Potpourri: News, market information, and current industry events.
Seminar to Address Relabeling of Cosmetic Drug Products
A packaging seminar will be held April 3 in New York City to help manufacturers, package designers, marketing executives, production artists, and packaging vendors understand and address FDA's rulings for the relabeling of over-the-counter (OTC) drug products, especially those with cosmetic properties.
Guest speaker at the seminar will be David Steinberg, president of Steinberg & Steinberg Associates Inc. (Plainsboro, NJ), a cosmetics consulting firm. Steinberg will discuss the newly required drug facts panel, the terminology that is either permitted or banned, and the modifications that will be allowed for packages having limited space.
"A quarter of my presentation," says Steinberg, " will be an explanation of the deadlines that manufacturers face." The deadlines are complex and vary according to product, he says. Manufacturers should be aware of the deadlines that affect their products, since products already on store shelves can continue to be sold with their original packaging only until their deadlines.
Examples of correct and incorrect labeling, as well as a discussion of how type size and graphic design will be affected by the rulings, will also be covered during the seminar. FDA has mandated the labeling changes to assist consumers in reading and understanding OTC product labeling. The drug facts panel, designed to work like a nutritional facts panel on a food package, provides consumers an easily accessible source for active-ingredient information, health warnings, and proper use instructions that are intended to make product purchasing safer.
"The purpose is to make sure labels are written in a clear, concise way so they can be understood by the lay public," says Jason Brodsky, a public affairs specialist at FDA's Office of the Commissioner.
Monographs for some products have yet to be finalized. The final monograph for sunscreen has been issued, but the revision of the final version is not expected until late 2001 (see "Opening Lines," CPC Packaging, November/December 2000, p. 8). Other specifics on the OTC packaging rules can be found on-line at http://www.fda.gov.
For information on attending the seminar, which is hosted by Hirschhorn & Young Inc. (New York), a package design and production art studio specializing in cosmetics, personal care products, and OTC labeling, call 212/246-4695, fax 212/765-0501, or e-mail BarbaraR@ HandYdesign.com; reservations are required. Additional seminars will be scheduled for later this year. -Jennifer Kwok
Techpack Acquires Anchor Cosmetics
Techpack America (New York City) has announced the Federal Trade Commission's approval for the Techpack Group to acquire Anchor Cosmetics (Morristown, TN), a producer of value-added packaging for mass-market cosmetics, particularly mascara, lipstick, and nail polish. The Techpack Group will incorporate Anchor Cosmetics into its makeup division to fulfill its goal of doubling the value of its business over the next five years. Anchor Cosmetics has annual sales of $4 million, and 800 employees in its three plants in Tennessee, Illinois, and Mexico.
IWK Joins with R. A. Jones & Company, Inc
IWK Packaging Inc. (Karlsruhe, Germany) and R. A. Jones & Company, Inc. (Cincinnati), both members of the IWKA PacUnion Group of IWKA Aktiengesellschaft, have combined their sales and support staffs into a single unit for the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The venture is meant to provide personal-care product manufacturers with concentrated access to both companies' packaging-line technologies, as well as a wider range of products. The new sales and service offices will be in Fairfield, NJ.
Chanel Honors DMI
Chanel Inc. (Piscataway, NJ) has awarded Dimensional Merchandising Inc. (DMI; Wharton, NJ) Level II certification for high standards and excellence in thermoforming. DMI has attained this certification status after having been at Chanel's initial certification stage (Level III) for less than two years. (Top-level certification is Level I.)
The award signifies Chanel's confidence in DMI's capabilities as a supplier, says Don Serebrenik, senior account executive for DMI. "The greater our level of certification," says Serebrenik, "the more confidence Chanel has in us." Such confidence means that the manufacturer counts fewer pieces supplied by DMI, according to Scott Widro, vice president of materials management at Chanel. "At Level II, we check only one in 10 shipments," says Widro. When a company achieves top-level certification, he adds, Chanel stops counting individual shipments and performs auditing on a yearly basis only.
Lehman Plant Acquired by SoftPac
SoftPac Industries Inc. (Plymouth, MN), formerly named Advanced Nutritionals Corp., has acquired Lehman Foods' Foley, MN, plant. Manufacturing and filling of stand-up flexible pouches, as well as ancillary rigid-container contract filling, will be done at the 25,000-sq-ft facility, which is set to be expanded by 20,000 sq ft in the spring. According to SoftPac's director of operations, John L. Dennis, the short-run facility will help customers prepare for national rollouts or produce items that require smaller quantities. Packaging of expensive liquids, such as body washes and bath gels, will be the plant's primary responsibility.
WPA Merges with CPC
The Western Packaging Association Inc. (WPA) has merged with the California Packaging Club (CPC). The association, which retains the WPA name, now has three chapters. The CPC chapter serves the Southern California region; the NorCal chapter serves Northern California; and the Columbia chapter serves the Pacific Northwest and Western Canadian provinces. For more information, visit the WPA's Web site at http://www. wpa-cpc.org.
Fisher Design Acquires Index Design
Fisher Design Inc. (Cincinnati) has purchased Index Design Associates Inc. (Cincinnati), combining the package design and brand identity specialty of the former with the industrial design expertise of the latter. Operating under the name Fisher Design Inc., the new company will act as a single product and package design firm that supports clients through the stages of product concept, brand identity, package design, sales, and marketing.