six to eight months to complete and each facility received a rating of "excellent."

INX to highlight full spectrum of ink products for FFTA Annual Forum
INX International Ink Co. will highlight its UV, solvent and water-based products the FFTA Annual Forum and InfoFlex Exhibition held May 1-4 at the JW Marriott and Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis.

R&D/Leverage-UK, Argo S.A. announce collaboration
R&D/Leverage-UK announced the success of its initial collaborations with Argo S.A., a leading single-source plastic packaging solutions provider with cutting edge technologies that serves customers in more than 30 countries throughout southern and eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
 

Bosch to presents full range of solutions for syringe processing at Interpack 2011
At Interpack 2011 in Düsseldorf, Bosch Packaging Technology presents its wide-ranging portfolio for syringe processing, via oral, picture and video presentations as well as customer dialogues. "Since we entered the market, a lot of changes have occurred in all areas. Bosch was able to set new limits with the development of our peristaltic pumps, vacuum filling and stoppering systems and the successful FXS line for the processing of pre-sterilized syringes in nests," emphasized Product Manager Klaus Ullherr.

Neenah Paper's enhanced eco-calculator raising the bar on functionality and flexibility

Neenah Paper has launched an enhanced version of the Neenah Eco-Calculator featuring greater customization capabilities that give designers and printers the information they need, the way they need it.
Amcor Alufix wins an EAFA Alufoil Trophy The European Aluminium Foil Association awarded Amcor's Alufix with another Alufoil Trophy in the Technical Innovation category for its Dry Pro version.
 

Wilson appointed president of Crown Food Packaging North America
Crown Holdings Inc. announces that James D. Wilson has been promoted to president, Crown Food Packaging North America. The promotion marks his return to the food business, where he served as vp, sales & marketing for four years. Most recently, Wilson was president of Crown's North American aerosol business, a position he has held since 2007.

Boise Inc. collaboration aims to restore urban parks
Boise Inc. is launching Project UPTM, a new civic sustainability initiative through its Boise ASPEN brand of recycled papers. Project UP seeks to transform distressed urban spaces throughout North America into revitalized, usable parks for communities to enjoy. To achieve this, Boise has partnered with the Alliance for Community Trees (ACT). ACT is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the environment where people live and work through tree planting, care, conservation and education.

Applied Robotics selected for Small Business Commerce Assn. award
Applied Robotics Inc. has been selected for the 2010 Best of Business Award in the General Industry Machinery/Equip Manufacturers category by the Small Business Commerce Assn (SBCA). The SBCA 2010 Award Program recognizes the top 5% of small businesses throughout the country. Using

PLACE Flexible Packaging Symposium delivers key insights for attendees
TAPPI's PLACE Flexible Packaging Symposium, held April 5, 2011, in Orlando, Florida, in conjunction with the first North American ICE Exhibit, featured a strong technical program that delivered a wide range of valuable information to delegates in a well attended one-day meeting. The program provided relevant content that aided delegates in their efforts at instituting sustainable practices and improved their understanding of extrusion technology and the integration of biopolymers into packaging materials.

Graham Packaging to acquire assets of Techne - Technipack Engineering Italia

Graham Packaging Company Italia S.r.l., has committed to acquire the assets of Techne - Technipack Engineering Italia S.r.l. for total consideration of euro 8.8 million.

Toyo Ink America's John Copeland receives NAPIM's Printing Ink Pioneer Award
The National Assn. of Printing Ink Manufacturers (NAPIM) bestowed on John Copeland, division president of Toyo Ink America's Printing Ink Division, one of its 2011 Printing Ink Pioneer awards.
Tetra Pak raises the bar with tough new environmental targets for sustainable growth Tetra Pak announced plans to cap carbon emissions at 2010 levels by the end of 2020 and increase efforts to double the recycling rate for used beverage cartons by the end of the decade.

Sealed Air moves closer to zero percent waste-to-landfill goal
Sealed Air announced that it has achieved another milestone in its SmartLife sustainability commitments by having 60 percent of its global manufacturing facilities attain "zero waste-to-landfill" for plastic raw material usage in 2010. To achieve further progress on its zero waste-to-landfill initiative, Sealed Air is developing programs to find more applications for scrap including using recycled materials in construction, such as concrete blocks and roofing material, and railroad ties.

DuPont to sponsor PACK EXPO Leadership Lecture Keynote by Retired General Colin L. Powell
PMMI, the producer of the PACK EXPO trade shows, announces that DuPont will be one of the title sponsors for the Leadership Lecture at PACK EXPO Las Vegas 2011 (Sept. 26-28, 2011; Las Vegas, Nev.), featuring keynote speaker retired General Colin L. Powell. General Powell will speak on "Diplomacy: Persuasion, Trust & Values" on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2011, at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

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