{"id":2391,"date":"2018-02-06T16:32:49","date_gmt":"2018-02-06T16:32:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/?p=2391"},"modified":"2022-11-09T19:52:38","modified_gmt":"2022-11-09T19:52:38","slug":"pca-release-liner-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/","title":{"rendered":"PCA Revamps Operations in eCommerce Boom"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-1 nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;padding-top:20px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:20px;padding-left:0px;margin-bottom: 0px;margin-top: 0px;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-0 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-one-full fusion-column-first fusion-column-last\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:20px;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-column-wrapper-legacy\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-1\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the next 4 years, eCommerce sales are expected to nearly DOUBLE from <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.shopify.com\/enterprise\/global-ecommerce-statistics\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$2.3 trillion to $4.5 trillion<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-2\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ecommerce is becoming the go-to channel for shopping. You can buy anything from personal training sessions to fresh produce to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/\">discount thermal labels online<\/a>. As the popularity of buying online continues to grow, so does the volume of shipping. Consequently, the demand for cardboard boxes and thermal shipping labels has skyrocketed. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This shift has completely revamped supply chain operations for any company with an ecommerce presence. Demand for corrugated boxes and thermal labels has rapidly increased in the last couple of years, and suppliers and manufacturers of these shipping necessities are beginning to take action.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n            <div class=\"smith-corona-featured-image\">\n\n                <img src=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/pca-revamps-operations-in-ecommerce-boom-hero-splash.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"760\" height=\"460\" \/>\n\n            <\/div>\n        <div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-2 fusion-flex-container nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start\" style=\"max-width:1144px;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-1 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type=\"text\/css\">@media only screen and (max-width:1064px) {.fusion-title.fusion-title-1{margin-top:5px!important; margin-right:0px!important;margin-bottom:10px!important;margin-left:0px!important;}}@media only screen and (max-width:640px) {.fusion-title.fusion-title-1{margin-top:0px!important; margin-right:0px!important;margin-bottom:20px!important; margin-left:0px!important;}}<\/style><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-1 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-two\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0px;\"><h2 class=\"title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\"><strong>PCA Reads The Crystal Ball<\/strong><\/h2><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-3\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One major manufacturer of these products, the Packaging Corporation of America (PCA), has decided to strategically take advantage of this opportunity and is about to make some major changes to their own operations. \u00a0These changes, beginning this spring are going to set off a seismic shift throughout the corrugated box and thermal label industry.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Come April, PCA has plans to invest\u00a0close to $200 million to convert their\u00a0paper machines\u00a0to instead produce containerboard. They believe containerboard to be the more profitable route in this ecommerce world. This operational change is going to create a HUGE shortage in the release liner business.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The timing of this move by PCA couldn\u2019t be worse for a thermal label market that is already under tremendous strain due to a thermal label paper shortage. Regardless of the impact on the marketplace, PCA has simply decided that there is better money to be made elsewhere. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, let\u2019s take a step back to see how the industry go to where it is today.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-1{width:100% !important;margin-top : 0px;margin-bottom : 20px;}.fusion-builder-column-1 > .fusion-column-wrapper {padding-top : 0px !important;padding-right : 0px !important;margin-right : 1.92%;padding-bottom : 0px !important;padding-left : 0px !important;margin-left : 1.92%;}@media only screen and (max-width:1064px) {.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-1{width:100% !important;order : 0;}.fusion-builder-column-1 > .fusion-column-wrapper {margin-right : 1.92%;margin-left : 1.92%;}}@media only screen and (max-width:640px) {.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-1{width:100% !important;order : 0;}.fusion-builder-column-1 > .fusion-column-wrapper {margin-right : 1.92%;margin-left : 1.92%;}}<\/style><\/div><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">.fusion-body .fusion-flex-container.fusion-builder-row-2{ padding-top : 0px;margin-top : 0px;padding-right : 0px;padding-bottom : 0px;margin-bottom : 0px;padding-left : 0px;}<\/style><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-3 nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;padding-top:20px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:20px;padding-left:0px;margin-bottom: 0px;margin-top: 0px;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-2 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-one-full fusion-column-first fusion-column-last\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:20px;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-column-wrapper-legacy\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type=\"text\/css\"><\/style><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-2 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-two\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0px;\"><h2 class=\"title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\"><strong>The PCA<\/strong><\/h2><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-4\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Packaging Corporation of America (PCA) is publicly traded American manufacturing company based in Lake Forest, Illinois. Cardboard boxes are their bread and butter. In fact, the PCA is the fourth-largest US producer of corrugated shipping boxes. Under the PCA umbrella, there are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>5 Containerboard Mills<\/li>\n<li>3 White Paper Mills<\/li>\n<li>94 Converting Facilities<\/li>\n<li>8 Packaging and Supply Centers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-sep-clear\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px;width:100%;\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-sep-clear\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-5\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Conventional shipping containers, custom-printed corrugated boxes, customer packaging, or even eye-catching retail visual displays &#8212; <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.packagingcorp.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PCA<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has it all. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2013, they made the decision to acquire Boise Inc. for $1.99 Billion in order to increase its corrugated paper products volume and expand its market presence into the Pacific Northeast.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Through acquiring Boise, the PCA could now utilize their West Coast facilities, and in conjunction, gain better access to a new market. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Consolidation is not rare in this industry. Over the last 8 years, many companies that were specialized in paper or wood building products began to acquire companies in the packaging industry. There are now just a few consolidated major players in North America. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Paper companies are suffering more and more as the world goes digital. Rather than being stored on paper documents, information is now being transmitted and stored digitally. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On the other hand, containerboard companies have a bright future &#8212; cardboard boxes are being used more than ever, especially to ship orders out of online stores. \u00a0In the next 2 years, world demand is expected to grow <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.freedoniagroup.com\/industry-study\/world-corrugated-boxes-3339.htm\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">7.4%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-sep-clear\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px;width:100%;\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-sep-clear\"><\/div><span class=\" fusion-imageframe imageframe-none imageframe-1 hover-type-none\"><img width=\"800\" height=\"322\" alt=\"A graph for PCA showing a growth in containerboard\" title=\"Fred Graph Image\" src=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/fredgraph-6-800x322.png\" class=\"img-responsive wp-image-2420\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/fredgraph-6-200x80.png 200w, https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/fredgraph-6-400x161.png 400w, https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/fredgraph-6-600x241.png 600w, https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/fredgraph-6-800x322.png 800w, https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/fredgraph-6.png 1168w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/span><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-4 nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;padding-top:20px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:20px;padding-left:0px;margin-bottom: 0px;margin-top: 0px;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-3 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-one-full fusion-column-first fusion-column-last\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:20px;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-column-wrapper-legacy\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type=\"text\/css\"><\/style><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-3 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-two\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0px;\"><h2 class=\"title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\"><strong>Boise Paper&#8217;s Release Liner Exodus<\/strong><\/h2><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-6\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As aforementioned, Boise is a division of the PCA. Beginning in 1931, Boise got their start as a lumber company in the forest product industry. Throughout the following decades, they built and acquired more paper mills and grew to include home construction, recreational vehicle production, and cruise management. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They are also largely known for their release liner. Release liners play an important role in the label industry. They are the paper or plastic-based film sheet that ensures that the label will, for lack of better terms, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">release<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from its backing when it comes time to dispense and use the labels.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Boise currently holds about a third of the North American lightweight release liner market. Other big players in that industry are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Verso<\/li>\n<li>UPM Raflatac<\/li>\n<li>Expira<\/li>\n<li>Twin Rivers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-7\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While they held over 30% US market share of the release liner business, the machines in production were simply not performing to meet their standards. They were too sensitive to contaminants, which caused them to shut down for maintenance frequently.\u00a0 Consequently, Boise Paper is going to completely withdraw from the release liner business this Spring.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-5 nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;padding-top:20px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:20px;padding-left:0px;margin-bottom: 0px;margin-top: 0px;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-4 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-one-full fusion-column-first fusion-column-last\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:20px;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-column-wrapper-legacy\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type=\"text\/css\"><\/style><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-4 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-two\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0px;\"><h2 class=\"title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\">200 Million Dollar Bet On Cardboard<\/h2><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-8\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As briefly mentioned earlier &#8212; this April, the PCA is going to invest $200 million to convert their release liner equipment to manufacture containerboard. The reason behind this is that release liner is a specialty sheet for Boise, primarily manufactured for one of their top customers &#8212; Avery Dennison.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, the real reason for the conversion is that their release liner ultimately did not bring the desired profits relative to what PCA could make by producing cardboard boxes. It was costing more than it was worth. Containerboard is the more profitable route to take.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While this is great for the corrugated box industry, label manufacturers and converters everywhere are beginning to panic about this soon-to-come release liner shortage. All labels require a release liner, and with a third of the market gone, many companies will struggle to keep up.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-6 nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;padding-top:20px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:20px;padding-left:0px;margin-bottom: 0px;margin-top: 0px;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-5 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-one-full fusion-column-first fusion-column-last\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:20px;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-column-wrapper-legacy\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type=\"text\/css\"><\/style><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-5 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-two\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0px;\"><h2 class=\"title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\"><strong>The Direct Thermal Paper Shortage<\/strong><\/h2><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-9\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Prices of labels have already skyrocketed from the recent <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/china-plant-closure-changes-how-we-use-receipts-labels-more\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">direct thermal paper shortage<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p>Back in\u00a0early September,\u00a0 tens of thousands of Chinese manufacturing plants were shut down due to a renewed enforcement of environmental regulations put in place by the government. This was an effort to put an end to the country&#8217;s infamous pollution problem.<\/p>\n<p>Chinese officials had grown tired of all the pollution caused by low-value manufacturers and decided to take a more proactive approach.\u00a0\u00a0It is estimated that over 80,000 factories have been either shut down, fined, or hit with criminal offenses as a result of their emissions.<\/p>\n<p>The closure of one Chinese company, <strong>Connect Chemical<\/strong>, is what has thrown the thermal paper industry in a tailspin.\u00a0 It just so happened that Connect Chemical, was the company responsible for about 50% of entire the world\u2019s production of a chemical dye by the name of\u00a0<b>leuco<\/b>. \u00a0Additionally, several other Chinese manufacturers of leuco dye were shut down at the same time. \u00a0In combination, it is estimated that almost 80% of the world\u2019s supply of leuco dye has been halted.<\/p>\n<p>Leuco is the key component in direct thermal paper, which is the paper that is printed on and used for receipts, shipping labels, airlines tickets, and much more.<\/p>\n<p>After the announcement that Connect Chemical had been shut down, the prices for leuco skyrocketed to\u00a0<b><i>5 times<\/i><\/b>\u00a0their normal price. \u00a0At this time, it is anticipated that Connect Chemical will reopen in the summer of 2018.\u00a0However, nothing concrete has been determined.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, with the increase in demand for shipping labels in this ecommerce age coupled with the shrinkage of the release liner market, the industry is in trouble.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Considering the price increases from the increased demand for both direct thermal paper as well as release liners, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/paper-mills-increase-prices\/\">price of thermal labels is expected to largely increase<\/a> in the months following Boise\u2019s manufacturing shift. \u00a0Many label manufacturers and resellers will struggle as these two major shortages put a squeeze on the market.<a class=\"fusion-builder-modal-save\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/wp-admin\/post.php?post=2391&amp;action=edit#\"> Save <\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-7 nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;padding-top:20px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:20px;padding-left:0px;margin-bottom: 0px;margin-top: 0px;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-6 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-one-full fusion-column-first fusion-column-last\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:20px;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-column-wrapper-legacy\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type=\"text\/css\"><\/style><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-6 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-two\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0px;\"><h2 class=\"title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\"><strong>What\u2019s next?<\/strong><\/h2><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-10\"><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On the label side of the equation, things are a little less certain. \u00a0Until a company comes to fill the void, there is certainly going to be a squeeze on release liner supply in the United States. \u00a0This should continue to push the price of thermal labels up throughout the summer of 2018. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One thing is certain: The explosion of eCommerce isn\u2019t going to slow down. \u00a0This trend will continue to raise demand for both boxes and labels. \u00a0It is quite possible that we might find more US paper manufacturers changing their operations to take advantage of a growing market.\u00a0 One thing is for certain, people are going to continue to use more and more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/4x6-labels.html\">4&#215;6 labels<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-8 fusion-flex-container nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start\" style=\"max-width:1144px;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-7 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type=\"text\/css\">@media only screen and (max-width:1064px) {.fusion-title.fusion-title-7{margin-top:5px!important; margin-right:0px!important;margin-bottom:5px!important;margin-left:0px!important;}}@media only screen and (max-width:640px) {.fusion-title.fusion-title-7{margin-top:0px!important; margin-right:0px!important;margin-bottom:20px!important; margin-left:0px!important;}}<\/style><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-7 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-four\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:5px;margin-left:0px;\"><h4 class=\"title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\"><strong>Sources<\/strong><\/h4><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-11\"><p>U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Producer Price Index by Commodity for Pulp, Paper, and Allied Products: Wood Pulp [WPU0911], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; https:\/\/fred.stlouisfed.org\/series\/WPU0911, February 5, 2018.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/www.freedoniagroup.com\/industry-study\/world-corrugated-boxes-3339.htm<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/www.shopify.com\/enterprise\/global-ecommerce-statistics<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-7{width:100% !important;margin-top : 0px;margin-bottom : 20px;}.fusion-builder-column-7 > .fusion-column-wrapper {padding-top : 0px !important;padding-right : 0px !important;margin-right : 1.92%;padding-bottom : 0px !important;padding-left : 0px !important;margin-left : 1.92%;}@media only screen and (max-width:1064px) {.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-7{width:100% !important;order : 0;}.fusion-builder-column-7 > .fusion-column-wrapper {margin-right : 1.92%;margin-left : 1.92%;}}@media only screen and (max-width:640px) {.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-7{width:100% !important;order : 0;}.fusion-builder-column-7 > .fusion-column-wrapper {margin-right : 1.92%;margin-left : 1.92%;}}<\/style><\/div><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">.fusion-body .fusion-flex-container.fusion-builder-row-8{ padding-top : 0px;margin-top : 0px;padding-right : 0px;padding-bottom : 0px;margin-bottom : 0px;padding-left : 0px;}<\/style><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Thanks to the recent, massive ecommerce boom, there will likely be a strain placed on the release liner and thermal label industry. As the trend of buying online continues to grow, so does the volume of shipping. Here&#8217;s how companies like Packaging Corporation of America (PCA) are revamping their operations in order to cope.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12717,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[78],"tags":[],"acf":{"theme_color":"","estimated_reading_time":6,"include_in_most_popular_sidebar":false,"hero_splash_image":12715,"grid_listing_thumbnail":12716,"sidebar_most_popular_thumbnail":12718},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v19.7.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>PCA and The $200 Million Gamble<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Thanks to the recent, massive ecommerce boom, there will likely be a strain placed on the release liner and thermal label industry. Companies like Packaging Corporation of America (PCA) are revamping their operations in order to cope.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"PCA and The $200 Million Gamble\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Thanks to the recent, massive ecommerce boom, there will likely be a strain placed on the release liner and thermal label industry. Companies like Packaging Corporation of America (PCA) are revamping their operations in order to cope.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Barcode Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/smithcoronalabels\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-02-06T16:32:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-11-09T19:52:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@sclabels\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@sclabels\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"12 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/606a86da9469773f7653903b2500c5f2\"},\"headline\":\"PCA Revamps Operations in eCommerce Boom\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-02-06T16:32:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-11-09T19:52:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/\"},\"wordCount\":5195,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Business Resources\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/pca-release-liner-change\/\",\"name\":\"PCA and The $200 Million Gamble\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.smithcorona.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2018-02-06T16:32:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-11-09T19:52:38+00:00\",\"description\":\"Thanks to the recent, massive ecommerce boom, there will likely be a strain placed on the release liner and thermal label industry. 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