Certain Uncertainty

One of the reasons why being lean is so important is due the continuing pressure on profit margins, which is nothing new to this industry, says Ben Markens, president of the Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC). “Converters are squeezed in the middle between their suppliers and their customers,“ he says. “Board prices continue to inch up and folding cartons, in general, are competing against other packaging systems, such as flexible packaging.” Overall, however, Markens notes a fairly optimistic view of the market.