Finding commonality

For more than 20 years, Shawn State has seen the recycling industry evolve as sustainability initiatives have prompted more investments in recycling and automation has shifted the way recyclers operate. Through it all, he says, communication has been the key.

State is president of Pratt Recycling, the recycling company of Conyers, Georgia-based Pratt Industries, which is the fifth-largest corrugated packaging company in the United States and one of the largest privately held manufacturers of 100 percent-recycled containerboard in the world. According to the company, Pratt Recycling diverts as much as 3 million tons of material from landfill annually.

Pratt Industries recently opened a paper mill and box plant in Henderson, Kentucky—its sixth 100 percent-recycled paper mill in the country, with its other mills being in Conyers; New York City; Shreveport, Louisiana; Valparaiso, Indiana; and Wapakoneta, Ohio.

The paper machine at the Henderson site can produce up to 1,500 tons of recycled paper daily and will be used to make corrugated boxes at the company’s converting plants, including the box plant co-located with the Henderson mill.

Pratt Recycling operates 19 material recovery facilities (MRFs) where it sources material for its parent company’s mills, and Pratt Industries also uses the production scrap from its box-making operations. Pratt says some of the material that cannot be recycled is used as fuel for its clean energy plant.

“It’s exciting to have gone from the company we were in 2001 when I started with Pratt to the third-largest consumer of recovered fiber in North America today,” State says. “Every day brings a new challenge.”

State also is president of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) Paper Stock Industries (PSI) chapter, a national chapter of ISRI established in 1962 that represents paper processors, brokers, packers, mills and others involved in the paper recycling industry.

In the following interview, State discusses the future of the paper recycling industry, the role of automation and the importance of relationships in business.

Recycling Today (RT): How did you get your start in the recycling industry and what does your current role entail?

Shawn State (SS): I had worked in the corrugated packaging industry, both with Pratt and a few other corrugated box companies, prior to 2007 when I started with Pratt’s recycling division. Within the division, I have been responsible for operational and sales roles on a local and a national level. As president of Pratt Recycling, my team’s primary responsibility is [sourcing] fiber for Pratt’s six domestic 100 percent-recycled paper mills.

RT: How has the recycling industry, specifically the paper recycling industry, evolved since you first started?

SS: During the time I’ve been in the industry, the commercial paper industry has always been robust. There has been a lot of investment in paper recycling, both to collect and to consume, and that continues to happen. We are seeing more recycled fiber mill startups and conversions, and we are also seeing big investments on the municipal collection side, with more households having access and more MRF operators investing in technology to clean up and sort material.

RT: What are some of the biggest challenges facing recyclers and industry trends you’ve seen developing?

SS: The biggest challenge is and continues to be contamination in the recycled fiber stream, and the biggest trend I’ve seen is in automation. We are seeing third- and fourth-generation robotics and improvements in [artificial intelligence] and optical sorting technologies automating older MRFs and being used in new MRFs to dramatically reduce the number of employees on the line sorting.

RT: How have the relationships you’ve built in the industry set you and Pratt up for success?

SS: The relationships Pratt has built in the industry, by and large, are based on paying on time, providing great service, being competitive to the market and standing by what we have said we would do—whether that is a handshake or a contract. Those four things may be the pillars for helping make the longer-term relationships successful.

At the end of the day, we are buying and selling a commodity, and anyone can do that. That is why the relationship is so important. Generally speaking, the price drives the transaction, but relationships are a very close second to that and, in some cases, can be more important than price depending on what the buyer and seller are looking for in the relationship. Quality, service and the history of the companies are also critical.

When markets are facing turmoil, being good at all these things is critical to keeping supply or providing support to suppliers that need help.

It’s also important we try to find some commonality in what individuals that both Pratt and the companies we are working with use to develop the relationship. It makes it more fun on a day-to-day basis to enjoy working with the company and person you are dealing with.

RT: As a 100 percent-recycled packaging company, Pratt seems to walk the walk when it comes to circularity and sustainability. How has the business been able to accomplish this?

SS: This is driven by the executive leadership team in the company within all divisions and cannot be done without the logistics, mill, recycling, corrugated, converting and display divisions working together toward that one common goal.

RT: How has Pratt Recycling adapted to major events of the last several years?

SS: I believe communication has been the key. We develop plans and then communicate well internally to execute the company goals that are then communicated to our employees and our customers.

RT: How did your involvement with ISRI and PSI begin?

SS: I was introduced to ISRI [and] PSI through my former boss. I initially started as a member of the PSI specs committee, eventually becoming chair. I also was director-at-large and have since moved into the PSI leadership ranks.

RT: What are the benefits of being part of a group like PSI, and what do you say to folks considering joining?

SS: One of the bigger benefits is the networking opportunities with other like-minded companies and people that are all working toward the same goals you are. There are many opportunities to interact and bounce ideas off each other.

RT: Are there any initiatives currently in the works at Pratt you’re excited about?

SS: We continue to build paper mills and box plants, with each one being a bit more automated than the next. It is exciting to have gone from the company we were in 2001 when I started with Pratt to the third-largest consumer of recovered fiber in North America today. Every day brings a new challenge.

Shawn State is the president of Pratt Recycling, a division of Conyers, Georgia-based paper and packaging company Pratt Industries. For more information, visit www.prattindustries.com.