If you’re a professional involved in almost any area of pulp and paper manufacturing, you’re aware of TAPPI Standards. But how are these standards created? What importance do they play in our industry?

For this episode, Paper360° Editorial Director Jan Bottiglieri speaks with Chris Czyryca, president of Collaborative Testing Services Inc. Chair of the Quality and Standards Management Committee. 

Chris admits that his initial foray into the TAPPI Standards process was not exactly by choice. “How I got involved, quite frankly, was that my boss told me that I was going to get involved!” he says. “And I would encourage other bosses to do the same. I do that now with my people… it is the best way to learn about Standards.”

Listeners will learn about how easy it is to join a Standard-Specific Interest Group (SSIG)—and how rewarding that peer-to-peer networking can be. “You’re working on something for the industry as a whole; and that knowledge, that experience, that résumé-building… it all carries over.”

            Standards creation is a process that’s truly BETTER TOGETHER and we’re excited to bring you this engaging look at how you can be a part of the process.

Click here to learn more about becoming involved in TAPPI Standards development. 

In our third podcast, Paper360° Editorial Director Jan Bottiglieri speaks with two TAPPI Student Chapter leaders about the challenges the pandemic lockdown has created for students; what their ideal industry careers would look like; and how they’ve maintained their paper program connections while away from campus. Our student guests are:

            Andrew Chu, a junior at NC State University pursuing a dual degree in Chemical Engineering and Paper Science & Engineering. Andrew serves as President for the TAPPI Student Chapter and is on the Executive Board for the AIChE Student Chapter. Andrew recently spent eight months on co-op with WestRock; for the summer of 2021, he will be a Technical Sales Intern at Ecolab.

Lea Scrapchansky, a sophmore at the University of Maine studying chemical engineering. Lea is involved with the UMaine Pulp and Paper Foundation and is on the planning Committee for the 2021 Student Summit. She began her involvement in the UMaine TAPPI chapter as freshman representative, and she now serves as TAPPI treasurer.

Both students are excited about their futures in an industry that, partly due to pandemic-related lockdowns, is being more publicly acknowledged as truly essential. As Andrew comments, “I’m very happy. I love the community we have at NC State, and compared to some other engineering disciplines… they just want us to graduate with experience. We have a really good co-op and internship program.”

Join us for an engaging conversation with two promising young leaders on BETTER TOGETHER.

Our second episode showcases long-time educator Dr. Michael J. Kocurek, Professor Emeritus of Paper Science & Engineering at North Carolina State University, and one of the world’s most recognized educators in the industry. Dr. Kocurek is a TAPPI Fellow and has received a host of other awards, including induction into the Paper Industry International Hall of Fame. In this lively discussion, he shares his many experiences as well as thoughts on attracting, training and retaining young industry professionals and the myriad of industry opportunities available to them.

This episode features an interview with Matt Elhardt, Vice President, Global Sales, Fisher International. Mr.Ellhardt shared his thoughts on the ripple effect the pandemic is having on the paper and tissue market, its impact on away from home (AFH), at home (AH), and communications paper products and how the industry is adapting to the work from home (WFH) shift. He talks about current market uncertainties, scenario planning, driving decisions using data, and also the role of the industry as an integral part of the circular economy and sustainably supported future.