The Converting Curmudgeon

You’ve got only 10 days to get yourself over to Düsseldorf, Germany, for what’s left of drupa 2012. Yes, in one sense, that’s saying quite a lot because any other trade show that started on May 3 would have long since been over with by now. But drupa’s not just another s...

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CPP EXPO 2012, held last week at Cleveland’s I-X Center, brought together about 125 exhibitors — many featuring new products for the package printing and converting field. Here are just a few: Beta LaserMike’s LaserSpeed® non-contact encoder helps converters accurately...

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Pretty much halfway between last year’s successful premiere of ICE USA (Intl. Converting Exhibition) and the next edition, I took part in a Steering Committee meeting on Tuesday for the 2013 show, along with nine other industry-advisory members. (Check out our team photo below). Set for April ...

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Today marks 30 days and counting until the opening of drupa 2012: world market print media, publishing and converting at the Fairgrounds in Düsseldorf, Germany. The two-week trade show runs May 3-16 and fills Halls 1-17 plus outside areas on the massive site along the Rhine River. More than 1,8...

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Dual AIMCAL technical programs will feature 60 presentations, two keynote speakers, tabletop exhibitions and more. The AIMCAL Web Coating Conference and the AIMCAL Web Handling Conference (formerly AWEB) have a long, joint history of advancing the technologies of web processing and finishing. By ...

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2011 PLGA Global Domestic Best of Show Winner: Noni Maui Health sleeve label printed by Multi-Color Corp. (Batavia, OH) Yeah, there’s been a lot of “doom and gloom” from various industry pundits over the past 10 years about the continued  viability of rotogravure as a p...

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The spring 2012 meeting, trade show and conference session kicks into gear this week with the Flexible Packaging Assn. annual meeting in Scottsdale, AZ. Watch for my followup report next Monday. In the meantime, follow my tweets live from the program this Thursday and Friday. Here’s what&rsquo...

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Here’s an overview of 2011 packaging mergers & acquisitions activity globally and in North America via BMO  Capital Markets’ The Converter. Global Historical Deal Volume – Global packaging M&A volume continued to strengthen in 2011 after rebounding in 2010 from histor...

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Despite the protracted crisis in Europe and emerging concerns from China, two independent surveys commissioned by Grant Thornton revealed that executives have growing confidence in the US economy. First, the International Business Report is a survey of 2,800 global businesses. Among its findings: T...

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Recognizing the limitations of the US waste management system, where only about one third of all municipal solid waste is recovered by recycling or composting, GreenBlue® released a report yesterday that assesses a variety of material-recovery systems around the world to better inform US policie...

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