Pictured L to R: Nate Fink, General Manager for Sheet Feeder Operations at Welch Packaging; Joe Tizol, Director of Implementation Services at Amtech; Person Three...
All greenfield startups come with challenges, but when your startup includes a first-in-the-country corrugator plus an eleventh-hour software swap, you’re courting complexity that most independents would shy away from.
Welch Packaging isn’t most independents.
Founded in 1985 as Elkhart Container, the business began as many independent packaging companies do — with a handful of people, some basic equipment, and a surplus of optimism.
Fast forward 37 years and Elkhart Container is now Welch Packaging (since 2004). The company HQ is still in Elkhart, Indiana, but the company’s footprint has expanded to include six states, 16 facilities, and nearly 1,300 employees.
That kind of growth rarely comes from shying away. Case in point, Welch’s latest facility, a [capacity] corrugator plant in Indianapolis, IN.
The new plant, dubbed IndyCorr, effectively doubles Welch’s corrugating capacity and, according to Brock Welch, Area General Manager for Welch Packaging, fulfills three key business objectives:
- Reduced reliance on third-party sheet feeders.
- Enhanced product offerings that include specialty scoring profiles and additional coatings for custom packaging solutions.
- Adds a strategic location to expand the company’s service area beyond what the Elkhart corrugating plant (ElkCorr) can support.
Welch Invested in First-of-its-Kind Corrugator for IndyCorr
At the heart of Welch’s new corrugating plant in Indianapolis is a pressure-belted single facer from Fosber — the first of its kind in the U.S. This new technology gives Welch the ability to (among other things) produce corrugated sheets that are printable on both faces; a feature that is increasingly in demand in the marketplace.
That demand drove Fosber to develop their “smart belt” technology and spurred Welch to adopt it in their new plant. “Welch prides itself on bringing solutions to our customers,” said Nate Fink, General Manager for Sheet Feeder Operations at Welch Packaging. “It’s just part of who we are. Each of our facilities has a dedicated design team that looks at our customer’s application and ensures that we provide the best possible solution based on how they use their boxes.”
Fink explained that Welch’s willingness to invest in new technology, especially when that investment adds new capabilities to the supply chain, is key to providing custom solutions to their clients. “Bold decision-making is part of the culture at Welch,” Fink said, and just part of what it takes to maintain state-of-the-art plants that can keep pace with customer demands.
Startup Hits a Snag
One such bold decision came literally as the IndyCorr team began the go-live process with their manufacturing software. Welch had initially tapped an Amtech competitor to provide software to the sheet feeder, based largely on Fink’s previous experience with that platform. This time, though, it quickly became apparent that the vendor could not satisfactorily support the startup. Fink cites a lack of execution and poor communication as the tipping points that forced an eleventh-hour course correction. “The relationship, the communication, the project management…those were the things that were lacking,” he said.
Amtech Takes the Lead
At the point that Welch recognized they needed to make a course correction to bring IndyCorr online, they put the problem to three different vendors, one of which was Amtech. The Welch team met with Amtech’s Director of Implementation Services, Joe Tizol, and Senior VP of Sales, Darren Artillio. “That conversation was very different,” said Fink, crediting the duo’s “can-do” attitude and comprehensive plan for instilling confidence that Amtech could get the startup back on track.
Planning and optimism notwithstanding, it was Welch’s relationship with Amtech (their sheet plant has been running on Amtech software since …) that ultimately sealed the deal. “Our relationship really helped us to trust what they were saying,” Fink explained. “I don’t think Darren would commit to something he couldn’t do.”
What Amtech committed to was a very tight timeline. “I’m not sure what the record is for turning something like this around,” laughed Fink, “but we must have been flirting with it!”
Amtech’s Tizol agrees that this implementation was one for the record books, “From start to finish, it took just about six weeks to install, configure, and test the software,” he said. “I don’t recall ever doing one faster, and I don’t want to make a habit of it, but I am proud that our team was able to meet a formidable challenge for a valued customer.”
Amtech strives to provide that level of dedication to all customers, according to Bill Woerner, Senior VP of Customer Operations. “We can’t promise to set a speed a record with every implementation,” he said, “but we are committed to delivering best-in-class service to every customer, regardless of how long they’ve been with us or how many plants they operate.”
What Can Amtech Do for You?
Amtech software provides the backbone of more than 600 manufacturing plants in North America and is proud to offer a business system that is both innovative and comprehensive. With a complete suite of modules, multilingual and enterprise solutions, Amtech has the technology businesses need to remain competitive in an ever-changing industry.
What can Amtech do for you? Book a discovery call today.
