Automation and Engineered Packaging with Roger Merritt - Orora Packaging Solutions

https://ororapackagingsolutions.com/sustainability/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-merritt-124b6661/

How can automation make your company more sustainable? 
What can engineered packaging at Orora Packaging Solutions do to help? 
Is the future of packaging a collaborative effort? 

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This podcast is an independent production and the podcast production is an original work of the author. All rights of ownership and reproduction are retained—copyright 2022.

Transcript

Cory Connors: 0:31

Welcome to Sustainable Packaging with Cory Connors. Today's guest is my friend, Mr. Roger Merritt, the Vice President at Orora Packaging Solutions. How are you, sir?

Roger Merritt: 0:41

Great. Thank you for having me, Cory. Appreciate

Cory Connors: 0:43

it. It's my honor. you are the one that I call when I don't know what to do and I appreciate you and you've taught me so much. I've learned so much. we value your wisdom and all that you do at Orora in an And we're thankful for you. So I would love to hear a little bit about your background. How did you get to this point in your career?

Roger Merritt: 1:04

Sure. Well, I started in packaging, let's say 25 plus years ago, I first started in packaging with, injection molded containers. So it was one gallon, three gallon, five gallon pails. I think the one, one of the most unique. I would say items that was ever in a pale was corned beef that got shipped to Samoa. So it was actually pretty cool, but yeah, I did that for a couple of years. And then, I went over to Reynolds packaging, the old Reynolds wrap. I sold shrink film for Reynolds rapid shrink film, shrink bands. even the food films. So it was a lot of different types of resin based products, but it was mostly PVC. And so I recognized at a time, Hey, that might not be the best time to sell PVC. I got to get out of here. And that's when, Orora with at the time was Sunclips reached out and said, Hey, we want you for this new team we're building. It's called engineered packaging solutions, and we want you to be the shrink guy. So that's where it all began almost 21 years ago, Corey in Buena Park. So I've had several roles within the Orora group. And presently I am running engineered packaging solutions for the team. So yeah, again, it's been a real quick adventure. These 25 plus years I've really flown by, if you can believe it. I can't believe I've been with Orora Landsberg for 21 years.

Cory Connors: 2:19

that's amazing. That's the same amount of time I've been here.

Roger Merritt: 2:22

I used to have dark hair, but now

Cory Connors: 2:24

it's Mine's quickly going gray as well. Yes. that's part of the badge of

Roger Merritt: 2:28

honor, right? Yeah. Yeah. No one wants to get into packaging, but you just fall into it and then you turn gray. Next thing 21 years. So yeah,

Cory Connors: 2:34

I'm only 19. Believe it or not. Yeah, I believe it. Well, I'd love to know a little bit about, what kinds of questions do companies ask when they come to you and your team as far as sustainability and what do we do next? That kind of thing.

Roger Merritt: 2:49

So a lot of customers are coming to us twofold. One would be, Hey, I need to, reduce my overall packaging costs. However, I do want to be sustainable. So what our team does is a 2 pronged approach. What I want to do is provide packaging equipment. So that way I can offset some labor costs for our customers. Or allow them to reallocate labor, but also I want to make sure we have the specific material to help meet their needs. Now, being in packaging, there's several avenues we can go across in terms of packaging. So, just to start off, we can talk about stretch film and stretch wrappers. So there's everything from semi automatics to automatics, full speed automatics, and me and my team have sold all of those. So the benefit of choosing. A stretch wrapper is you really want to have pre stretch rollers on there. So you went off of your pre stretch roll. So it actually stretches the film 200%, 250%. So you're maximizing the containment force for that load. Cause at the end of the day, you're stretch wrapping. So your load does not get damaged. So you do not want that load, falling apart in the truck or falling off the truck. Cause in some cases, if that one load is damaged, the entire load is returned. And, they're talking about carbon footprint and people like, Oh, I don't want to deal too much with plastic, but that little piece of plastic is actually a little bit better for the environment because you're not returning the whole truck. If something gets damaged, so by utilizing an engineered film, it could be a, a 7 layer, 21 layer film, whatever you want to use, in a very low gauge. It's just a great way for our customers to not only use less plastic because that's what they're using, but also you have great containment on the load. So, yeah. we've been talking a lot about PCR. Now, is there a PCR in stretch film? And the answer is yes. So there are PCR stretch films available. right now we are able to provide some in hand, but machine film will be out very soon. The challenge for that. Yeah. Yeah, me too. The challenge they have though is what they call the gels because you're not having a full virgin resin. sometimes there's gels where the performance of the film. won't allow it to pre stretch maybe 200 percent or 250%. So now what's what suppliers are doing is like, Hey, I have a PCR machine film, but it's 80 gauge, it's 90 gauge. So these are much thicker films. So if our customer wants to have a sustainability story, they're like, Hey, I want to reduce, reuse, recycle. You're not really reducing, even though you have a circular economy with the PCR. But you're using a lot more film. So imagine, having a great story to tell about the PCR content, but, Oh, Hey, I'm using, it could be whatever, say X amount of grams per load, which is, Based off of, and if you're using a virgin resin, you're, you can use a 40 gauge film, you can use a 50 gauge film versus, the 80 gauge or 90 gauge that's currently in PCR. So I would like to see the PCR film thickness come down. And so that way we can truly show, we're saving a lot of pounds in the way streets. That's really what we want to do, right now, that's just. Again, Corey, one part of it, I can really keep going fast. We talk about, we can talk about shrink film. We can talk about bagging. We can talk about corrugated, all different sides. But right now, the big buzz is PCR and stretch film. and that's what we're getting a lot of questions on right now. But more importantly, we do a lot of, primary packaging, a lot of food packaging. A lot of customers are like, Hey. What do you have that's recyclable? How can you help me have a more sustainable pack for my customer? So a lot of times when you're dealing with laminates or you're dealing with, multi structure film, you'll have, you have your sealant layer, you have a barrier layer, you have a print layer. So standard three. three layer film and what customers want to say, Hey, this is not recyclable. What can I do to have an impact in the environment, but still ensure that my product is safe to consume. It doesn't spoil. I have that, I have that shelf life. So, what we're looking at now is various types of substrates, not only allowed to have the. The existing shelf life that our customers, appreciate but also need to find a way to, recycle it. Yeah. So there's really a few ways to go. what we're looking at now is monolayer films that would have a barrier in it. So it'd be like a pe tope with an VOH barrier layer, so that way it's in store recyclable.. Now I know a lot of us like, well, okay, who's gonna, who's gonna eat a bag of chips or who's gonna eat this, whatever it is, and then take that bag back to the store. it's really not realistic, but I do it. But that's just me, I'm one person, I'm one person. So we're taking a look at, a lot of bio based films. I think right now, the holy grail will be curbside recyclable snack packaging. So that could either be one, it's paper based, which we are looking at alternatives right now. We're also looking at alternatives for butter packaging right now as well. I'm really excited about, and also bio additive films. these things that degrade, so for, I would say for engineered packaging solutions, what we're trying to tell our customers is, Hey, we can have a home compostable product because, in the state of California, we really don't want to say a product is biodegradable or, it's compostable. those are a lot of buzzwords that get thrown around. But what we really want to do is make something that's certified home compostable or, curbside recyclable. That's really what we want to get to when it comes to primary packaging. And we are. We are very close. As Corey, I

Cory Connors: 7:54

do. And you and I are on meetings together daily with big companies and small companies and medium sized companies talking about all of these problems and all of these tasks that they have been assigned and, somebody CEO or CFO or somebody comes in and says, Hey, we want We need to be more sustainable. we need to use mono material. We need to make it recyclable. All of the things that you're saying, are tasked to someone at a company and they come to us and say, here's what we're using. What should we use now? And I think that's where your team and you really shine. And I think the stretch wrapper machine is the perfect example of, a way to be more sustainable and save money at the same time,

Roger Merritt: 8:36

correct? Correct. So also, Corey, we do sell corrugated as well. And, corrugated is a big topic for our company. So what's great is we are now educating our customers about the benefits of custom making box equipment. So what that means is one, we have corrugated, we have our, EnviroCraft, which is 100 percent recycled board. So imagine right sizing the box. So in terms of a carbon footprint, a lot of times our customers will use a big box to put some product in and put a bunch of void fill. And then they're paying X amount in freight. So imagine having the ability to use recycled cardboard, but make the box the exact size of the product. You're eliminating any type of void fill. You're eliminating, any type of excess shipping costs. So imagine that. Imagine taking costs out of the truck. To help, save money. But more importantly, you're saving, you can put, 10 times more product on the truck if you're using a custom making box. So, we've partnered with customers like, I'm sorry, with companies like craft or spark. So if there are customers out there that, want to learn the benefit of a custom making box equipment, it's not only going to be saving money and labor. you can really replace packing stations, but your freight bill is going to go way down and you'll be losing less corrugated at the end of the day. Okay. Just take that corrugated throw on the curbside recycle bin and you're good to go. But there's different ways to automate that, but that will definitely drive costs out of the customer's business, but also be, have a great impact when it comes to a carbon footprint.

Cory Connors: 10:00

It's an incredible advancement in packaging. It really is, on demand boxes or right size boxes. It's, it's. Imagine the space savings in a warehouse, imagine the cost savings of not having to throw away that five, those five pallets that you ordered and didn't need because the project wasn't as big as you thought. Yep.

Roger Merritt: 10:21

Or, having excess inventory or what if you're using a, I'm just throwing this out there, a 24 cube box when really all you need is like a 10 by 10 by eight. And you're saving a lot of air. You're shipping air, you're shipping void fill. Imagine having all that go away. It's just a great savings for the customer.

Cory Connors: 10:38

It happens all the time. And it's, and it frustrates the consumer and it frustrates the worker. It frustrates the shipping company because they're shipping air and that's, and it doesn't drive dollars to the bottom line like we want. Well, tell us about a project that you've worked on that was, exciting, something new, maybe a trend or something that's happening in the world of packaging that you're excited about.

Roger Merritt: 11:01

So, honestly, the 1 thing I'm excited about now is, recyclable, but Butterfield. That's one thing that we're just starting. it literally just happened today, Corey. We've been searching for something like this for our dairy customers for quite some time, and thankfully we were able to find an existing partner that had a solution. So what's a benefit about that is you imagine the millions or billions of pounds of butter that's out there. That's in parchment paper that you can't recycle because of all the oils and the grease that are on there. So imagine having a solution where now we can go to the dairies and say, Hey, We have a recyclable paper that you can wrap your product with and have the same barrier properties. But great news. You can put it in your curbside recycling bin when you're done with it and go ahead and recycle it with the other paper stream. So it's just I'm really excited about that. So hopefully that'll take off soon. But, you caught me at a good time, Corey. That's what I'm excited

Cory Connors: 11:52

about, . I am too. I think it's incredible, like you said, it's the holy grail because, we want curbside recyclable. Correct. paper is the most robust, recycling stream in the world. Yep. And, the easiest thing to, to recycle and worst case scenario, if it does end up in the environment, it'll be fine. It'll biodegrade and compost, over years. But yeah, I'm so. Thankful to finally have answers for customers because you and I have and our whole team has worked so Eagerly to find these solutions and literally, scanning the globe and traveling the world to find these companies that have come up with these solutions over the past year or two.

Roger Merritt: 12:36

yeah. So, we can start with butter, but also we have it for all sorts of food packaging, which is basically paper based that not too many people are doing, but you'll see more and more in the marketplace about curbside recyclable paper barrier paper. it's people are going to start to hear about it. I'm just glad that. Aurora is at the forefront of this and we're able to show our customers first, which is great. I'm excited about that.

Cory Connors: 12:55

I am too. So, like we were talking about earlier today, our new sustainable design lab, which is got dozens of testing equipment, all the equipment that you would need to make a prototype of a bag or a bottle, or a box, and it's, it's Allowing customers to come in and go over a project in real time, discuss it, look at ideas, come up with different solutions, innovate something totally brand new, and then leave with a prototype to show their team.

Roger Merritt: 13:31

Yeah, it's 100 percent collaborative, which is great is, we're working together with the customer to find a solution that's unique for them. not only can we do the 3D printing, but also digital printing. So imagine going in with all these great ideas and then walking out with a physical sample to show your team. It's just, it's

Cory Connors: 13:48

very powerful. I couldn't agree more. And I've never seen this kind of. Focus on sustainability in my career at any company, and excited to be a part of this company that is really taking this lead in the industry for sustainable packaging.

Roger Merritt: 14:05

Yep, I agree. It's an exciting

Cory Connors: 14:07

time for us. So what's going on this year? You going to any shows? Will you be at the, The produce show again?

Roger Merritt: 14:14

So the produce show just happened. It was very exciting. We were taking we're talking to our customers about sustainable solution when it comes to produce packaging. Also talking about various automation as well. So, when we're talking about film and equipment or any type of rigid container and equipment, we want to make sure that we have the best piece of equipment with the best material. To make sure it's the right solution for our customers. So we had the produce show come up. There's always PMMI. I'm taking a look, honestly, at more sustainable packaging shows, like the kind that you go to, to really educate customers about the benefits of choosing packaging equipment with the right material as a sustainable solution. Cause people are talking about, Oh, I want this material. I want that, but what if we can pair it with automation? So one, you have a consistent package too. You can meet demand when it comes to production and three, go ahead and lower your overall packaging costs by having the right material and also the right machine. So it's, so I might hang on to your coattails a little bit, Cory, and follow you to some of those,

Cory Connors: 15:08

sustainability shows. I would love to have you there with us because, oftentimes we get questions that we'll have to ask you later. Yeah. So, but I think that's such a great point. Not only does automation improve your bottom line, but it also, reduces your waste most of the time and, makes you more efficient and sustainable in several ways. so I think this is something that's been overlooked and that's why I was so excited to have you on

Roger Merritt: 15:40

the show. No, I appreciate that. You're absolutely right. 1 thing that we take that we do with engineered packaging solutions, we take a look at the entire. Packaging line. Yeah, it's great. I can get you a semi automatic piece of equipment or it can get you two pieces of equipment. But imagine having the ability to do full line integration throughout the entire line. So what we'll do is we'll come and talk to our customers, ask them what kind of pain points they're experiencing. And then if we can do a full line automation, what we'll do is we'll have everything from, filling, capping, labeling, bagging, sealing, forming. Also, we can include robotics there as well. So we can do it from. The front of the line, all the way to the back of the line, all the way to that pallet gets out the door. So, full on integrations where it's at, and we can definitely help our customers out choosing the right materials to go on which, on which piece of equipment. but also, we're talking a lot about robotics and collaborative robots, which is co bots. So imagine having a robot, working right next to you. So if you're on the line, Corey. So you'll be assembling whatever, and there's a cobot right next to you, assisting you assemble or assisting you place products in. So again, we're taking a look at any type of solution to help our customers produce their product more efficiently and, full on integrations is definitely a great way to go so we can help our customers out with all that, everything from semi automatic to full line integration.

Cory Connors: 17:00

Excellent. Cobots and robots and material equipment. Oh my goodness. It's, the future is bright for sustainability and packaging and, for, production and, really, honored to be a part of that, and able to say, yeah, we can help you with that. a lot of companies will say, well, we don't really do that. But we do this, and we like to be able to say we can do just about anything. of course we will say we know if we can't do it, but correct.

Roger Merritt: 17:30

Yeah, or hang on. Let me get back to

Cory Connors: 17:32

you. So, yeah, excellent. I, anything else that you wanted to talk about before we call the show

Roger Merritt: 17:38

here? I would say, when our customers or customers are listening to this podcast, take a look at sustainability. Take a look at, with the future of packaging. thankfully, we're at the forefront. I'm glad the direction we're heading in as an organization. But imagine having the ability to truly have a one stop shop where not only can we, analyze our customers business, but actually have a unique solution for our customers that combines machinery needs. It combines packaging materials, but it's having a great sustainability story to tell our customers when, hey, you want to make a million widgets, we can help you, but we can help you be sustainable throughout the entire process. So, as our customers needs grow and develop, we want to make sure we grow and develop with them because this business is always changing and it's up to you and I, Corey, to make sure that we're well ahead of the technology curve so we can help our customers be better, faster, stronger.

Cory Connors: 18:28

Well said this business is very humbling because it changes so fast. And, and it's constantly, we just, we have to be able to adapt. And I think that's something that Orora packaging solutions has done so well. I agree. So Roger, what's the best way for people to get in touch with you and your team?

Roger Merritt: 18:46

Sure. So, either by cell phone, which I'm sure you can include in the podcast or email, roger. meritatauroragroup. com.

Cory Connors: 18:54

Thank you, sir. Appreciate you.

Roger Merritt: 18:56

You got it. Thank you, Corey.