American Forest & Paper Association Releases May 2020 Containerboard Monthly Report

Sonopress, a manufacturer of storage media that is part of Bertelsmann Marketing Services, has developed a revolutionary new form of vinyl LP that drastically reduces the environmental impact of the manufacturing process. The product is being launched in collaboration with Warner Music, a long-term client of Sonopress. This new vinyl is produced using recyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) as its base material, which can also be made from 100% recycled PET, rather than polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Pressing the discs requires neither natural gas nor steam, and a test operation saw energy savings of up to 85 percent compared to the traditional process. A first production line for the innovative LPs – dubbed Eco Record – was put into operation by Sonopress on Thursday at its plant in Gütersloh, Germany, following a series of tests last year.

Amcor announced the opening of its new state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Huizhou, China. With an investment of almost $100 million, the 590,000-square-foot plant is the largest flexible packaging plant by production capacity in China, further strengthening Amcor’s ability to meet growing customer demand throughout Asia Pacific. The new facility is expected to employ more than 550 people, who will produce flexible packaging solutions for food and personal-care products. The plant comes equipped with the first automated packaging production line in China. This, along with high-speed printing presses, laminators, and bag-making machines, can deliver double-digit reductions in manufacturing cycle times.

Pregis proudly showcased its packaging innovations to 50,000 industry professionals at ProMat 2023, the largest material handling, logistics, and supply chain show in the world. Coming out of the event, three critical packaging trends will add tremendous value to company fulfillment operations. Automation - E-commerce demand is raising volumes in warehouses, and to keep up, companies have no choice but to implement automation. This technology is being integrated more often, and the runway for an ROI is shorter than ever. Recyclability and Recycled Content - Protective packaging is being truly engineered with the environment in mind. Businesses, and their customers, are increasingly supporting a circular economy. Customer Experience - Protecting goods from the rigors of shipping continues to be a main proponent of customer experience, but as the world continues to lean towards direct-to-consumer offerings, companies are looking for more ways to stand out.