Corporate News

THE NEWARK GROUP BUYS COLUMBIA

The Newark Group Inc., Cranford, N.J., has purchased all the assets of The Columbia Corp. from Yorktown Paper Mills Inc., Chatham, N.Y. Columbia Corp. operated three facilities before the sale, but The Newark Group has plans to operate only one, a mill at North Hoosick, N.Y. This mill will be operated as the Bennington Paperboard Co.

All single-ply grades of 100-percent-recycled paperboard that were unique to Columbia will be produced at Bennington and will allow The Newark Group to expand its product mix.

The specialty grades of laminated paperboard formerly produced at the Kinderhook, N.Y., plant will be produced by the company’s BCI Division in Newark, N.J., or Franklin, Ohio. With the exception of the unique grades at Bennington, all other grades of single-ply paperboard from Columbia are available from Newark’s existing northeast mills at Newark, N.J., or Haverhill and Natick, Mass.

AMERICAN BALER OPENS OFFICE IN CONNECTICUT

American Baler, Bellevue, Ohio, now has a stronger presence on the East Coast due to the opening of an expansion office by TSI-Noble in New Haven, Conn. TSI-Noble, with offices in Fort Wayne and Munster, Ind., is an authorized distributor for American Baler.

The new general manager of the New Haven office will be Ted Gerhardy, who most recently served as vice president of marketing and sales with Soft Goods MFR, Milwaukee. Gerhardy will handle a territory that includes Rhode Island, Connecticut and a portion of upstate New York.

KOPLIK & SONS FORMS NEW COMPANY

Perry H. Koplik & Sons Inc., New York, plans to merge the company’s Packaging  Division headquartered in Portland, Ore., Cascade Converting Corp., Tacoma, Wash., and Koplik International Supply & Agency Corp., Hong Kong, into a new entity.

“The scope of the services offered by the Packaging Division has grown considerably over the years,” says Michael Koplik, president. “We now provide complete packaging solutions, including the supply of raw material, converting and internal distribution. The new company will allow us to centralize the management of our resources and coordinate our services more efficiently.”

The new venture will be structured as a partnership between Koplik and the existing management of the Packaging Division. Harve Bellos will lead the management team while Koplik will hold a majority position and provide financing for its operations.