Corr Expo Shows the Latest for Corrugated Industry

Published: November 15, 2002, By Nsenga Thompson, Staff Editor

With a full schedule of conference sessions and over 100 trade fair exhibitors, TAPPI's 2002 Corrugated Container Conference and Corr Expo provided attendees with the latest in industry trends and products.

Held this year at the Indiana Convention Center & RCA Dome in Indianapolis, IN, the four-day event kicked off Sunday, October 27, with a full day of TAPPI committee meetings. Monday’s opening session featured a keynote address by Dr. Roger D. Blackwell, marketing professor at Ohio State University, and president of Roger Blackwell Associates Inc.

Also during the opening session was the presentation of the 2002 TAPPI Corrugated Containers Division Awards. Recipients included James T. Carbone, who received the Corrugated Containers Division Technical Award and Bettendorf Prize; Russell L. Smith, honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award; and Robert A Sukenik, who received the TAPPI Corrugated Containers Division Leadership and Service Award.

The conference’s featured event, a panel discussion entitled The Future of Food Packaging focused on industry trends and the expectations of retail executives of their corrugated suppliers. Discussion ranged from the importance of package appeal to the innovations in package security. Moderated by Cynthia Forsch, principal for Eco-Logic Strategies, Boise, ID, the discussion included panelists Bruce Peterson, general merchandise manager for perishables at Wal-Mart Stores Inc.; Mike Kemp, corporate director of produce and floral Super Valu Inc.; Roger Landrum, corrugated category director for ConAgra; and Bud Babcock, manager, logistics packaging and product identification at Procter & Gamble.

Another conference highlight were two What’s New sessions that showcased the latest products from the industry’s leading suppliers. New product presentations were given by several companies including:

• Harper Machinery Corp., kopper bottom-end rebuilds;
• Deublin Co., HPS series steam joint;
• Tecasa, bundle breaker;
• Ward Machinery Co. (MarquipWardUnited), Quik-Lox quick change anilox roll system;
• Systec Corp., automatic pallet-loading system;
• Bay Machinery Co., CRO stacking for rotary die-cutting process;
• Intralox Inc., new conveyance technology for the corrugated industry;
• Automation System, robotic load former Model LF-C;
• StraPack, RQ-8 Series corrugated bundle tyers;
• Rapidex, rapid box slitter/scorer/ slotter, rotary diecutter;
• Automatan Inc., electrostatic spot label laminating; and
• Corrugating Roll Corp.(Bobst Group), Genesis e-corrugating rolls

The Corr Expo 2002 Trade Fair, held Monday and Tuesday of the conference, allowed conference attendees the opportunity to network with more than 100 industry suppliers.

Also at Corr Expo were the winning entries from the recent CorrPak contest, which included winning containers and corrugated displays from Packaging Corp. of America, Grief Bros Corp., Fleetwood Container and Display, Interstate Container, and Smurfit-Image Pac.

Visit TAPPI at tappi.org.

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