Flint Group's Michael Impastato receives NAPIM's Printing Ink Pioneer Award.

Mergers and acquisitions occur on a fairly frequent basis. Still, Michael Impastato, vice president of market development for Flint Group North American Packaging, may very well hold some sort of ink industry record. By his count, he has worked with nine different companies, while only changing employers once, mostly as a result of acquisitions.

Fortunately, Mr. Impastato is better known for his 38 years of leadership in the ink and packaging businesses. As a result of his dedication to these industries, Mr. Impastato was recently honored with the National Association of Printing Ink Manufacturers' (NAPIM) Printing Ink Pioneer Award during NAPIM's 2006 Annual Convention.

Joining the Ink Industry

For Mr. Impastato, the decision to enter the ink industry came fairly easily.

"In 1968, I was married with a young child and I needed a job," Mr. Impastato recalled. "I actually got out of the Army on a Friday, drove to St. Louis to start looking for a job, and found a job with Inmont the following Thursday."

Mr. Impastato began his career at Inmont in its manufacturing operations, working with sealants and adhesives. In 1971, he was transferred to Inmont's furniture finishes operation in North Carolina, where, among other products, the company manufactured gravure inks.

"In furniture there is so much color matching; you can't imagine how many shades of brown there are, and all color matching was done by eye," he said.

In 1982, Mr. Impastato joined Crown Zellerbach, a San Francisco paper company which had started an ink operation as cost savings for its corrugated division. That company became known as CZ Inks, and would actually make its mark in flexible packaging.

"I started at CZ as manufacturing director, and led our manufacturing at various facilities, then took over purchasing and regulatory," Mr. Impastato said. "Later, I also ran R&D and set up our national account program.

"The people I worked with at CZ Inks were a big influence on me," Mr. Impastato added. "It was a great group at a very interesting time. We went from being an internal supplier to a nationally recognized trade supplier, and built a solid reputation. We went from 100 percent internal to 35 percent in just a few years, and we were given all the autonomy we needed to grow the business and make it successful."

Change would come quickly, beginning with a hostile takeover of Crown Zellerbach by Sir James Goldsmith, and then with Crown Zellerbach (and CZ Inks) being sold to James River James River didn't want to be in the ink business, and in 1996, spun CZ Inks over to Alper Ink Group, which rolled CZ Inks under the Progressive Ink name. Mr. Impastato was named eastern vice president and general manager.

In 2000, Flint Ink acquired Alper Ink Group, and Mr. Impastato became a regional vice president, then vice president, business development for packaging in North America.

"It was interesting going to Flint Ink," he said. "You always had the sense it was a family-owned company, yet I was very surprised how professionally it was run, with its outside board of directors. It was run very much like a public business."

That atmosphere worked well for Mr. Impastato.

"I've done a lot of things at Flint Group, and they have been pretty flexible about my other projects. It's been good for me," he said.

Bill Miller, president, Flint Group, North America, knows that Mr. Impastato is a tremendous resource for the company.

"Mike has a can-do attitude," said Mr. Miller. "Even with all of his industry knowledge and experience, he is still willing to listen, learn and help others better understand the challenges of our industry and what it will take to succeed. As a result, he is viewed and respected in our company as someone who will play a significant role in forging our future direction and Success."

Flint Ink itself was acquired in 2005 by CVC Capital Partners and merged with XSYS Print Solutions to become Flint Group. In all likelihood, there are more changes in store for the Flint Group in the next few years.

Leadership in Packaging

Since his involvement at CZ Inks, Mr. Impastato has been a fixture in the packaging ink business, and he has been called upon to play a lead role in major industry initiatives. In 1991, he played a vital role in developing model legislation for the Coalition of Northeastern Governors (CONEG) on behalf of NAPIM's Heavy Metal Task Force. This legislation has become a standard environmental tenet for the formulation of packaging inks.

"I wrote the first draft of the CONEG heavy metal regulations, which helped phase out leaded inks," Mr. Impastato noted. "I've also done a lot of work with the Flexographic Technical Association (FTA) on the original FQC, which has now been developed into the FIRST initiative." During the FTA's annual forum this year in May, Mr. Impastato was awarded the FTA's "President's Award" for leadership excellence.

In addition, Mr. Impastato has authored numerous technical articles on flexo inks, and has been a speaker at leading associations in the packaging field. He has been especially active in the Flexible Packaging Association (FPA), where he has been treasurer for two terms, and serves on the board of directors and executive committee.

"He's just a fabulous member and contributor to our organization," said FPA president Marla Donahue.

For Mr. Impastato, being part of the packaging field is a fascinating business.

"It is interesting what is going on in packaging," he said. "There are a lot of multi-layer structures being generated, such as the Tetra Brick for juices and laminated pouches. While these changes in packaging haven't all been revolutionary, they have been constant--CTP, ceramic aniloxes, new resins for inks. Ink impacts the process, and the process impacts the ink--aniloxes, press speed, photopolymer plates.

"People see that ink has a big impact on their process," Mr. Impastato noted. "There is a hierarchy of value that helps ink users understand the total impact ink can have on their operations. First, at the lowest level of understanding, is cost per pound. The second level is cost per printed unit, or coverage. This is what most ink buyers understand. But, the third level is cost of use, which includes downtime, operating efficiencies and waste. Understanding the value of ink at this level provides a much fuller understanding of how ink impacts the overall printing operation. The final level is effecting in use, which is the impact of the ink on the final product, such as fade resistance, scuff and rub resistance in a tough environment. This fourth level determines how satisfied the final consumer will be with the overall package."

The packaging industry may be heading for major changes as the issue of sustainability is moving toward center stage.

"Right now there is much talk about sustainability, which has the potential for positive or negative impact on flexible packaging," Mr. Impastato said. "This centers around source reduction and recyclability. There are two criteria. First is reducing the number of materials being used, such as eliminating folding cartons from cereal, leaving just the flexible bag. But because you add lamination and metallized PET, you lose recyclability. Biodegradability and compatibility are also a part of sustainability. It's a very complex question, which the industry will have to understand at a much deeper level to fully comprehend the implications of sustainability."

It is challenges such as these that have kept his level of interest high, even after so many years in the business.

"That's why I've enjoyed what I'm doing," Mr. Impastato said. "The packaging industry is always evolving, and issues have to be addressed."

Outside of work, Mr. Impastato enjoys family life with his wife of 39 years, Sally, who is a retired labor and delivery nurse, and their family.

The Impastatos have two children; Michael is a Marine, and Tracy is a former labor and delivery nurse who now runs her husband's plastic surgery practice. "We have four granddaughters, and with four granddaughters, you get to dress a lot of Barbie dolls," Mr. Impastato added.

As Mr. Impastato looks toward the future, he knows that hard work will always win out at the end of the day, no matter what company is listed on his business card.

"Having gone through nine acquisitions, I have seen a lot of things that are predictable," he said. "People imagine the most horrible situations, but as long as you focus on what you're doing, most of the time you come out well. You just can't become distracted. I've been fortunate. I've worked with some wonderful people, and I've been able to do a lot of different things, and enjoyed all of my opportunities."

David Savastano

Editor