Nice, France The European Federation of Corrugated Board Manufacturers (FEFCO) convened in Nice, France, from April 27-30, for its 10th technical seminar. Presiding over the technical session, J.C. Billet, chairman of FEFCO's production committee, moderated a series of spotlight presentations given by a number of industry suppliers in which they described new equipment and benefits to boxmakers.

Such innovations included single facer developments, folding and gluing, scheduling, anilox rolls, stackers, new liners and printing techniques, conveyor systems and ink management, among others.

BHS Corrugated was presented by FEFCO with the Most Innovative Technical Development Award 1999 for its ASR-MR automatic reel stand, which reportedly more than halves the time required to load and unload reels weighing up to 4.5 tonnes, improving corrugator productivity.

In addition to these presentations, Jean-Pierre Lardillon, FEFCO vice chairman, kicked off the meeting with a discussion of the merger of FEFCO and ProBox, stressing that the industry needs to have a single voice when it comes to European Union (EU) legislation and supply chain management. He revealed that ProBox is currently conducting several projects, including those focused on product protection, handling of used corrugated packaging and logistics.

"Our industry needs to be more visible," Lardillon told the contingency.

To promote visibility he said the industry is participating in more international trade fairs and undertaking lobbying activities directed toward both EU officials and retailers.

Other in-depth discussions took place concerning process control on the corrugator, raw materials, flat bed and rotary diecutting, printing and total productivity maintenance.

In addition to the technical sessions, FEFCO hosted a trade fair in which corrugated suppliers from around the world showcased their innovations on two floors of the Acropolis exhibition hall. See future issues of BCI for details on the latest in these innovations.