Sonoco and IPICO Introduce Embedded Identification Technology to the Paper Industry

Sonoco Provides Intellicore Cores to Paper Manufacturers Using IPICO’s Technology

HARTSVILLE, S.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sonoco (NYSE:SON), one of the largest diversified global packaging companies, and IPICO Inc. (TSX-V: RFD) today announced the availability of the world’s first RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) enabled core solution specifically designed for the paper industry.

“This technology can be read through any size of paper roll, which allows for easy management throughout the product’s life cycle.”

Using IPICO’s dual frequency technology, the new fiber cores allow customers to automatically identify, track, and locate paper rolls at any point in the supply chain.

“IPICO and Sonoco have developed a unique process by which RFID technology is embedded in fiber-based cores. Sonoco is using this process to produce its new Intellicore engineered carriers which are specifically designed to meet the unique needs of paper manufactures,” said John Colyer, Sonoco vice president, Industrial Products – North America. “This technology can be read through any size of paper roll, which allows for easy management throughout the product’s life cycle.”

Sonoco is the world’s largest manufacturer of fiber-based tubes and cores, many of which are used by companies around the world to package various grades and types of paper.

“Until now, the paper industry hasn’t been able to seamlessly provide real time tracking and location for the hundreds of millions of rolls it produces annually,” said Gordon Westwater, president and chief executive officer of IPICO. “Working with Sonoco and using IPICO’s leading identification technology, we have created what we believe will quickly become the RFID standard for the paper industry.”

Leading paper manufacturers have long sought reliable and cost-effective tools to help their customers instantly track exact paper roll location, recognizing that paper grade identification, storage visibility and waste reduction are key opportunities for cost savings and profit enhancement. This new technology shows potential to deliver important financial and environmental benefits to customers around the world, and is designed as an end-to-end management solution dedicated to improving the user’s bottom line.

“The RFID-enabled paper rolls represent a step-change in material management for our site. We have a solution that is actually working and enables automatic goods receipt and matching against order and shipping document without any manual intervention,” said Mike Ramsay, managing director, Mondi March Corrugated Packaging. “The system gives the site real-time, fool-proof data that enables us to determine exactly which reel has been used for each customer product. This, for the first time, gives us full traceability so that we can guarantee to a customer that the correct type and source of paper has been used. The technology is so simple to use that it provides a win-win solution with accurate data reporting and at less cost to acquire through savings in labor, waste, stock levels and stock outs.”

About Sonoco

Founded in 1899, Sonoco is a $4.0 billion global manufacturer of consumer and industrial products and provider of packaging services, with 334 operations in 35 countries, serving customers in some 85 nations. For more information on the Company, visit our Web site at http://www.sonoco.com/.

About IPICO

IPICO Inc. is a Burlington, Ontario, Canada-based RFID solution supplier with operations in Canada, United States, Europe, South Africa, Asia and Australia. IPICO produces smart labels, tags and readers based on the IP-X communication protocol. Its products are designed to conform to regulatory requirements in most major geographical regions, to excel at long read range, fast multi-read anti-collision and high thru-beam read-speeds of dynamic tag populations, and to allow for multi-reader rollout in close proximity. IPICO’s products are used to optimize the management of products, equipment, people, animals and processes within the logistics and other value chains. For further information, go to www.ipico.com.