Board Converting News, November 15, 2021

Board Converting News, November 15, 2021

BoardConverting Serving the North American Corrugated and Folding Carton Industries for 37 years November 15, 2021 VOL. 37, NO. 46

Lawrence Paper Company Adds 5th Generation, Invests Heavily

Voorhees Receives PPC’s Lifetime Achievement Award The Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC) recently presented its most prestigious ac- colade, the Robert T. Gair Award for lifetime achievement, to former President and CEO of WestRock, Steven C. Voorhees, during the association’s Fall Meeting and Leadership Conference in Savannah, Georgia. The paper- board industry stalwart accepted the award surrounded by family, colleagues, and other folding carton industry leaders. The Robert T. Gair Award — an homage to the man who paved the way for the modern paperboard packaging industry — recogniz- es exemplary individuals who have demon- strated a lifetime of significant and lasting contributions to the industry. With decades of knowledge and leadership under his belt, Voorhees was a natural recipient of the honor. Under Voorhees’ leadership, WestRock, created as a result of the merger between Rock-Tenn and MeadWestvaco in 2015, suc- ceeded in many areas. Voorhees was instru- mental in expanding the company’s geo- graphic presence facilitating 20 acquisitions during his tenure as chief executive officer. Voorhees served as CFO from 2000 until

BY LEN PRAZYCH

One can’t begin to understand the success of the American inde- pendent family-owned corrugated box making company without first knowing the remarkable history of Lawrence, Kansas based Lawrence Paper Company. It goes back to the 1870s, a decade before the Scot- tish immigrant Robert Gair “accidentally” invented corrugated, when

the construction of a dam across the Kansas River gave birth to a grow- ing industrial center in the country’s midsection. Mills quickly sprung up to harness the power of the river and enterprising businessmen began seeking their futures. One such businessman, Justin DeWitt Bowersock, incorporated Lawrence Paper Company on October 16, 1882, and opened a paper mill – the first built west of the Mississippi River – that manufactured paper from wheat straw. By 1884, the plant was producing about five tons of paper a day, most of it shipped to Kansas City, where distillers used Bowersock’s singleface to wrap their whiskey bottles. In 1897, as a new industry was emerging, the Lawrence plant exper- imented with making paper boxes. In 1901, however, Bowersock pur- sued his calling as a U.S. Congressman and turned the management of the company over to his sons-in-law, Irving Hill and Paul Dinsmoor, who proceeded to grow Lawrence Paper Company into a leader in the burgeoning box making industry. From 1910 to 1914, the company man- ufactured corrugated boxes that were sturdy enough to ship canned CONTINUED ON PAGE 26 The management team at Lawrence Paper Company: from left, Mike Coda- ro, Design and Technical Services Manager; Russ Packard, VP - Sales, Op- erations & IT; Justin Hill, President; and Andrea Packard, VP - Finance & HR.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

WHAT’S INSIDE 8 Transport Panelists: No Quick Fix In Sight To Move Freight 12 WestRock To Invest $47M To Expand Claremont NC Plant 14 Peachtree Packaging Supports High School Robotics Club 24 Chicago TAPPI’s ‘What’s New’ Program Slated For February

Machinery and Handling for the Corrugated Board Industry

2 November 15, 2021

Machinery and Handling for the Corrugated Board Industry

Voorhees Receives (CONT’D FROM PAGE 1 )

AVERAGE CONTAINERBOARD PRICES The average prices reported are tabulated from prices PAID by various sources throughout the United States the week previous to issue. Prices in some areas of the country may be higher or lower than the tabulated average. The prices tabulated here are intended only for purposes of reference. They do not connote any commitment to sell any material at the indicated average. Transactions may be completed at any time at a price agreed upon by seller and purchaser.

2013, during which the company grew from $1.4 billion to $10 billion in sales. Named CEO in 2013, his efforts and leadership ultimately helped WestRock secure its status as the second largest packaging company in the U.S.

REGION E. Coast Midwest Southeast Southwest

42# Kraft liner

26# Semi-Chem. Medium

$1005.00-1010.00 $1020.00-1030.00 $1020.00-1030.00 $1020.00-1030.00 $1050.00-1060.00 $1023.00-1032.00

Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del. Short Ton Del.

$940.00-990.00 $955.00-975.00 $955.00-975.00 $955.00-975.00 $975.00-995.00 $958.00-978.00

West Coast U.S. Average

SHEET PRICES BY REGION (AVERAGE) Per 1MSF, local delivery included, 50MSF single item order, truckload delivery. Sheets

E. Coast Midwest South-SW S. CA N.CA/WA-OR US Aver.

200# 275#

$62.26

$72.05

$62.69 $82.80

$85.35 119.54

$73.13 101.29

97.32

99.89

90.86

113.65

OYSTER UP-CHARGE 8.34

8.34

8.34

8.34

8.34

8.34

275# DBL-WALL 350# DBL-WALL

107.46 118.45

114.69 129.32

116.54 137.25 117.82 145.56

141.08 148.46

122.76 131.80

CANADIAN SHEET PRICES (AVERAGE) In Canadian Dollars, per 1MSF, local delivery included, under 50MSF single item order, truckload delivery. 200# 275# Oyster UC 275#DW 350#DW $78.56 $99.18 $9.00 $96.32 $105.83 CANADIAN LINERBOARD & MEDIUM The average prices reported are tabulated from prices PAID by various sources throughout Canada. Prices may be higher or lower in various areas of the country. The prices tabulated here are intended only for purposes of reference. They do not connote any commitment to sell any material at the indicated average. Transactions may be completed at any time at a price agreed upon by seller and purchaser. Prices are Canadian $ and per metric ton.

During his acceptance speech at PPC’s Fall Meeting, Voorhees explained his leadership philosophy. “Great leadership is based on commitment, knowledge, and sup- port,” said Voorhees. “Not the ‘New Year’s resolution’ kind Steve Voorhees, former President & CEO of WestRock, making his acceptance speech at the PPC Fall Meeting and Leadership Conference in Savannah, Georgia.

42# Kraft Liner 26#

Semi-Chem Medium

East West

$970.00

$960.00 $995.00

$1,015.00

CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

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November 15, 2021

Calling Profero Systems just another equipment supplier is like calling the Tour just a bike ride. Profero Systems

Proven unsurpassed customer service over the long run, commitment to our customers is second to none!

Add value to your Corrugating Process, be the go-to Company for your customers.

DON’T GET LEFT BEHIND!

www.ProferoSystems.com

704-923-0990

PO BOX 950 DALLAS, NC 28034

4 November 15, 2021

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Voorhees Receives (CONT’D FROM PAGE 3)

of faux commitment, but the deep commitment to some- thing where you’re doing that [as] opposed to something you’d rather be doing. Knowledge, meaning the foresight to do something efficiently and then effectively. And lastly, support, by giving feedback to others when others don’t necessarily want to give it.” Voorhees said it was the teamwork of all employees that made his time at WestRock both worthwhile and suc- cessful. “Design, marketing, sales, operations would not be standing without the commitment and support of our team. I hope that I’ve given a small portion of all that you’ve given me, because I’ve been given so much. You can’t be successful without the support of others.” WestRock Chairman John Luke reflected on Voorhees’ ability to lead with both humanity and kindness. Luke said, “Steve is a wonderful leader, incredibly bright, but even more important to me was that he was a wonderful per- son, extremely humble, an excellent listener. He truly cares deeply about his people and the entire organization, and those attributes led Steve, as CEO, to make transformative change in our culture.” “I congratulate Mr. Voorhees on his significant accom- plishment. PPC has only given 19 Gair Awards during its 92-year history,” said Ben Markens, PPC President. “Only the most committed and exemplary individuals can receive the honor, and without a doubt, Mr. Voorhees fits the bill.”

Board Converting News is read by more independent and integrated decision-makers in the corrugated and folding carton industries than any other weekly publication. LEVERAGE YOUR REACH. Expansive Reach

Len Prazych at 518-366-9017 [email protected]

5

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November 15, 2021

NAM: Manufacturing Employment Increases By 60,000 In October Manufacturing employment jumped by 60,000 in October, and total employment in the sector has risen 298,000 year to date in 2021, putting it on track for the best annual job growth since 1997, according to Chad Moutray, Ph.D., and Chief Economist at the National Association of Manufac- turers (NAM). There remained 270,000 fewer manufactur- ing employees relative to pre-pandemic levels. The average hourly earnings of production and non- supervisory workers in manufacturing rose to $24.22 in October, with a 5.4 percent increase over the past year, the fastest wage growth since August 1982. Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 531,000 in October, and the unemployment rate dropped to 4.6 per- cent. The labor force participation rate was unchanged at 61.6 percent for the month. The ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index decreased from 61.1 in September to 60.8 in October. De- mand cooled somewhat but remained solid. Supply chain disruptions, logistics challenges, workforce shortages and soaring costs have dampened demand. New orders for manufactured goods rose 0.2 percent to a record $515.9 billion in September, albeit at a slower pace. Excluding transportation equipment, manufacturing CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

Box Shipments ( U.S. Corrugated Product Shipments) Industry Shipments In Billions of Square Feet Month September 2021

Year

Actual

Percent Change Avg Week Percent Change

2021 2020

34.261 34.901

-1.8

8.157 8.310

-1.8

Industry Total

Year-to Date

September 2021

Year

Actual

Percent Change Avg Week Percent Change

2021 2020

312.632 300.767

3.9

8.227 7.873

4.5

Industry Total

Containerboard Consumption (Thousands of Tons)

Year

Month

Percent Change Year-to-Date Percent Change

2021 2020

2.7786 2.8459

-2.4

25.4959 24.5672

3.8

Container Board Inventory - Corrugator Plants (Thousands of Tons)

Corrugator Plants Only

Date

Percent Change Weeks of Supply

Percent Change

Sept.

2.312

3.8

3.5 3.4

2.9

Aug

2.2272

Shipping Days

Year

Month

Year-to-Date

2021 2020

21 21

190 191

SOURCE: Fibre Box Association

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6

November 15, 2021

40 ft of paper travel from preheater to hot plates 3 seconds of heat, glue and bonding 1 chance to get it right! the ZONE

Design & Production

Chicago Electric offers 10 technology solutions to control ‘the Zone’ CORRUGATOR Sectoral preheating plate

Our sectoral preheating plates provide direct heat by means of a double steam circuit, allowing for efficient heating in hard-to-access locations, as well as to act as a steam shower to open the paper’s fibre, making it receptive to absorbing the heat and the glue.

This translates into increased speed and improved quality of the cardboard sheet finish.

The system’s main advantages are as follows:

• The plate may only be used to heat, only to humidify, or both options at the same time. • The plate is sectored, which allows for applying humidity to the sections. • It provides temperature in previously inaccessible locations and near the location needed. • It compensates the loss of temperature dissipated due to distance, speed or limitations of the exiting preheaters. • Quick transferring of heat to the paper. • The combination of the hot plate and steam shower allows for providing heat even to the hardest papers to heat. • Does not dry out the paper. • Possibility of operating as a humidifier and pre-conditioner. • Maintains and improves the fibre’s elasticity. • Acts according to the operator’s needs. • Facilitates the paper’s hygroscopy to absorb the glue and improve rubberising.

CONTROLLABILITY

1. Wrap Arm - Position & Temperature 2. Preheater Direct Drive

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

3. Steam Plate 4. Contact Roll 5. Glue Machine Direct Drive Touch Productivity Issue—Glue Unit Many glue units run with a rider roll or a guiding bar system. The rider roll with paper gap allows a precise glue application, but requires frequent Contact Roll

PRODUCTIVITY

C/ Orfeó Català 13-15 · 08440 Cardedeu (Barcelona) telf: +34 93 846 01 06 · [email protected] WWW.AL-GAR.COM

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

calibrations and settings. Bar systems avoid this, but compensate this with the risk of exces- sive glue application. The system contains many wearing parts. Solution The contact roll combines the ad antage of both systems and ensures minimum contact between board and applicator roll. The system uses small pneumatic cylinders in order to achieve a “soft touch.”

6. Gap Control 7. Curved Plate 8. Roller Shoe Press When it comes to a short-term increas of web tension, spring loaded systems with shoes or airpressure activated system have problems in compensating these. The system is lifted for a short time. This may result in de-lamination and in the ‘double kiss’ effect. Solution For a defined and exact bonding point of the web fiv weight rollers will be installed usually over the first flat hotplate of the heating section. The rolls are mounted into a frame, which is actuated by means of two pneumatic cylinders. P oductivity Issu —Double Kiss Bonding

PRODUCTIVITY

PRODUCTIVITY

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

Roller Shoe

DOUBLEBACKER IMPROVEMENT

9. Thin Wall Hot Plates 10. Pressure System Benefits —Exact glue application due to defined contact of applicator roll to web. Web is in contact to less flute tips compared to bar systems. • High precision glue application • Less moisture applied to web —No wear of shoes and springs —No adjustment of shoes or paper gap —Uniform glue application over entire w orking width for all flutes by use of pneumatic cylinders instead of springs — Less contamination by paper dust and glue remains —No jam of board because of web breaks caused by splice joints going through 630-784-0800 Benefits —Rollers secure exact defined first point of contact of liner and single-faced board - No double kiss —Frame design avoids unintended lifting of roller shoe (compared to spring or air loaded systems) - No double kiss —Pressure can be increased or released for special grades or products 490 Tower Blvd., Carol Stream, IL Contact Chicago Electric to GET IT RIGHT 630-784-0800 [email protected] chicagoelectric.com Solution The ProPress system ensures an optimum heat transfer to the board. It offers a wide range of set- tings. The loadi g pressure can be varied, the number of shoes can be lifted in accordance t the line speed. The outer shoes can be lifted in accordance to the paper width. The shoe bars will be delivered pre-assembled for a short installation time. —Liftable for easy paper infeed and for cleaning of the machine —Position adjustable in paper direction to avoid grooves in hotplate Press Productivity Issue—Poor Heat Transfer Rollers are usually limiting the heat transfer, since they often have contact mainly on the edges of the plates due to wear or bent plates. They also cause often loss of caliper and bearing need to be replaced frequently. Airpressure actuated systems can only supply a limited pressure and have com- pared to shoe systems a closed surface. Pressure Shoe

Plate vity Issue—Poor Heat Control l hotplates are slow to react to pressure due to high steam volume and massive y also have high heat radiation and heat profile. Worn plates can damage crease edge crush.

Thin-Wall Hot Plates

t by peripheral drilled hot plates. anufactured out of special wear and nt steel, through which a continuous is drilled, with one inlet and one outlet. ecured by a massive steel frame.

CORR24usa.com

ance from steam to paper surface results in fast heat flow

Transport Panelists: No Quick Fix In Sight To Move Freight

NAM: Manufacturing (CONT’D FROM PAGE 6)

orders increased 0.7 percent in September. Overall, the manufacturing sector continues to expand strongly—de- spite significant challenges—with new orders soaring 10.2 percent year to date. Private manufacturing construction spending declined 1.6 percent to $72.42 billion in September, falling to a five- month low. While construction activity in the manufactur- ing sector has risen 4.7 percent year-over-year, spending remains 4.9 percent below the $76.16 billion in activity re- corded in February 2020. As expected, the Federal Open Market Committee has decided to start tapering its asset purchases later this month. The Federal Reserve has been purchasing as much as $80 billion in Treasury securities and $40 billion in agency mortgage-backed securities each month since the beginning of the pandemic. It will start scaling that back by $15 billion in November, another $15 billion in De- cember, and so on, likely ending these purchases entirely by mid-2022. The U.S. trade deficit rose from $72.81 billion in August to a record $80.93 billion in September. Goods exports fell sharply for the month, with goods imports rising. The volatility in the September >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48

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