Friday, June 1, 2012

AF&PA CEO Named President of ICFPA

http://www.afandpa.org/

The International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA) announced Donna Harman as its new President. Harman, president and CEO of the American Forest & Paper Association, will serve in this capacity for the next two years. 
Separately, the AF&PA announced its approval of a bill introduced in Congress, the Forest Products Fairness Act of 2012 - which would modify the definition of "biobased" materials to specifically include forest products in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Biobased Markets Program.

Manufacturing Sector Posts Continued Growth

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-06-01/u-dot-s-dot-may-ism-manufacturing-report-on-business-text
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in May for the 34th consecutive month, and the overall economy grew for the 36th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business. This represents an increase of 1.9 percentage points from April and also the highest level recorded by the index since April 2011.

List Rental Prices Fall


http://www.dmnews.com/report-list-rental-prices-continue-to-drop/article/243719/
Worldata's List Price Index, released June 1, reveals that during Spring 2012, list rental prices have continued to drop, said Ray Tesi, SVP at Worldata.
According to the report, aggregated business database files, which typically get their information through web scraping and crowd sourcing, dropped substantially in b-to-c email list prices. Prices for databases and master files, which are sourced more traditionally from response and subscription lists, have also continued to fall.

Container Store Introduces Digital Catalog


http://risnews.edgl.com/retail-best-practices/Container-Store-Targets-Customer-Groups-with-Themed-Digital-Catalogs80432?rssid=Article80432
The Container Store is introducing themed, interactive digital catalogs to highlight different subsets of its eclectic mix of storage and organization products. A new Web-based catalog will be published every six weeks, allowing the retailer to more effectively target specific audiences or shopping seasons. 

GQ Launches E-Commerce Sales

GQ Launches E-Commerce Sales with Nordstrom: GQ—Condé Nast's 980,000-circulation men's magazine—takes another step into e-commerce with a new partnership with retailer, and long-time advertiser, Nordstrom.

NAPL Expands Its Small Printer Services

NAPL Expands Its Small Printer Services: The industry’s quick and small commercial printers include “some of the industry’s most innovative and fast-growing companies,” says Andrew Paparozzi, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist at The National Association for Printing Leadership (NAPL). Now NAPL is expanding its services for this key industry segment with two new newsletters and a conference created exclusively for quick and small commercial printers.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

NewPage Port Hawkesbury Granted Extension

NewPage Port Hawkesbury granted extension:
In court this morning, Justice John Murphy approved another extension to NewPage Port Hawkesbury‘s period of creditor protection.
But the judge expressed concern about possible delays getting the purchase deal with Pacific West Commercial Corp. done by September.
This extension is for 2 more months.
NewPage Port Hawkesbury will return to court on August 1.

AF&PA Reports April Paper & Board Production

http://www.afandpa.org/
US paper and board production in April declined 2.5% vs April 2011 production and was down year-to-date by 1.2%, based on American Forest & Paper Association figures.
The April decline resulted from a 3.2% drop in paper production and 2% fall in paperboard production.
Year-to-date, uncoated mechanical paper production was down 16.2% and coated papers down 5%.
US mills year-to-date ran at an average of 91.2%, in line with the 2011 average.

Catalyst Asks Goverment for Support


http://www.vancouversun.com/story_print.html?id=6276077&sponsor=
 Kevin J. Clarke, president and CEO of Catalyst Paper is asking Victoria and Ottawa for it's support. " Catalyst delivers 7,000 jobs in B.C., and has a $2 billion impact a year." The company is asking the B.C. government to support North Cowichan's efforts to achieve a competitive industrial tax rate, to make available $30 million over five years to support new hiring and high-tech training programs at Catalyst mills. It's asking Victoria for support in ensuring certainty in BC Hydro rates and to eliminate the $8 million per year risk to Catalyst operations and Ottawa to return to Catalyst the $5.5 million each month in HST credits that are normally returned to the company but that are now frozen under CCAA.

Verso Still Assessing Sartell Damage



 http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/apArticle/id/D9V2NO8O2/
The future of a paper mill that's one of the main employers and taxpayers in the central Minnesota town of Sartell was unclear Tuesday as firefighters spent a second day trying to extinguish a fire that killed one worker and injured four.
The fire broke out Monday with an explosion in a warehouse at the Verso Paper Corp. mill. The warehouse held nearly 4,000 rolls of paper, each weighing hundreds of pounds. Firefighters Tuesday still were trying to get to the burning rolls at the back of the building.
The building is unstable and structural beams are resting on top of paper rolls, Fire Chief Ken Heim said. "We have a massive challenge ahead of us," Heim said during a news conference.
However, Heim also said he didn't think the rest of the plant was damaged.
The plant is so important to the area that Gov. Mark Dayton visited the site Tuesday.

New York Magazine & Dwell Partner


http://www.foliomag.com/2012/new-york-and-dwell-partner-upcoming-print-publication-event
In a collaboration that will play out in person and in print, New York and Dwell partner to bring design to a greater audience. The partnership aims to expand both Dwell’s and New York’s footprints in the New York City design scene, as well as to aid the American Institute of Architects [AIA] in reaching the consumer market.

Magazine Readership by Young People Actually Up


http://www.adweek.com/print/140850
It’s a fairly common assumption that millennials don’t read print media because they’re all too busy browsing blogs, clicking on Facebook links, and watching YouTube videos to crack open a physical magazine. Well, a new study from Condé Nast says young people's magazine readership is actually the highest it's been in decades. 

Consumer Magazine Readership Declines


http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/175861/magazine-print-readership-declines-digital-grows.html
Consumer magazines’ print readership declined over the last year, but the losses were partly offset by growth in digital readership, according to GfK MRI, which recently released the second wave of its revised Survey of The American Consumer, amended to include more questions about digital reading.
In the period from September 2011-April 2012, the total average print audience of 190 major titles tracked by GfK MRI came to just over 1.2 billion, down 2.7% from 1.24 billion for the same period in 2011. When print and digital editions are considered together, the figure sank 2.6% from just under 1.25 billion to just under 1.22 billion.

Sycamore Partners Buys Talbots


http://www.retailonlineintegration.com/aggregatedcontent/talbots-acquired-sycamore-partners
Talbots Inc., a clothing brand known for classically styled apparel for middle-age women, has agreed to be acquired by an affiliate of the private equity firm Sycamore Partners, the two companies said Thursday.
In the press release issued Thursday, the companies said that the current transaction is valued at about $369 million when debt is included. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.

USPS; New Branding Program for Marketers

USPS Launching Mailing Permit Branding Program for Marketers: In response to customer requests, the U.S. Postal Service is announcing the launch of the “Picture Permit Imprint Indicia” program for commercial mailers.
This program provides new advertising opportunities for commercial mail customers by allowing them to use corporate logos, product visuals or other brand images in the permit indicia space on their mail.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Verso's Sartell PM 3 Appears Intact After Fire

Verso Mill's Main Paper Machine Intact After Blast: The Verso Paper Corp. operation in Sartell (MN), which has been producing paper for 105 years, was indefinitely idled by Monday’s fire that resulted in the death of 50-year-old employee and injuries to several others. But even as hot spots continued to pop up Tuesday, it was apparent the vast majority of the damage was contained to part of the paper warehouse.
Robert Mundy, a senior vice president and chief financial officer for Memphis-based Verso, said he was aware of preliminary reports that the paper-making capacity of the plant’s No. 3 coated paper machine was intact. His company has been unable to verify that, because the building was still considered unsafe, but it sounded encouraging.

Derailment Causes Spill Bucksport, ME


http://bangordailynews.com/2012/05/28/news/hancock/dep-4000-to-6000-gallons-of-paper-chemical-spilled-in-bucksport-derailment/
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection is estimating that 4,000 to 6,000 gallons of a chemical used to make coated paper (at Verso's Bucksport mill) spilled into the Penobscot River when several train tanker cars derailed in Bucksport on Friday.
And while the chemical is not believed to be hazardous, DEP officials said department staff will monitor the site to determine if any harm to wildlife or aquatic life results from the spill.
Four cars in a 31-car train derailed Friday night on a stretch of Pan Am Railways track near the Bucksport/Orrington town line.

China's Imports of Pulp, RCP Fall in April

China's total pulp imports dropped 13.8% in April compared to the previous month, to around 1.406 million tonnes, according to data from China Customs.
China's total recovered paper (RCP) imports fell 10.2% to nearly 2.628 million tonnes in April, down from some 2.928 million tonnes in March, according to the same source.

Norpac Mill; Less Newsprint, More Book Paper


At Norpac, which is jointly owned by Weyerhaeuser and Japan-based Nippon Paper Products, one of North America's largest newsprint mills, books and other paper products are gradually taking over the business as newspaper circulation falls and dailies shrink in size and number of pages.
Newsprint sales are now less than half of Norpac's business, down from 75% a decade ago. Newsprint sales domestically and in Japan have fallen 5% to 10% since 2002.

CP Rail Service Strike Ends


After tabling back-to-work legislation in the House of Commons, federal Labour Minister Lisa Raitt says she wants to see Canadian Pacific Railway trains moving again by Thursday.
But transportation and commodity experts say it could take quite a while for CP's rail service to get back to normal once the strike is brought to an end. The Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) today welcomed the government's action.

AF&PA Statement; Court Review on Forest Roads


http://whattheythink.com/news/58273-afpa-response-solicitor-generals-brief-forest-roads/?printmode
American Forest & Paper Association President and CEO Donna Harman issued the following statement today in response to the Solicitor General’s position that U.S. Supreme Court review of the Ninth Circuit decision on forest roads permitting is not necessary.

Glatfelter Authorizes Share Repurchase Program

Glatfelter authorizes $25 million share repurchase program:
Glatfelter's board of directors authorized a share repurchase program for up to $25 million of its outstanding common stock, the Spring Grove-based paper mill said Tuesday.

SFI Awards Grant

SFI awards $32,000 research grant to protect water resources in the boreal forest:
The Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) announced that the Forest Ecosystem Science Co-operative Inc. will receive a $32,000 grant to support graduate research activities to test current forest management practices in the Boreal Forest and develop best practice recommendations for protecting water resources.

Hearst's Official Launch of HGTV


http://www.newswiretoday.com/news/112856/
Following two successful test issues in October 2011 and January 2012, the June/July issue of HGTV hits newsstands nationwide today. The issue will also be available for download on Zinio, B&N Nook, Kindle and Apple Newsstand this week.

Top 5 Magazines in June

According to FOLIO: sister publication min, the lower-than-par monthly report of 154 titles for the first half is not a surprising one. The year has been like that. June demonstrated -6.45 percent and the overall differential for year-to-date 2012 versus 2011 was -6.10 percent.

Direct Mail Yields Better Return for Charities

Direct Mail Motivating More Online Donations: Donors are more than three times more likely to give an online gift in response to a direct mail appeal than an e-appeal, according to a new national study.

USPS Continues Cost Cutting Steps


After in-depth discussions between NPMHU and management officials at the headquarters level, the Postal Service is offering financial incentives during a new round of retirement and separation opportunities for most Mail Handlers. 
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)