Register

Download Standard Reg Form

Download Boxplant Reg Form

Register Online

The Encore Las Vegas

Encore Hotel

3131 S Las Vegas Boulevard

Las Vegas, NV 89109

SOLD OUT! The AICC room block is sold out for Monday, September 25 & Tuesday, September 26. Please contact Cindy Huber with your name & dates to be placed on the waitlist for a room. We strongly recommend that you book an alternative hotel as a backup.

Find Alternative Hotel: http://tinyurl.com/AICCFall2017

AICC Room Rates: Resort Suite King Accommodations: $249/night (plus tax)

Make Reservations by Phone: Call:  (866) 770-7555

Group Code: AICC 2017 Annual Meeting

Schedule of Events

Download the Schedule of Events

The schedule of events are subject to change. Please check for updated information closer to the meeting date.

Rocky Romanella- Opening Keynote & Workshop Speaker

Founder and CEO of sixty Management Services, LLC
Opening Keynote Speaker

After an illustrious career spanning nearly 40 years focused on Supply Chain, Logistics and Transportation, Retail, Sales and Operational Excellence Strategy at UPS – including The UPS Store franchise network and UPS Supply Chain Solutions – Rocky became the Chief Executive Officer and Board of Director for UniTek Global Services, a provider of Engineering, Construction Management and Installation Services to companies specializing in the Telecommunications field. Rocky led the company’s restructuring and sales effort along with rapidly building the enterprise brand and developing a culture needed to integrate past acquisitions while creating a unified company with one vision.

Rocky is currently the Founder and CEO of 3SIXTY Management Services, LLC, a management consulting firm specializing in Executive Speaking, Leadership Development, and Consulting Services. Through his executive roles and leadership advisory services, Rocky delivers results by developing and implementing his Balanced Leadership Model℠ across enterprise operations. This includes a laser focus on customer needs, employee empowerment and the demands of shareholders.

Rocky has the rare ability to see a clear vision of the changing business landscape, the passion to develop strategies, tactics, and metrics to drive desired results, and excellent interpersonal and communication skills to develop highly motivated teams and optimized work environments. His new book Tighten the Lug Nuts – The Principles of Balanced Leadership was published in early 2017.

Keynote Presentation: Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Keynote Topic: Balanced Leadership

The best leaders manage their businesses based on the principles of Balanced Leadership. This is where we "walk the walk" and "talk the talk". We think like a customer by approaching each challenge as a true solution provider. By watching you, your people need to embrace this concept so they think like a customer in all they do. They consider the business from the eyes of the customer and this guides their decisions and actions.

Feel like a valuable contributor by knowing your work and your team's work matters and never compromise on safety. When you feel valued, you are empowered. You make smart decisions. By doing so, you create an uncompromising culture of integrity, honesty, respect, and service.

Act like an owner by understanding the business and your role in what leads to success. When you consider your actions within your business as if it's your own, you pay careful attention to all of the above - your customers and people - and more. Learn the Balanced Leadership philosophy along with the eight drivers of success the "Big 8". They can become your road map for excellence in all aspects of your business.

 

 

Jeffery Ma - Closing Keynote Speaker

CEO, and Co-founder of tenXer, ESPN Predictive Analytics Expert & Kingpin of the Famous MIT Blackjack Team

When it comes to beating the house - whether you're amassing poker chips or market share - Jeffrey Ma is living proof that data-driven decisions and smart risk-taking trump luck every time. A member of the renowned MIT blackjack team and the founder of four successful companies, Ma has established himself as the expert that business leaders, entrepreneurs, and organizations turn to for insight on harnessing the power of technology-driven platforms to optimize performance, customer loyalty, and overall success.

Ma gained worldwide recognition as a member of the MIT blackjack team, which inspired the best-selling book, Bringing Down the House and the hit film, 21. Since then, he has founded GlofSpan.com (sold to Demand Media), Circle Lending (sold to Virgin) and Citizen Sports (sold to Yahoo!). Ma’s most recent venture, tenXer, an analytics tool designed to optimize employee performance, progress and productivity, was recently acquired by Twitter.

Professional sports teams and leading global corporations,including Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Ford and McDonald's seek Ma's insight on how to effectively understand and utilize technology as a competitive advantage, as well as his proven game plans to score big in the digital age. In his bestselling business book, The House Advantage: Playing the Odds to Win Big in Business, Ma seamlessly connects his experiences at the table and in the sports world, to business analytics and the power of data, providing insight that is accessible for individuals at every level.

With an extraordinary real life tale that illustrates the power of data, coupled with an entrepreneur’s business expertise, Ma captivates audiences with fascinating insight on strategy, innovation, risk, analytics, and how to understand, play and win the game.

Keynote Presentation: Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Keynote Topic: Ten Times Better - Maximize Performance through Big Data

 

 

Juan Javier Gonzalez- Keynote Speaker

Founder & General Director, Cartro

Juan Javier, an Industrial Engineer graduate from Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana, has been in the corrugating industry for 26 years. He started his business with a small, “homemade” corrugating machine. Today, his business has grown to be the largest independent corrugated company in México. A continuous earner, he has a Master in Business (IPADE,) and also graduated in History and Culture of Mexico (Universidad Panamericana.) Mr. Gonzalez was AICC’s President from 2009 to 2012.

Presentation:  “Facing Complexity”

Description: Hear how to keep up with the expanding technological complexity in production and plant processes.

 

 

 

 

Kevin Karstedt, Karstedt Partners, LLC

Workshop Speaker

Kevin Karstedt, CEO of Karstedt Partners LLC, began his career in the “digital” world of packaging in the mid-1980s. His firm has worked with consumer product companies from the Fortune 1000 and 100 lists, package printers and converters from all market segments, and suppliers of products and services targeted at the packaging marketplace. The company has published a number of industry reports and is one of the foremost thought leaders regarding technology innovations for packaging and packaging graphics.

Workshop Presentations:

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Topic: What Digital Means for Your Company Now and In the Future & Digital User Panel Discussion

Wednesday, September 27,2017

Topic: Digital Supplier Panel Discussion

 

 

 

 

Jeff Wettersten, Karstedt Partners, LLC

Workshop Speaker

Jeff Wettersten, is President of Karstedt Partners, and has an extensive background in identifying, developing, and securing growth strategies across a variety of industries including electrical equipment, metal processing, packaging, and printing equipment. Jeff utilized his packaging background and experience in strategy development to assist digital technology developers in assessing and developing commercialization strategies for new and emerging digital markets. As part of Karstedt Partners, Jeff works with technology providers, suppliers, print service providers, and consumer product companies to identify opportunities for competitive differentiation and added value capture through this potentially disruptive technology. .

Workshop Presentations:

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Topic: What Digital Means for Your Company Now and In the Future & Digital User Panel Discussion

Wednesday, September 27,2017

Topic: Digital Supplier Panel Discussion

 

 

Brendan Kinzie, GoGetter

Workshop Speaker

Brendan has spent the majority of his career in the wine industry and the wine and spirits label printing industry.    He has started several successful businesses and turned around failing businesses, none of which would have been possible without amazing team members and a winning culture.  He is very passionate about people, and believes that culture is the single biggest competitive advantage a company has that cannot be easily replicated or duplicated.  With regard to attracting talent...finding talent was always his greatest challenge in every role, and every CEO I spoke with over the course of my many travels mentioned the lack of skilled trades talent as their biggest issue. I began to realize the current methods of attracting talent are really antiquated and don’t work particularly well for folks in the skilled trades. So, I began to really throw myself into the topic, conducted a lot of research, and eventually started a new tech business aimed at partnering with schools and parents to give students easier access to job opportunities in the skilled trades and to work with businesses to find unique ways to attract and retain talent. Senior general management, operations, supply chain and sourcing executive with global experience specializing in start-ups, turnarounds and delivering profitable growth. He has worked for and with such industry leaders as E&J Gallo Winery, Constellation Brands, The Wine Group, and ABInBev where he used world-class best practices and methodologies to deliver innovations and drive record levels of revenues, profits and market share.

A founding team member at GoGetter (www.gogetter247.com), a tech startup with the lofty goal of solving the global skilled trade’s crisis. This initiative is multi-faceted, but we are starting with a simpler approach to connecting folks in the skilled trades to businesses that need their skills. Now working on matching supply to demand!  

An angel investor and active adviser to several entrepreneurial businesses operating in the tech, renewable energy, wine & spirits and premium packaging sectors.
California grown and raised, with deep agriculture, manufacturing and entrepreneurial roots.   He is very passionate about people, and believe that culture is the single biggest competitive advantage a company has that cannot be easily replicated or duplicated.

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Presentation: The Numbers behind the Shrinking Manufacturing Base: Who is going to Run my Plant in the Future, New Wave of Recruiting and Overcoming Hiring Challenges in the Industry

 

 

 

Dr. R. Andrew Hurley

Designers' Lab Speaker

Dr. R. Andrew Hurley is an Assistant Professor of Packaging Science as well as a research associate at the Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics at Clemson University where he is the Director of CUshop, a consumer-experience research laboratory. Dr. Hurley holds both a BS and MS in Packaging Science and a PhD in Rhetoric, Communication and Information Design.

Focused on new product and package development, Dr. Hurley brings ideas to innovative, practical solutions. With state-of-the-art design and prototyping labs, consumer-experience/biometric testing (eye-tracking, GSR and EEG) and a full packaging pilot plant, concepts can be developed and brought to life in just hours. Dr. Hurley teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses in Packaging Science, mentors Food Science and Culinary Arts projects and is active in the design research community. He is a noted research leader in the field of packaging design, having a variety of peer-reviewed papers, author of seven electronic training programs used by hundreds of industry professionals and has presented at many international conferences.

Presentation: "Leveraging Human Factors in Packaging Design"

Description: You will learn many practical principles that have been proven to have an impact on human behavior, and will apply these concepts to packaging design. Attendees will all receive a limited edition golden ratio caliper, and a workbook to apply the theory taught to real-world packaging design problems.

 

 

Dan Malenke

Designers' Lab Speaker

Dan Malenke is an accomplished practitioner, solutions provider, educator, and author with extensive coast-to-coast and international experience in leading technology-rich seminars for the printing and packaging industries, He is particularly adept at creating synchronous courses of study from highly fragmented parts. As President, PKGPRO, LLC, Dan Malenke holds bachelors, and masters degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Stout, and Ed.D from the University of Minnesota.

Presentation: "Trends in Paperboard Packaging"

Fiber-based package design is converging on product design, peaking the senses as it serves to protect, present, and perform. Trends continue to support changes in manufacturing, material science, distribution, and consumer demand. The next generation of packaging will be even more capable and interesting.

Topics Include:

• Disruptive Technologies

• Rightsizing

• Product Sustainability

• Print-Form-Fill-Seal

• Adaptive Substrates

• e-Commerce and related Packaging

• Personalization

• Smart Packaging

• Lightweighting

• Retail Ready

Digital Print Track 

Day 1: Pathways to Digital - Where is the Digital Market Headed &  User Panel Discussion

Date: Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | 11:00 am – 12:30 pm

The digital future is here. What does this mean to the market and what does it mean to your business? Since drupa, digital capacity in the US has doubled, driven by just a handful of high production digital presses. Join us for the opportunity to learn from industry consultants, suppliers and AICC members on where the digital market is headed.

• Part I: Where is the Digital Market Headed & User Panel Discussion 
  • The industry outlook for digital printing, it’s impact and implications for AICC members.
  • Investment in digital printing is not for everyone. Who should be considering digital printing and why? Who will not be impacted by digital adoption? Are there options for engagement beyond direct investment?
  • What are the technology options? What are the differences? How are the technologies positioned? What do I need to know? What questions should I be asking?
  • Developing a game plan—expanding the digital message beyond the ability to print a box.
  • Presenters: Kevin Karstedt and Jeff Wettersten, Karstedt Partners

• Part II: Boxmaker User Panel
  • Hear from AICC member companies that are currently using digital print in their company. They will provide an overview of how they got into digital (research, installation and ramp-up) and the outlook moving forward. They will also discuss how digital fits into their mix of accounts and how they have incorporated it into their marketing and sales efforts.
  • Presenters: Kevin Karstedt and Jeff Wettersten, Karstedt Partners

Day 2: Digital Supplier Panel Discussion 

Date: Wednesday, September 27 | 8:30 am–10:00 am

Moderator: Cordes Porcher, Corrugated Synergies International LLC 

Come hear from suppliers that represent the digital print market to discuss the latest technology and
to share knowledge and solutions.

                 

 

Risk Management Track 

Day 1: Protecting Your Assets in the Company

Date: Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | 11:00 am –12:30 pm

Hear from presenters on the behavioral aspects of risk management and accident prevention. In addition, we will examine trends in property casualty claims and ways to minimize your risk.
      

Day 2: Protecting Your Software & Financial Assets.

Date: Wednesday, September 27,2017 | 8:30–10:00 am

• Part I: Protecting Your Company from a Cyber Attack
  • Members have been shut down for days because of ransom virus attacks. Learn how to protect
    your company by taking proactive steps to avoid being attacked. Learn what you can do and the
    resources available to your company if you do get attacked.
  • Presenter: Michael Hill, Computer Scientist, FBI Las Vegas Division—Cyber Task Force

• Part II: Protecting Your Financial Assets
  • Hear how to protect your financial operations from fraud and theft “within” your organization.
  • Presenter: Mitch Klingher, CPA, Klingher Nadler LLC

Human Resources Track 

Day 1: The Numbers Behind the Shrinking Manufacturing Workforce, Overcoming Challenges & Attracting & Retaining Talent and Building Winning Cultures

Date: Tuesday, September, 26, 2017  | 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Presenter: Brendan Kinzie, Co-Founder, Go-Getter

What is really going on in the skilled trades job market? Employment statistics can enlighten us or just as equally mystify us. Government figures, “boomer” retirement projections, shifting educational trends. How do we best interpret them and how do we bring meaning to them in our daily operations as employers and managers? We’ll take a deeper dive into what is driving our staffing shortages across the width of manufacturing and in particular the packaging industry. We will also discuss ideas for overcoming challenges faced in the industry on how to attract and retain talent and leadership methods for enhancing and building a winning culture.

 

Day 2: How to Gain, Train and Retain Employees in the Workplace Panel Discussion

Date: Wednesday, September 27,2017 | 8:30 am – 10:00 am  
Panelists: Elsie Genova, Administrative Manager & CFO, Poly Print | Atoka Dumont, Human Resource Manager, Volk Packaging | Richard Goldberg, VP, Operations, President Container Group

Hear from those in the packaging industry on what they are doing in their companies and local communities to overcome the challenges of finding, training and keeping good employees. Presentation will be followed by a moderated group discussion for attendees to ask questions and share ideas.

Executive & Leadership Track

Day 1: Why Values Matter in Business

Date: Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Presenter: Rocky Romanella, Founder and CEO of 3SIXTY Management Services, LLC

Leadership is not a passive duty, it is an active responsibility. Recognize how leaders demonstrate their values and set the tone from the top. This session will explore how to provide your team members with the leadership they need to successfully reach their desired goals in concert with your work groups and organization’s goals.

• Highly effective leaders must have balance when considering their business. Learning how to inspire your team to take this to heart through the Balanced Leadership™ model helps leaders identify who you are, what you stand for individually and as a business, and what you will never compromise.
• Creating a strong value system is a key part of your culture and must be connected to your mission and vision—from recruiting, through onboarding and annual performance reviews. We’ll examine the tools that leaders need to guide actions and decisions that are consistent with what your people, customers and investors believe to be your strategy.
• Setting clear expectations for your leadership team is a strategic imperative when it comes to ensuring alignment with your values. Dive into the process of setting Leadership Expectations as an essential accountability tool.
  
• Many factors place pressure on individuals within your organization. Sometimes with pressure comes pain, which can motivate people to do some desperate things. We’ll explore the consequences of poor decision making.
  
• Bringing your values to life helps institutionalize them. It is a process that includes modeling what “Exceptional Leadership Looks Like” and ensuring leadership consistently communicates expectations throughout your organization.

Day 2: Being Obsessed with the Front Line

Date: Wednesday, September 27, 2017 | 8:30 am –10:00 am
Presenter: Rocky Romanella, Founder and CEO of 3SIXTY Management Services, LL

You’ll develop an understanding of how to take your front-line employees from awareness to engagement to ownership. This session will introduce a road map for mid-level and C-level leaders to maximize talent at all levels of the organization and produce a culture of inclusion, which will lead to improved business outcomes.

• Creating a communication strategy that helps employees become “aware of the big picture”. This strategy will include the tactical approach and method of developing an environment that creates an excitement for information on the direction of your organization.
• Having an organization of employees that “act like owners” who are obsessed with the growth and well-being of the organization. It starts with examining commitment from an individual perspective and then leads to the development of work teams that leverages synergies from “one-to many” in an organization.
• The “art of engagement” which begins with building relationships that allow employees to develop and grow no matter their role in the organization. These relationships will enable you to hear any bad news before an issue becomes a major problem.
• The ability of “sticking with it” is always a challenge in any attempt to shift a culture, or to change a process. The focus on “change sustainability” will map out the strategy that introduces the concept of champions taking ownership on specific parts of the plan.
• Reflection” focusing in on how to stop, pause and move forward. This includes keeping what is working and continuing to redefine what “Being Obsessed with the Front-line” truly means.

 

About Emerging Leaders

The AICC Emerging Leader Program is dedicated to providing the rising stars in the industry with the information they need to develop and thrive in the paper packaging industry. Emerging Leaders (EL), which are defined as roughly 35 years of age or younger, meet regularly at AICC's national meetings in sessions specific to their needs; they participate in active industry training programs; and they provide valuable input to the future direction of AICC, and corrugated, folding carton and rigid box industries. We develop at least 4 EL programs per year and occasionally offer ELs exclusive discounts on programs that we think are most relevant to them.

Emerging Leaders Training Event

Date: Sunday, September, 24, 2017 | 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Price: $250 per person.

Speaker Rocky Romanella - "Why Values Matter"

Creating a strong value system is a key part of your organizational culture and must be connected to your mission and vision – from recruiting, through onboarding and annual performance reviews. In this session, we’ll examine the tools that leaders need to guide actions and decisions that are consistent with what your people, customers, and investors believe to be your strategy. Bringing your values to life helps institutionalize them. It is a process that includes modeling what “Exceptional Leadership Looks Like” and ensuring leadership consistently communicates expectations throughout your organization.

• Lunch provided for all registered attendees.
• Registering for this training does not automatically enroll you in the Emerging Leader Program.

Emerging Leaders Networking Event

Date: Monday, September 25, 2017 | 8:30 pm - 11:00 pm

Price: $195 per person

David Copperfield has been hailed by audiences and critics alike as the greatest illusionist of our time. In addition to decades of network television events, worldwide tours, and "Dreams and Nightmares," the critically acclaimed Broadway show that set box-office records, he has been featured on the covers of Forbes, Architectural Digest and Esquire. His show in Las Vegas is a unique opportunity for audiences to see these larger-than- life illusions.

PackExpo Show 2017

Date: Monday, September 25 - Wednesday, September 27

Show Hours: Monday, September 25 - 9:00am - 4:00pm | Tuesday, September 26 - 9:00am - 4:00pm | Wednesday, September 27 - 9:00am - 4:00pm

Location: Las Vegas Convention Center, 3150 Paradise Road, Las Vegas, NV 89109

Shuttle Buses: AICC will provide shuttles busses to/from PackExpo during PackExpo show hours (9:00am-4:00pm). A bus will depart from the Encore Hotel & Convention Center every 30-mins starting at 8:30 am.

PackExpo features the latest in packaging and processing innovations, new trends and technologies, and creative business solutions along with the opportunity to connect with over 30,000 packaging professionals from over 75 countries from around the world. The show will feature over 2,000 exhibitors.

All AICC meeting attendees will receive COMPLIMENTARY admission to attend PACKEXPO Las Vegas 2017. Use Comp Code GPAICC17 when registering to zero out your balance.. You MUST pre-register for the show using the link below so that you don't have to wait in line on-site.

visit www.packexpolasvegas.com

The NextGen Networking Fair

Date: Monday, Sept 25, 2017

Time: 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Location: Las Vegas Convention Center – Upper South Hall - Education & Workforce Development Pavilion

This event offers a one-of-a-kind matchmaking opportunity for PACK EXPO 2017 exhibitors and attendees to connect with the emerging workforce. The event provides employers in the processing and packaging industry, the opportunity to meet and connect with a targeted audience of talented students from packaging, processing, materials, package design and mechatronics programs. Stop by the Pavilion anytime during show hours to meet the workforce of tomorrow and learn about the education programs offered by PMMI partner schools. Students attending the show will be manning partner school booths in the pavilion, and are eager to meet potential employers in the packaging and processing industry.

visit PACKEXPO

Spouse/Guest Optional Event: Sur La Table Cooking Class & Lunch

Date: Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | 11:00 am -2:15 pm.

Price: $240 per person.

Sur La Table shows guests how to create delicious dishes all year long. From Thai to Texas barbecue, guests can explore a world of cuisines and disciplines. Led and instructed by chefs and trained culinary professionals, small groups create a delicious, multi-course meal. Once the food is ready, everyone gets to eat and enjoy their creations. .

What to expect:

• Learn the fundamental skills for a lifetime of great cooking.
• Work side-by-side to prepare each dish.
• Interact with other spouses & guests and the instructor for a rich learning experience.
• Take home a packet containing class recipes, a list of equipment used, helpful notes and more.
• Transportation is included to/from event, cooking class & lunch, and all gratuities, taxes & fees.

Michael Jackson ONE at Mandalay Bay by Cirque du Soleil

Date: Tuesday, Sept 26, 2017 | 9:30 pm -11:00 pm

Price: $160 per person.

Michael Jackson ONE is a sonic, tonic fusion of acrobatics, dance, and visuals that take the audience on an immersive journey through the music and spirit of Michael Jackson. Driven by Michael's powerful, multi-layered music – heard like never before in a riveting, state-of-the-art surround-sound environment – ONE takes the audience through a series of seamless visual and musical tableaux, at the heart of a world that is, in turn, majestic, playful, magical and heart-warming..

•  $160 per person (Category B group seating).
•  Doors close at 9:15 pm.
• No one under the age of 5 is permitted.You will receive/sign for your show tickets at AICC on-site registration (during posted AICC registration hours).
• Transportation is NOT provided for this event.
  

Selling to Digital Print Training Seminar

Date: Monday, Sept 25, 2017 | 8:00 pm -4:00 pm

Price: $795 per person

Digital print is the latest trend in the paper packaging industry. A great amount of information is being taught, but few programs actually teach you how to sell digital print. This course is an introduction to AICC's new 2-day Digital Print Sales course being held in 2018. Be one of the first to take this groundbreaking class. Learn from George A. Moretti, an expert in the industry, who specializes in selling digital print. He'll share several real-life experiences with existing clients, along with the best practices and tips for successfully landing a digital sale.

This training seminar will focus on;

• DIGITAL DRIVERS: The who, what, where, and why of the digital printing technology.
• DIGITAL MARKET OPPORTUNITIES: What are they, and where can you find them?
• UNCOVER WHAT YOUR CUSTOMERS NEEDS ARE: What are the right questions to ask?
• SELL MORE: Understanding how digital technology can help you sell more to your customers. The digital print sales process is very different from selling conventional ink on paper. Your sales teams need effective, digital print training to succeed and that's what this program is designed to give you.
• DIGITAL CAPABILITY & CAPACITY: What are the business drivers for your customers? What type of equipment will you need?
• DIGITAL LANDSCAPE: Who are the leaders in this new marketing strategy? What are they doing right to keep up with this new trend?

Presenter: George A. Moretti, GM Training & Consulting Group

George Moretti, has extensive firsthand experience selling in the Corrugated Packaging Business. He started GM Training & Consulting Group in 1996 and has been a long standing partner with AICC in the USA and Canada.

Sponsorship Opportunities

View Sponsorship Brochure.

Innovator of the Year

We are now accepting entries for the next Boxmakers Innovator of the Year Competition!

View More Information

This year's competition is being held during the 2017 AICC Annual Meeting & Package Design Competition September 25 - 27, 2017. The competition is open to all AICC Boxmaker members that want to showcase their innovations developed since September 2013. The competition provides an outlet for AICC’s Boxmaker members to showcase their innovations that increase plant productivity, improve plant efficiency, and overall, serve as the solution to a specific production or management problem, or enhance the skill, safety and/or well-being of your workforce.

Deadline for entries: Friday, August 18th, 2017!

Download the Entry Form 

Download the Brochure

It’s not just a competition of peers. It’s an opportunity to recognize and promote the ingenuity and innovation of your company. Innovator of the Year achievements are often acknowledged by local business and community groups are featured in domestic and international publications and even on national TV shows.

Package Design Competition

The biennial AICC Independent Packaging Design Competition features corrugated, folding carton and rigid box categories, providing a wider reach into the entire packaging market and a greater diversity of ideas. Independent boxplants compete for first, second and third place as well as honorable mention awards. Contestants also have the opportunity to win the coveted industry’s People’s Choice or take home the prestigious Judges’ Choice Awards. 

Since 1981, AICC has been proud to recognize, showcase and reward those independents who have met and exceeded their customers’ expectations of their packaging designs and displays in its packaging design competition. The next Independent Packaging Design Competition will take place in the fall of 2017 at the Annual Meeting, set to be held in Las Vegas in conjunction with PackExpo.

Enter Your Designs

Download the Competition Brochure

Category Descriptions

Rules, Regulations, & Important Information

Judging Criteria

Shipping Label for Entries

**Judging will take place on Monday, September 25, 2017 during the AICC Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, which is being held in conjunction with PackExpo Las Vegas.

Designers’ Lab

This year's Designers' Lab is co-sponsored by Arden Software North America, ESKO, Gerber Technologies and HP. Designers will have the opportunity to learn new techniques in both structural and graphic design from experts in the field, and share their knowledge with peers at the 2017 Designers’ Lab. Designers will also get a chance to show-off their skill, talent and receive recognition as they participate in the "real-world” design-to-problem challenge. Open to corrugated, folding carton and rigid box graphic and structural designers.

Participating designers are encouraged to attend the following AICC Annual Meeting events as well: Continental Breakfasts, Workshops and General Session II (Design Challenge winners will be announced during the Wednesday General Session which begins at 10:10 am). Awards will be shipped to winners following the meeting.

Download the Designers' Lab Registration Form

**You may also register for the Designers' Lab via the AICC Annual Meeting Registration Form.

Selling Digital Print Training

Date: Monday, Sept 25, 2017 | 8:00 pm -4:00 pm

Price: $795 per person

More Details

Digital print is the latest trend in the paper packaging industry. A great amount of information is being taught, but few programs actually teach you how to sell digital print. This course is an introduction to AICC's new 2-day Digital Print Sales course being held in 2018. Be one of the first to take this groundbreaking class. Learn from George A. Moretti, an expert in the industry, who specializes in selling digital print. He'll share several real-life experiences with existing clients, along with the best practices and tips for successfully landing a digital sale.

This training seminar will focus on;

• DIGITAL DRIVERS: The who, what, where, and why of the digital printing technology.
• DIGITAL MARKET OPPORTUNITIES: What are they, and where can you find them?
• UNCOVER WHAT YOUR CUSTOMERS NEEDS ARE: What are the right questions to ask?
• SELL MORE: Understanding how digital technology can help you sell more to your customers. The digital print sales process is very different from selling conventional ink on paper. Your sales teams need effective, digital print training to succeed and that's what this program is designed to give you.
• DIGITAL CAPABILITY & CAPACITY: What are the business drivers for your customers? What type of equipment will you need?
• DIGITAL LANDSCAPE: Who are the leaders in this new marketing strategy? What are they doing right to keep up with this new trend?

Presenter: George A. Moretti, GM Training & Consulting Group

George Moretti, has extensive firsthand experience selling in the Corrugated Packaging Business. He started GM Training & Consulting Group in 1996 and has been a long standing partner with AICC in the USA and Canada..

Questions?

Please contact Laura Mihalick at (703) 535-1388 or Lmihalick@aiccbox.org.

Cancellation Policy

All cancellations must be made in writing and sent to AICC Headquarters. Verbal cancellations will not be accepted nor processed. Refunds will be made the same manner as the payment was received (i.e., a check payment will receive a check refund).

• Cancellations received in writing on or before August 25, 2017 will receive a full refund of their paid meeting registration and event fees less a $100 processing fee per person registered.
• Cancellations received in writing between August 26-September 8, 2017 will receive 50% of their paid meeting registration and event fees per person registered.
• Cancellations received in writing after September 8, 2017 will NOT receive a refund of any fees paid.

Cancellations received in writing will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and AICC reserves the right to only issue a credit in approved cases. Cancellations and discounts received more than 30 days after the end of the meeting will not be considered. In the event that a cancellation will affect the discount of a company’s third and subsequent registration, the full meeting registration fee will be charged if applicable (i.e. If A, B and C register for the meeting, C will receive the discount rate. If B should then cancel, C will be charged the full meeting rate, as the discount no longer applies). Substitutions are allowed and must be made in writing by the original registrant prior to the meeting.

Meeting Policy: All meeting registration fees, including those for ancillary events, must be paid in full prior to the start of the meeting. Registration rates are for AICC meeting attendees and include spouses or guests. Employees or co-workers employed by the same company group DO NOT qualify as guests. There are no separate fees for single attendees nor can registrations be pro-rated by individual days or events.

Cancellations for all optional paid events will be refunded 7 days prior to the event less a $25 processing fee. Cancellations received within 7 days of the event will be refunded less a $25 processing fee IF we can resell the reserved space.

Questions? Contact AICC at 877-836-2422 or meetings@aiccbox.org.

FAQs

If your question doesn't appear below, please contact Laura at AICC by calling 703-836-2422 or at Lmihalick@aiccbox.org.

Question: What should I do if the webpage times out?

• Answer: Before exiting out, try pressing the back arrow on your computer and then submitting again. Sometimes, this will fix the problem. Your credit card has not be charged unless you see a confirmation page.

Question: What is the multiple member discount rate?

• Answer: When registering more than two people from the same company, the third person to register, and anyone after that, will receive the multiple member discount rate. If only two people from the same company are attending, they do NOT qualify for the multiple member discount rate.

Question: Why do I have to create a log-in to register?

• Answer: The new AICC website requires all members and non-members to be logged in to purchase products or sign up for events. For the majority of people, your username is your work e-mail address. Please visit the AICC Help Desk for further instructions.