Winston Churchill once noted that “To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.” We’ll never change often enough to flirt with perfection. But we’re big fans of improvement, so change has always been a fundamental plank of our publishing platform.
The change represented in this issue is our approach to the newly named 2013 Leaders in Packaging (LIP). When Packaging World launched this innovative program four years ago, the packaging community responded, and each year, thousands of you cast your vote for your favorite supplier. But lately we got to thinking that we need to change and improve our approach to LIP with three goals in mind: 1) increase the value to you, our valuable subscriber; 2) increase the value to packaging suppliers; and 3) help further promote packaging education. The response to our new LIP format has been simply overwhelming. More than 135 leading packaging suppliers are participating (see page 171). These suppliers will be named supporters of our “Future Leaders in Packaging” scholarship, which will be awarded to a chosen packaging education program. A committee designated by Packaging World will choose the school to receive the scholarship from among those listed here www.packworld.com/schools. Four-year, two-year, and technical colleges all are eligible, so feel free to contact us at [email protected] if there is a particular program you feel should be in the running. The selected university’s scholarship review committee will choose an undergraduate student or student(s) pursuing a packaging-related degree to receive the award.
While we launched the Future Leaders in Packaging scholarship two years ago, 2013 will mark the first time that all participating LIP companies will be named as supporters of this scholarship. Previously, our scholarships have been awarded to students at Clemson University and Missouri University of Science and Technology. To connect with any of the participating LIP companies, please visit www.packworld.com/leaders.
Packaging World has long been a supporter of packaging education, not only through various associations but also editorially. We were the first packaging publication to create a regular column, Academic Angle, where the voice of packaging academia could be heard each and every month. We also support PMMI’s Education and Training Foundation (www.pmmi.org) each year, and we are a charter IoPP Benefactor. These two organizations continue to make a difference in advancing packaging education; please visit their respective sites for more information on their education initiatives and programs.
Additional support for the development of future professionals in the manufacturing space comes from Packaging World’s sister publication, Automation World. After that magazine’s founding publisher, Dave Harvey, was taken from us prematurely by cancer, his family, friends, business colleagues, and co-workers created the David A. Harvey Memorial Scholarship. This annual scholarship helps future generations of automation professionals with tuition assistance. Funding for the scholarship comes from Automation World and the sponsors of The Automation Conference, an event produced jointly by Packaging World and Automation World. Purdue Calumet University’s School of Technology was the 2012 recipient of $5,000 that was awarded for students in the engineering technology school. For more on the David A. Harvey Scholarship, visit www.bit.ly/pwe00453.
So there you have it, a new and improved LIP program. With its even stronger emphasis on education, we think it’s changed for the better. After all, education is the foundation on which our future leaders will stand.