Integrate for Success

From pine trees to films

One of Sonoco's divisions is dedicated solely to flexible packaging, which is film-based. The company has come a long way since 1899 when it made paper out of southern pine trees to manufacture cone-shaped paper yarn carriers. "Over the years the company not only refined its paper-making process, but also developed converting operations downstream to build these cones, which today we call tubes and cores," says Tiede. "We really grew that business over the years both through acquisition as well as startups, giving us a broad footprint across the country." Today, Sonoco's largest tube and core facility is in the 300,000 sq. ft. range, according to Tiede.