The sun shines on Sonoco.

This column has been quick to criticize the "quarter-at-a-time," no-innovation mentality of the pulp and paper industry. I have argued that the lack of foresight and product innovation in the pulp and paper industry is the root of many problems today. I have also argued that making the same products ever cheaper while assuring a strong position against competitive, non-paper products will not by itself restore financial health to the industry. Having found a bright ray of hope, I therefore want to spotlight and praise its creators.

On December 6, 2002, I attended the annual Sonoco analysts meeting in Manhattan. Although much content was what one would expect, one product on display caught my eye. It was SONOBoard[TM] 3D. This product is molded from old corrugated containers (OCC).

I recall from the middle 1980s an article in a trade publication high-lighting a product under development at the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin, USA, called "Spaceboard." I went to Madison to see this product. Spaceboard was the developmental form of this new product by Sonoco. Eighteen years later I now see a new product ready for market.

Allow me to take a break for a moment of disclosure. My company engages in activities that could profit from favorable actions by Sonoco. This is also true for almost all companies in the paper industry. I must say that I am not promoting or implying the promotion to any individual or other entity concerning investing or disinvesting in Sonoco. You must talk to your own professional advisors on that subject. Having made my disclosure, I can return to the fun stuff.

An important issue here is that Sonoco is engaging in "W-R&D." Recall past columns where I discussed the differences in "H-R&D" (how we make products) and "W-R&D" (what we make). I made the case that the only certain way to success is to engage in "W-R&D" vigorously to produce highly innovative, highly desirable products. I am excited to find a company actually doing this.

SONOBoard[TM] 3D and Spaceboard result from a densification process dissimilar to paper or paperboard manufacture. The resulting product has attributes more like engineered wood products than like paper or paperboard products. According to Sonoco, the material can be absolutely flat or shaped for use in curved surface applications.

Sonoco suggests that potential applications include laminates for production of office furniture to eliminate the main distribution frame, military airlift pallets that will naturally disintegrate over time leaving no post-deployment pollution problems, point of purchase displays, and more.

When I wrote about "W-R&D," an important issue I stated was that innovations must be at the molecular level for the potential of a big pay-off. The product described here meets that criterion. Its manufacture is not an obvious extension of papermaking although the raw material is exactly the same as that used for recycled linerboard and medium production. Sonoco had the leadership, foresight, and incentive to take a risk at the molecular level and develop this commercially viable product.

Sonoco will face many marketing and economic problems before it turns this product into a financial winner. Conceiving a product is a first step. Making a product using sound scientific and engineering principles is something else. Having a business success is a necessary third phase. This product will require manufacturing costs to make it economical compared with competitive products. It must also overcome the volatility of the OCC market. The combination of a clever product with many obvious applications should help the Sonoco team realize financial rewards from this endeavor. At the end of the day, this is what business is all about--making the invoice printer hum.

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About the author: Jim Thompson is chairman and CEO of Talo Analytic International, Inc., Atlanta. He is also a member of the TAPPI Editorial Board and writes the weekly column "Nip Impressions" in TAPPI's weekly electronic newsletter, Over-the-Wire. Contact him at [e-mail].