AWA hosts Global Release Liner Industry Conference

Nearly 150 delegates participated in this year's Global Release Liner Industry Conference in Chicago, organized by AWA Conferences and Events, 28-30 March 2007.

Four major themes ran through the program: mergers and acquisitions, which are changing the face, and dynamics, of the industry; materials and silicone trends; coating and converting technology; and user requirements.  All these topics are creating pressures and opportunities in the release liner market, throughout the value chain.

As part of the conference, delegates were able to choose to attend optional concurrent workshops on dedicated topics: silicone release coatings, led by experts from Dow Corning; release testing methods, led by Chemsultants International; and a round table discussion on mergers and acquisitions led by investment bankers Blaige & Company. These proved highly-beneficial and participative, adding value for conference delegates.

The new supplier forum session, held on Thursday afternoon, gave sponsors and speakers the opportunity to present short, unmitigated commercials on their companies without appearing self-serving, and provided a useful snapshot of supplier information to delegates.

The keynote presentation addressed the dynamics of the industry, with Neil Burns, managing director, technical products & release for Mondi Packaging & Coating presenting his personal view.

Conference chairperson Corey M Reardon, president and CEO of AWA Alexander Watson Associates, provided their global update on the release liner market as a whole. 

Jonathan White, president of Blaige & Company, then went on to look at the M & A trends affecting the release liner industry in detail – trends based on the core fact of 'the survival of the fittest'.  Globally, in every industry, mergers and acquisitions are an essential strategic tool for strong successful business - and that is creating rapid globalization:  in the film and sheet market in 2006, 56 percent of all M & A activity was cross-border.