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10 | L&L<br />
NEWS<br />
THE INSIDER<br />
A ROUND-UP OF THE LATEST<br />
GLOBAL LABEL STORIES<br />
UPM RAFLATAC OPENS<br />
LABELSTOCK FACTORY IN US<br />
UPM Raflatac has opened a new specialty<br />
products factory in Fletcher, North Carolina,<br />
USA. The facility, which began full-scale<br />
production in April, will provide UPM Raflatac<br />
with the expertise, narrow web coating<br />
capabilities and capacity to develop specialty<br />
labelstock products for demanding end-uses.<br />
The factory will supply labelstock<br />
products for end-uses such as security,<br />
pharmaceutical, food, tire and durables<br />
labeling and ultra removable applications;<br />
provide coat-to-order services; and run small<br />
orders. This factory is located just a few<br />
miles from UPM Raflatac’s existing labelstock<br />
manufacturing facility in Mills River, North<br />
Carolina, allowing the company to streamline<br />
its logistics processes, accelerating<br />
production and order delivery.<br />
‘With our new label solutions center, UPM<br />
Raflatac achieves its vision of offering a full<br />
range of standard prime, VIP and specials<br />
products to our customers,’ said Jouko<br />
Lähepelto, senior vice president, Americas<br />
and Asia Pacific, UPM Raflatac. ‘We can<br />
now provide labelstock converters with the<br />
industry know-how and production tools they<br />
need to supply specialty products to marketleading<br />
brand owners.’<br />
TAGHLEEF INDUSTRIES<br />
TO ACQUIRE AET FILMS<br />
Taghleef Industries and Applied Extrusion<br />
Technologies (AET Films) have reached<br />
agreement for Taghleef to acquire AET Films.<br />
The transaction, which was approved by the<br />
boards of directors of both companies, is<br />
subject to regulatory approval and is expected<br />
to close by the end of the second quarter,<br />
2012. Houlihan Lokey is serving as the<br />
exclusive financial advisor to AET Films and<br />
its shareholders in this transaction.<br />
TRESU APPOINTS AGENTS<br />
Tresu Group, the flexo printing machine<br />
builder and provider of ancillary technology<br />
for the packaging printing market, has<br />
strengthened its global service network<br />
by appointing new distribution agencies in<br />
Brazil, Mexico and India. The three agencies<br />
are Creagraphics of San Juan del Rio,<br />
covering Mexico and Central America; André<br />
Gerstmann, based in Mairiporã, São Paulo<br />
(Brazil) and Capital Graphic Supplies, based<br />
in New Delhi (India).<br />
LABELS&LABELING<br />
STEVE LEE HONORED WITH<br />
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD<br />
ROTOMETRICS' VP of technology recognized for 35-year career<br />
Steve Lee, vice<br />
president of technology<br />
at RotoMetrics has<br />
been named the winner<br />
of the R. Stanton Avery<br />
Lifetime Achievement<br />
Award, sponsored by<br />
Avery Dennison.<br />
Lee has been a<br />
shaping force in the<br />
label and tag industry<br />
over a 35-year career in the design<br />
and manufacture of rotary tooling. The<br />
judging panel said that Lee helped grow<br />
RotoMetrics from a small, low-tech die<br />
supplier in a fledgling industry to being<br />
a global, full-service supplier of a broad<br />
portfolio of products designed around<br />
converter needs.<br />
He has been credited for his role in<br />
getting the industry to work together<br />
to develop and spread the use of<br />
pressure sensitive labels worldwide.<br />
He has played an active role in industry<br />
associations, especially TLMI, where he<br />
has served on the board multiple times<br />
and acts as chairman of the TLMI Annual<br />
Label Awards Competition.<br />
The winners of the three other<br />
categories in the Global Label Industry<br />
Awards will be announced at the awards<br />
ceremony and gala dinner on September<br />
11, at Chicago’s prestigious Aragon<br />
Ballroom during the first evening of<br />
Labelexpo Americas 2012.<br />
The 2012 finalists are: New Innovation<br />
category – AVT, EFI, and Spanish<br />
converter Innovaciones Para Etiquetajes;<br />
Continuous Innovation category – Prati,<br />
Stork Prints, WS Packaging. The winner<br />
of the Converter Award for Sustainability/<br />
Environmental Responsibility –<br />
sponsored by Flint Group Narrow Web –<br />
will also be announced on the night.<br />
The judging panel was chaired by Mike<br />
Fairley, director of strategic development<br />
for the Labelexpo Global Series, and<br />
consisted of Kurt Walker, president of<br />
Finat; Art Yerecic, TLMI chairman; Andy<br />
Thomas, Labels & Labeling; Steve Katz,<br />
editor of Label & Narrow Web; and Tony<br />
White, editor of NarroWebTech.<br />
ROTOMETRICS ANNOUNCES<br />
GLOBAL MANAGEMENT TEAM<br />
NEW APPOINTMENTS cover CEO, European and Asian positions<br />
Global die systems manufacturer<br />
RotoMetrics – which recently completed the<br />
acquisition of Gerhardt – has appointed a<br />
new global management team.<br />
Robert (Bob) Spiller is RotoMetrics’ new<br />
president and CEO. Spiller will be based<br />
in Eureka, Missouri, USA, and will take<br />
responsibility for all global operations,<br />
reporting to the board of directors.<br />
Most recently president and CEO of SCT<br />
International, a provider of security and anti-counterfeiting<br />
technology for commercial<br />
and government customers, Spiller has<br />
also served as senior vice president<br />
of Graphic Packaging International’s<br />
performance packaging division, where he<br />
oversaw a USD 315 million P&L targeting<br />
new product development in consumer<br />
packaging segments. In addition, he<br />
spent 12 years at Avery Dennison within<br />
the engineered films, Fasson Roll and<br />
specialty tape divisions, including seven<br />
years based in European markets.<br />
Dr Peter Emerson becomes managing<br />
director, RotoMetrics Europe. Emerson<br />
also has extensive labels industry<br />
experience, having served as managing<br />
director of label paper manufacturer Smith<br />
& McLaurin, as well as senior research and<br />
technology roles with Avery Dennison's UK<br />
base materials division. He will be based at<br />
the company’s Aldridge, UK site.<br />
Completing the global team is Shaun<br />
Pullen, who becomes general manager,<br />
RotoMetrics Asia. In this newly created<br />
role, Pullen will have responsibility for the<br />
firm’s Thailand manufacturing operations<br />
as well as sales and business development<br />
throughout Asia.<br />
RotoMetrics has successfully scaled-up<br />
Asia's first narrow web rotary die<br />
manufacturing operation. ‘Shaun has been<br />
instrumental in leading this start-up effort,<br />
taking a ‘green-field’ site to a facility that<br />
now supplies the majority of customers in<br />
Asia with 24 hour delivery,’ said Bob Spiller.