Welcome to your new Solutions!

It started out as a conversation, was developed as a publishing concept, became the basis of a financial agreement, and finally emerged as the magazine you are reading right now, Solutions! for People, Processes and Paper. This new publication is the result of several months of planning and hard work by a unique group of association and publishing professionals from TAPPI, the leading technical association for the worldwide pulp, paper, and converting industry, and PIMA, the premier association for management professionals in the paper and pulp industry.

IN THE BEGINNING...

Earlier this year, TAPPI and PIMA began discussions on combining their respective publications, TAPPI JOURNAL and PIMA's Papermaker, into a new publication that would serve the changing needs of their members and the worldwide paper industry. The senior executives and presidents of TAPPI and PIMA charged a small team of publishing professionals from both associations with the task of developing a comprehensive plan for a joint publication. After an intensive two-day meeting in Chicago and follow up work in the subsequent weeks, the publications development team presented a unified plan that was accepted and enthusiastically endorsed by the leadership of both organizations. After several weeks of negotiations, PIMA agreed to sell its Papermaker assets--including International Papermaker--to TAPPI for an undisclosed sum.

The goal of TAPPI and PIMA was to create not just a combination of their existing monthly publications, but a unique new magazine that would truly integrate information on technology, management, as well as the "networking" needed to disseminate that information throughout the pulp and paper industry. The new publication, named Solutions! for People, Processes and Paper by the development team, had a new editorial profile, editorial calendar and an experienced publishing team drawn from both PIMA and TAPPI. In the new organization, both the editorial and sales teams include staffers from both organizations (see photo). While TAPPI owns and operates the publication, it remains the official magazine of both PIMA and TAPPI and includes news from the two organizations.

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The publication is designed for a broad range of readers, from students to CEOs, and its main goal is to provide solutions useful to them at every level of their careers, from student to retiree. In short, Solutions! is designed to be a lifetime connection to the best available technical, management and networking opportunities in the paper industry.

Solutions! recognizes that it is the connections among all pulp and paper disciplines that fuel industry innovation, and we will explore the many local, regional and international networking opportunities available in our industry.

Editorial contributions will come from a variety of sources, including editorial staff members in bureaus located in North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America; the Solutions! Editorial Board; and outside contributors. The magazine's circulation will be global, making it the only monthly paper industry publication to have significant circulation to the worldwide paper industries. Our pledge to you is to continuously offer solutions for people, processes and paper while providing a provocative, in-depth analysis of the industry's issues and challenges--all within the context of the TAPPI and PIMA missions.