Location: Miron Construction 1471 McMahon Dr. Neenah, WI 54956
SCHEDULE:
Check-in: 7:30 – 8:30 a.m.
Speakers – 8:30 – 3:00 p.m.
Lunch – 12: 00 – 1:00 p.m
Networking – 3:00 – 4:30 p.m.
SPEAKERS:
Paper Converting Machine Company – Rodney Pennings
Procon – Kelly Helein
Pixelle Specialty Solutions – Dave Magda
Hoffmaster – Mark Hunter
Charter Next Generation – John Garnett
Miron Construction – Dan Goyermac and Blake Titus
Cargill – Dave Garlie
The Wisconsin Converting Industry has the of the largest concentrations of Converters & Packaging Companies in the United States. Our speakers represent varies companies in converting, coating, laminating, film, flexo printing, packaging, paper, food and water.
In late 2023, GBIG cited sources as having 8,244 employed in Wisconsin’s pulp and paper industries. Some in those industries have certain in-house converting capabilities. However, a considerable number of paper mills outsource their converting needs by providing mill rolls to independent converting companies.
Converting Background
The converting industry is typically underrated because its statistics are often wrapped into paper industry data; but that also does not recognize segment like film/plastics and nonwovens. Converters are frequently contract manufacturers, so it is not generally known how many products and brands are made for large consumer marketers. Private ownership and numbers of small business sizes add to the unrealized details. One recent study, in our opinion, left out at least half of the data.
The “Converting CorridorTM” from Green Bay to Milwaukee boasts logistics support, from inventory assistance to management of shipment schedules. Experience by nearby software, engineering, parts, and machining companies keeps the industry moving. These local suppliers understand industry; after all, Wisconsin is second only to Indiana as a manufacturing state. What affects converting, affects all these associated companies in the “corridor” and converting throughout the state.
The Converters:
Cut and slit rolls at the paper mill’s request
Manufacture for their own sales offerings and brands
Conduct value-added steps for contracted customers
Based upon a recent report, paper converters employ approximately 19,265 people in Wisconsin. After reviewing the report, our analysis shows a substantial number of companies are not really converters for inclusion among paper products listings as direct converting “partners.” The report was based upon NAICS statistics which included everyone involved in converting, even if they merely buy mill rolls or often use other substrates such as plastics and nonwovens. Additionally, label companies were included because they may have converting capabilities. Arguably, label companies’ capabilities include converting and other processes.
If we simply identify paper converters that support the paper industry taking jumbo rolls to slit, rewind, provide sheeted products, and carry out other related services, we find fewer than 20. Part of the difference in estimates is due to varying definitions.
Our research has identified a much larger number of independent converters that provide value-added materials: A. As outsourced by paper companies; or B. As value-added steps by converters for their customers; or C. They convert final finished products.
Wisconsin has many converters who work with substrates including films/plastics, nonwovens, labeling materials, and other non-paper or laminated substrates that are not naturally part of paper and pulp statistics.
We have defined converting as receiving raw materials on mill rolls and transforming them into value-added or finished products. Some examples of how the converting process may include a single or multiple manufacturers are shown below.
Food for thought
Wisconsin has been known as resource rich: As the top papermaking state; as a powerhouse in flexographic and other printing; having a strong presence in nonwovens with wipes producers and related supplies—the state has been strong in terms of meeting market demands.
During the pandemic we saw delays in certain materials, which presented supply problems. For example, mask components. Because of this, the industry began rethinking its sources of supply and has made more of its own investments to manufacture a wider array and expanded output of parts, materials, and finished products.
Wisconsin is no longer a major player supplying printing papers, with no production of coated groundwood papers, coated free sheets, and the state is a minor player in uncoated free sheets. Printers, converters, and packagers are buying most of their papers outside of Wisconsin and turning to Europe, Asia, Indonesia, and South America.
With the paper industry becoming weaker in terms of Wisconsin strength and with non-local ownership continuing to erode Wisconsin and U.S. industry leadership, this also impacts the converting industry.
Converters are making choices that were not required in years past. They include:
Seeking new sources of supply nationally & internationally
Changing some materials due to short supplies and supply chain issues
Realizing price increases due to reduced production of key materials
GBIG has identified converting factories in these areas:
Independent Converting – 69 Companies
Cartoning with in-house Converting –16 Companies
Nonwovens Converting – 13 Companies
Corrugated Converting – 41 Companies
Envelopes Converters – 2 Companies
Flexible Packaging Converting – 38 Companies
Label Printers & Converters – 69 Companies
Paper Mills Converting in-house – 13 Mills
Total: 261 for Converting in Wisconsin
Commercial Printers Converters – 30 estimated
Packaging Converting – 53 Companies
Total of Both: 344
Also: Based upon our industry experience, we would estimate that Commerical Printers with in-house Converting Capabilities: 30 to 50 plus companies.
Several companies convert a mix of cartons, corrugated, flexible packaging, and labels!
State and national policy in recent years has focused on strengthening our manufacturing sector and bringing back good-paying jobs for Americans.
Scott Suder
But this effort is being undermined as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently passed incredibly stringent air quality regulations. The new rule will have significant and adverse impacts on manufacturing, including Wisconsin’s paper industry, a major driver of the local economy.
The EPA has lowered the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for PM 2.5 (fine particulate matter). But the agency’s new rule does little to address some of the largest sources of particulate matter, and it fails to acknowledge a decades-long trend of declining ambient air levels of fine particulate matter.
The regulation is unlikely to meaningfully impact the amount of particulate matter in the air. But it will undoubtedly undermine efforts to grow and bring back American manufacturing jobs from overseas. That’s bad news for our country, and even worse for Wisconsin, whose manufacturing sector accounts for 18.6% of the state’s total economic output, including the forest products industry.
It’s important the EPA craft sustainable regulations that not only protect public health and our environment, but also create opportunities for job growth and economic development. But the EPA’s rule does neither.
To start, fine particulate matter is emitted by a variety of sources. Major emitters include wildfires, road dust and exhaust fumes. These sources account for nearly 84% of all emissions of fine particulate matter. Yet the EPA’s rule does not account for these sources, nor their public health impact.
Instead, this shortsighted rule incorrectly takes aim at industry partners such as the forest products industry, which is helping to grow domestic manufacturing jobs and deliver lasting, meaningful sustainability. By setting the new limit near background levels, the forest products industry will not be able to get necessary permits to further curb emissions, expand operations or, in some cases, even operate in the country.
Wisconsin will swiftly feel the impact of the EPA’s decision. The forest products industry employs over 50,000 residents, contributing to over $21 billion in annual economic output and an estimated $226 million in state and local taxes. Paper product manufacturing in Wisconsin has been growing fast in recent years — but the EPA’s proposal will severely imperil this progress.
It’s hard to understand why the EPA would create such misguided regulations and undermine President Joe Biden’s promise to grow and bring back American manufacturing jobs. It’s even more confusing when you consider the forest products industry’s critical role in addressing America’s affordable housing shortage and producing sustainable paper-based packaging.
The Wisconsin Paper Council and the American Forest and Paper Association have worked together to share these concerns with both the EPA and The White House. We continue to work with both democrat and republican policymakers from throughout the country, including Governors from Wisconsin, Kentucky and Kansas who have questioned the logic of this rule and are asking why EPA has not proposed an implementation plan for its new rule. We also continue to request realistic modeling and permitting tools, grounded by sound scientific data, to allow important industry projects to proceed.
It will take the EPA working with states and industry at least three years to develop and execute a workable plan. This should include modernization projects that help our industry curb emissions and improve efficiency, although the rule does not currently include such a plan.
We are not alone in expressing concern over the EPA’s proposal. Unions and trade groups from the forest products industry have also called on the administration to support practical regulations that protect our health and environment while promoting economic growth and development.
The EPA’s rule for fine particulate matter directly threatens America’s manufacturing. This is a bad policy that will curtail production and lead to the loss of good paying jobs — many in rural areas — without having a meaningful impact toward improving public health.
The Biden administration should ensure that our manufacturing sector and the hardworking Americans supporting it stay strong in the long term.
We urge policymakers to do everything in their power to curb the harmful impacts of these new regulations.
For more information about the new EPA rule, call the Wisconsin Paper Council at 608-467-6025 or email them at suder@wipaper.org.
Scott Suder is President of the Wisconsin Paper Council and is a former Wisconsin State Legislator
Get links to the latest news, events, stories, and interviews from our 5P news sponsors. Our goal is to remind the decision-makers in Wisconsin of the importance of our industry both historically, and more importantly, into the future.
Read the latest PFAS Stories and Links on the Internet below.
“Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances” (“PFAS”) are a group of approximately 15,000 chemicals found in thousands of products ranging from consumer products like food packaging, non-stick cooking materials, and cosmetics to commercial firefighting foams. PFAS are commonly referred to as “forever chemicals” because they do not easily break down in the human body and can exist in the environment for hundreds of years.
Aaron Benz
Companies began the widespread use of PFAS in various products in the late 1940s. Since then, research on the adverse effects of PFAS exposure has continued to advance. This research has linked PFAS exposure to adverse health effects including, cancers, fertility issues, diabetes, developmental issues, and immune disorders.
PFAS Litigation
Early PFAS litigation was focused on contamination of the environment surrounding major PFAS manufacturing locations. Major manufacturers faced thousands of lawsuits over the past several decades related to their products contaminating the water supply and allegedly harming residents in the surrounding areas.
Since 2020, there has been a significant rise in PFAS litigation. There are several factors driving this increase. As more time has passed since the widespread use of PFAS, researchers have been able to complete more studies on the long-term health effects of PFAS exposure. As such, there is now more data to directly connect PFAS exposure to adverse health effects. This is a critical component to any personal injury case because without medical studies, causation is nearly impossible to prove.
The increased awareness of the risks and adverse health effects of PFAS exposure has also led to increased governmental intervention to curb the use of PFAS. In 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) rolled out a “Strategic Roadmap” that set future timelines for additional regulations on PFAS in drinking water and reporting requirements on PFAS. On a state level, legislatures are passing laws to regarding PFAS use and many state attorneys general are bringing lawsuits against PFAS manufacturers to protect the public from PFAS exposure.
Further, there have recently been several multibillion dollar settlements reached in PFAS litigation. Any time plaintiffs are seeing substantial settlements like this, the likelihood of similar lawsuits increases.
Recently, Kimberly-Clark has been the target of a proposed class action PFAS lawsuit. That suit, filed in Connecticut federal court, accuses Kimberly-Clark of negligence for failing to warn near its Kleenex facility that the facility’s smokestacks were emitting PFAS. Kimberly-Clark has denied that it uses PFAS in its U.S. consumer products.
Protect Your Business
Historically, PFAS litigation has been focused on the manufacturers of PFAS products. Recently, however, companies further down the chain of commerce have been targeted. Companies who have PFAS in their finished products- including food packaging, personal hygiene products, and clothing – are now becoming the targets of regulations and litigation.
In anticipation of new regulations and potential litigation, prudent businesses will want to consult counsel regarding new laws and regulations unique to their business and state to ensure their compliance, and may consider hiring outside consultants to audit their business to determine whether PFAS are used in their manufacturing process and/or the materials received from suppliers.
Aaron Benz is an attorney in Amundsen Davis’s Business Litigation Service Group where he focuses his practice on commercial litigation matters. Contact: abenz@amundsendavislaw.com
The Green Bay Innovation Group has put together an outstanding group of speakers on March 20, 2024, at Butte Morts Country Club in Appleton from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. To register go to: www.greenbayinnovationgroup.com/events. The cost is: $50.00 per person which includes a buffet lunch. Our Featured speaker is Tom Lee a Partner at Bryan, Cave, Leighton, Paisner LLP. Tom, an industry expert, will speak on PFAS in Food Packaging: State by State Regulations. In the absence of comprehensive federal regulations of PFAS in food packaging, states are dishing out their own laws. These laws are intended to address concerns that storing food in Food Packaging which contain PFAS Compounds may result in increased ingestion of those PFAS compounds. Historically, Food Packaging contained PFAS which include some grease-resistant paper, food fast containers/wrappers, microwave popcorn bags, pizza boxes, candy wrappers, plastics, and a host of other substrates.
Other Speakers Include:
Martin Shafer PhD. Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene and Water. He is a Research Scientist Geo/Environmental Chemistry. His PFAS projects primarily address atmospheric cycling (e.g., PFAS levels/deposition in precipitation) and cycling of PFAS in wastewater treatment facilities.
Dr. Marissia Jablonski PhD. – Executive Director of the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin. She is an accomplished Water Engineer, Environmental Advisor and Plastics-Reduction Expert who has worked in more than forty-five countries.
Kevin Nelson Senior Fellow at Amcor, AMIC Advisory Board and UW Madison College of Engineering alum. He will discuss the material science behind packaging and various challenges the industry faces.
Brad Hartong – Primient – Applications Development Scientist in the Chemical and Paper Industries working with barrier coatings trying to replace fluorochemicals in various products.
Betsy Metzger – Product Development Manager for Glenroy, Inc. Glenroy is a flexible packaging company specializing in Food Packaging.
Get links to the latest news, events, stories, and interviews from our 5P news sponsors. Our goal is to remind the decision-makers in Wisconsin of the importance of our industry both historically, and more importantly, into the future.
Read the latest 84 Stories and Links on the Internet below.
Green Bay, Wis. (February 19, 2024) — Just as Prophit Co. launches into its 22nd year in business, along too comes a technology launch and new company name to match it: Dignify!
Previously a marketing firm, Prophit Co.’s focus shifted to leadership development in 2020.
CEO of Dignify, Joe Kiedinger, said of the name change, “We’re aligning our new name with our mission of spreading dignity-based communication to the world.”
Dignify is doing just that through its namesake patented technology, Dignify®, and their team of world-class coaches and trainers. The transformative leadership development and communication platform has just gone through a significant update with enhanced features— and more due to roll out in 2nd and 3rd quarter—like an online learning academy, customizable surveys and a companion app for enterprise accounts that allows leaders to provide quick recognition that dignifies and motivates their direct reports. Dignify is also translated in Spanish and French to serve a greater range of national and international clients.
The company’s core services will not be changing. It will remain the same local, Green Bay team providing leadership training, executive coaching, team building events and strategic planning—now with enhanced technology capabilities.
Kiedinger continued, “Leadership is changing quickly as the workforce shifts generationally. We make it easier for companies adapt to that change with solutions for culture, conflict resolution, training, engagement and more—all to create sustainable, profitable growth.”
For more information, see www.dignify.com or contact Marketing Manager, Lauren Hitt at laurenh@prophit.com.
Dignify was founded in 2002 under the name J. Kiedinger Advertising by Joe and Danica Kiedinger of Green Bay. Dignify is a software as a service (SaaS) company that builds confident leaders and healthy cultures through a focus on human dignity. Dignify currently serves a mix of clients in the construction services, manufacturing and banking industries—spanning from Texas to Canada and Europe.
While years of research have shown that municipal wastewater is a source of contaminants to the environment, lesser is known about industrial wastewater. For instance, there are over 5,000 food, beverage, and feedstock facilities in the United States that hold National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits; however, these wastewaters are not typically monitored for organic chemicals, such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), before they are discharged into “water of the United States”.
Laura Hubbard and her team at the U.S. Geological Survey investigated food process wastewater (FPWW) from 23 facilities in 17 states and analyzed for 576 different organic chemicals, including pesticides, antibiotics, hormones, pharmaceuticals, PFAS, and volatile organic compounds. They also searched for microbial substances like bacterial growth, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and antibiotic-resistance genes, as well as inorganic materials like nutrients, cations, and anions.
Hubbard’s research, published in 2022, showed that the tested (and anonymous) FPWW contained both chemical and microbial contaminants with a different profile than other known sources such as municipal wastewater. A total of 186 organic chemicals were detected with up to 48 detected in one sample. This study was the first to summarize contaminants released from FPWW.
The facility-specific results were disseminated to each the facilities, providing extensive data to aid them in future planning and management/mitigation. The results assisted one facility in decisions related to upgrading their fire suppression system to reduce discharge of PFAS into the receiving stream. If you’d like to get involved, or want to know more about this study, please contact Laura Hubbard, lhubbard@usgs.gov, 608-590-9881
In January, we wrote in the GBIG Newsletter about the “Digital Opportunity” and the reason that print manufactures should consider this growing segment. In this third segment we will review digital inkjet print to rigid flatbed systems and hybrid/specialty technologies. Investing in a flatbed printer will allow you to print on a wide range of rigid materials. Many printers come with a roll-to-roll option that gives you the best of both worlds allowing you to print on both flexible and rigid materials.
Printer models are now available in a multitude of sizes with the ability to print very small to down to 0.5” x 0.5”. Flatbeds are available at 18” x 24”, 24” x 36”, 50” x 55” and up the traditional industry standard of 4’ x 8’ and even larger at 8’ x 10’.
Flatbed printing systems can produce applications beyond typical display graphics, including backlit displays, high-end wall coverings for public and private spaces, dimensional prints, floor graphics, event signage, glasswork, architectural elements, fine art, or nearly anything that your imagination can conceive.
Flatbed printing technology uses either Latex or UV-curable inks. Ink chemistry continues to advance, providing expanded color gamut, high image quality and vibrant output. Overcoat for Latex ink and Varnish for UV inks enhance adhesion, gloss finish and scratch resistance.
A newer and rapidly growing application is thermoforming. Latex inks bring considerable advantages to printed thermoforming applications due to its flexibility and temperature resistance. It can provide thermoformed prints with rich, deep colors that don’t fade when stretched into deep-draw forms. A wide range of substrates can be used in thermoforming, and the end product can range from prototypes, point-of-sale material, full graphics trays for commercial packaging uses and blister packs for industrial parts.
You will generally find that printing using flatbed technology will save you money on consumables. A flatbed printer can print directly onto unfinished or uncoated materials, reducing the need for additional processing steps. With flatbed printing, there’s no need to print onto vinyl or paper surfaces which a traditional roll-fed printer requires. The elimination of these additional steps, plus the materials and labor required to mount and laminate, ultimately results in faster turnaround times and lower production costs for your shop.
At Big Systems, our Service Mark is “Print Brilliant.” We do our absolute best to help our customers improve their workflow and print results every day. Big Systems is a dealer of wide-format equipment, supplies, software, installation, repair services and specialty applications. We are located in Menomonee Falls, WI.
Joe Jones – President
Green Bay Innovation Group
Bringing Green Bay Companies Together. Green Bay Innovation Group is committed to building an authentic networking experience where innovation can thrive.
