Interview with the Jack Goldfrank, president of MeadWestvaco’s Center for Packaging Innovation

It seems you have made another significant career move by becoming president of the new Center for Packaging Innovation. What is your objective here?

This center represents a creative, collaborative approach to package design. This type of work used to be done both within our R&D group and in our divisions. The center focuses on bringing together the creative forces that enable us to come up with new ideas faster and better, and convert those ideas into margin.

How does the Innovation Center differ from R&D?

I tend to bristle when people confuse the center with R&D. The difference in my mind is that innovation generates margin. For example, we have a big push on external technology. On any project, we will look at what we can do externally as well as internally and license it. That’s not R&D. That’s using every tool you have to meet customer needs in a unique manner.

What are some of the challenges you face?

The hardest part is getting innovation to the bottom line. We need to create a culture of innovation and secondly, an innovation process that moves that innovation to margin rapidly. Both need to be done, but getting the process right is the challenge.

What are the keys to successful innovation?

In my estimation, they include: having a clear understanding of your customer’s needs and opportunities, having the technical skills to supply technical solutions, having a supply chain that can deliver solutions to the customer, developing a marketing plan that creates a value proposition to convince customers of the product’s superior value, and, finally, having a financial plan to make sure we get paid for the effort. All these skills reside either in this building or on the campus.

Is that why the company chose to establish this center on the Centennial Campus of NC State University, Raleigh?

NC State is unique in that many universities talk about academic/industry cooperation, but it actually practices it. NC State is working with us now to help us improve our process in going through the front end of innovation—ideation, concept definition and feasibility; helping us do it better, quicker, more completely. Traditionally, the packaging industry has not been the mecca for people coming out of these schools. But as packaging has evolved to include advanced technology, materials and creative design, we now find that many people would love to come to work here with us.

What do you hope to achieve this year?

We are a work in progress. We are still moving in people and setting up labs. But I think we will hit a few singles and a couple of doubles this year. One of our real success stories is Natralock®, a more effective and sustainable way to package products than the frustrating plastic “clamshell” that you need a hacksaw to open. It is an anti-theft paperboard solution that addresses the whole “wrap rage” issue and offers good advertising advantages for our customers. It is also a perfect example of all divisions working together. One group is working to develop the right paperboard and extrude the sealant used between the paperboard, while another is doing all the printing and diecutting. A fulfillment house fits it all together. These are currently in use at Costco and we are starting to expand that use.

Any other “whiz-bang” projects you can talk about?

JG: When we think about the future of consumer packaging solutions, one of the emerging capabilities is interaction. We have the technology to make boxes light up—and even talk. One of our products in a promotional stage is a carton of cigarettes being sold in duty-free shops in Asia. When a potential buyer picks it up, a lighted message starts scrolling across the front of the carton. We can even add an audio feature to it. We are also working with the music industry to develop CD packaging that includes pictures that light up and even play a little of the music. These types of solutions will make our customers’ products “pop out” on the shelf.