I am writing this What’s New update the last week in January wondering where 2011 went. 2011 flew by and now looking back this was a good year. What happened in 2011 that made this year good and one that we will remember?

·         Promotional tins projects returned (customers were more confident in the economy)

·         Reshoring major projects (tins formerly made in China now being made in the USA)

·         New C-3 coater- The most advanced high speed Eco-Friendly thermal coater available

·         The retirement of some really good long term employees who will be missed.

·         The addition of some really talented new employees with new ideas and experience.

As we close out 2011 we must all thank our customers for having the faith in Independent Can to allow us to supply a portion of their packaging needs. We are aware that everyone has options as to what type of package they will use for their unique products and in this world there are a huge number of choices. Some of the factors are:

·         Cost

·         Printability

·         Environmental friendly/recyclable

·         Speed of delivery

·         Perceived value imparted to the product being packaged.

·         Reuse of the package and the continuing advertising value of the graphics

·         Confidence in the supplier to perform

·         Quality and consistency of the product being supplied

·          The willingness of a vendor to change processes to meet the customers’ needs

2012

2012 has begun at a very high level of activity with sales ahead of 1 year ago and many projects underway that will start up during the spring months.

·         2 new can lines will start up in this spring.

·         In May we will begin a major overhaul on the Hand I Oil line (products packaged: light oils and lighter fluid).

·         One thermal coater is being overhauled and will be operational in February.

·         Tooling a couple of new can sizes which will allow more tins to be sourced domestically for both mass merchants and specialty customers.

There are the normal overhaul work and line reconfigurations that we do each year allowing more efficient operations based upon the ever changing market place.

The new catalog has been revised to reflect tins grouped by design to help you easily see the complementary sizes that are available to you. 

 

 

For the seasonal customers please let us know how we performed in 2011 and any future needs that you may have as we are constantly looking for process improvement to better service the fall gift giving time of the year. The fall is challenging for all of us due to short lead times and constantly changing needs so advance discussions are critical.

 

Customers who plan to come to the Baltimore, MD or the Philadelphia, PA areas should consider allowing time to come and visit our plant. Face to face visits are very helpful to our understanding your needs. We also think that you will learn by seeing how we make the products that you are using. The more we know about each other the better we are at servicing your needs.

 

Thank you and we look forward to serving a portion of your packaging needs in 2012.