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May-June 2015

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A lot of day-to-day work by NWPCA staff goes unseen by the membership, which is the way it should be. Truthfully, you have your business to run and, as such, it's not necessary to know all the day-to-day machinations of the association. There are active committees, an elected volunteer Board of Directors, and CEO who chart the path, navigate the ship, and oversee the overall operations of this association. That said, sometimes it's a good idea to pop-open the hood, pull out the dipstick, check the oil and fluids. Listen to the engine purr, and you know that all is well. On these pages we will share a "day- in-the-life" of the people at NWPCA working for you, and learning what they do on your behalf to ensure the smooth running of this organization. The core tenet of NWPCA's strategic plan is to provide an environment for our members to succeed while promoting the wood pallet and wood packaging industry. As part of that tenet, you invest in NWPCA. Those dollars go to programs, initiatives, and strategic growth including, but not limited to, access to Pallet Design System™ (PDS) and technical support, advocacy on behalf of the pallet industry, and web presence to support the environmental messaging of pallets with online access to palletcentral.com as a resource for events, industry information and more. Below are some examples of how NWPCA staff is working to meet those goals and objectives. Web Presence for Nature's Packaging On March 11, 2015, members of the NWPCA Industry Marketing Committee created a task force, chaired by Glenn Meeks, director of sales and marketing of Bettaway Pallet Systems, to design a new logo and move forward on developing the Nature's Packaging website. Specifically, Nature's Packaging should focus on the recyclability of wooden pallets and environmental messaging, forest stewardship. Staff in charge of implementing Nature's Packaging are NWPCA Director of Communications, Annette Ferri and VP of Advocacy and External Affairs, Patrick Atagi. Concepts for a new logo were submitted to a design firm and initial drafts are under review. An integral partner to this process is the Canadian Wood Pallet and Container Association (CWPCA). NWPCA and CWPCA joined together in May to coordinate efforts and ideas, and will move forward to finalize Nature's Packaging logo, website and a broader plan of action for FY2015. Website & Member Database NWPCA successfully launched its new website in December, 2014 with member-driven updates to both their business and professional information. The website is also a marketing tool that allows users and customers to drill down company data by product, services and/or location, in a user-friendly format. Staff continues to make improvements to the site and spent April 12-15, 2015 at a conference learning how the new software platform can enhance our members' business needs. Staff also engaged directly with experts and networked with Association peers. NWPCA members will begin to experience new features to be rolled-out throughout 2015. NWPCA's team to this event included: Vice President of Operations, Mimi Sullivan; Director of Communications, Annette Ferri; and PDS and Membership Services Manager, Susan Cheney. Pallet Design System™ NWPCA staff spent two days on a retreat to devise strategies that would continue PDS development consistent with NWPCA's strategic plan to assure PDS remains the state-of-the- art pallet and unit load design system. This includes expansion of PDS with additional load analysis capabilities and refinement of the PDS block-class structural analysis. Staff is focused on testing protocol development, pressure mat functionality, physical testing, and implementation of results into PDS. NWPCA's Director of the Pallet Design System™ John McLeod, 8 PalletCentral • May-June 2015 palletcentral.com INSIDE NWPCA N W P C A A N N O U N C E M E N T S A N D U P C O M I N G E V E N T S

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