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Follow on Google News | Seegrid Robotic Trucks and American Packaging Corp. Profiled in Wisconsin State JournalSeegrid Robotic Industrial Trucks and American Packaging Corp. Profiled in Wisconsin State Journal
By: TR Cutler Barry Adams of the Wisconsin State Journal recently reported that American Packaging Corp.'s Rotogravure Printing & Laminating Division is in the break room. Adams reported by using 75-foot-long, two-story-high printing presses, ink by the barrel and computerized systems operated by skilled workers with a keen eye for color, APC creates millions of colorful packages and labels a year. The majority are for familiar food products like Klondike Bar, Pringles potato chips, M&M's, refrigerated dough by Pillsbury and Tyson chicken. "It has to look like you want to eat this label," said Jeff Koch, the company's operations manager, as he pointed to what will become a beef fajitas package for John Soules Foods. A nearly completed $17.5 million expansion at the plant means those realistic-looking images will be made here for years to come. The project, which began in March 2011, includes a 100,000-square- The addition will mean 47 new jobs for the company and capacity for $30 million a year in additional sales. In 2012, the Columbus division is expected to have $150 million in sales, more than double from 10 years ago, and it will produce more than 1 billion lineal feet of packaging products, said Koch. "This plant has consistently delivered on the ROI (return on investment)," And more projects are being discussed, reported Adams. There is talk of further expansions in three years that could eventually add two more of the massive rotogravure presses, which use a series of metal rollers, each assigned its own color and etching, to build an image during the printing process. The current expansion included the purchase of eight acres and the conversion of a 60,000-square- A corridor with natural light was built around the plant to allow unmanned robotic forklifts to move labels and printing rolls from station to station, reducing forklift traffic in primary production areas, Koch said. The project, which increased the plant to 400,000 square feet, includes space for a 4,000-position, 50-foot-high storage rack to hold the 5-foot-long rollers used on the printing presses. The mechanical rack system, when completed in May, will increase storage capacity to 19,000 rollers. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Seegrid Corp. (www.seegrid.com) Seegrid Corporation www.seegrid.com Amanda Merrell amerrell@seegrid.com 412-379-4500 End
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