M&W PLANT OFFICIALLY ON LINE; DIGNITARIES ON HAND FOR DEDICATION

"This is a milestone in M&W history."

With those words, Dieter Mildenberger, a founder and president of Mildenberger & Willing (M&W) Packaging Inc., helped dedicate the new M&W facility north of Cape Girardeau Wednesday. The company is headquartered in Gronau, Germany.

"We're in full production here now," said Mildenberger, in reference to the $40 million, 147,000-square-foot plant that produces packaging materials for a variety of products. "We look at this new facility, with its modern production equipment, with great pride."

Mildenberger was one of several persons who offered brief remarks during the dedication ceremony, held beneath a huge tent beside one of the seven factory buildings on the 30-acre site near the Procter & Gamble plant.

Harry Sanders, vice president of manufacturing for the firm and manager of the local facility, served as master of ceremonies for the dedication.

Participating in the dedication from Germany were Peter Mager, board chairman of Nordenia, parent company of M&W, and Walter Steinbeck of W&H Machinery Systems, which provided the press equipment for the plant.

Also speaking at the dedication were Missouri Gov. John Ashcroft; Procter & Gamble officers Philip W. Larson, John Green, and Kerry Welker; Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce President Robert Hendrix; and Lloyd Smith, an aide to U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson.

"It was just two years ago that I was in Cape Girardeau to announce that M&W had selected the site across from Procter & Gamble for its first U.S. operation," Mildenberger told the crowd of more than 150 persons who gathered under a tent for the dedication ceremonies. "This was not an easy task, but it's one that we can look at with pride today."

The new facility, which employs more than 100 persons, can manufacture 50 bags a minute, or up to 12 million bags a month.

Mildenberger also complimented Saueressig Engineering, which has opened a branch facility at the M&W site to provide printing cylinders for the M&W operation.

In his remarks, Ashcroft said he was "delighted at having the opportunity to welcome M&W as a new corporate citizen to Missouri."

Ashcroft met personally with top M&W executives in Cape Girardeau during the company's site search. He praised the efforts of county, city and state government, and local private industry in attracting the German firm to Missouri.

"The decision by M&W to locate here resulted in outstanding commitment and cooperation among everyone involved," said Ashcroft. "We want this to be a good company and prosper. M&W will create new jobs."

Ashcroft pointed out that Procter & Gamble had provided land next to its plant for the M&W facility, while the state provided a $500,000 grant to help extend public water lines to the plant site.

"P&G has worked together with M&W in the past," said P&G Plant Manager Philip Larson.

"We're fortunate that the firm has put together a good leadership team to provide us with quality packaging. We're delighted to see M&W here."

The M&W operation comprises seven buildings, ranging from the raw-materials warehouse to the manufacturing of flat layers of plastic film and the seven-color, bag-making process.

Following the dedication and a ribbon-cutting ceremony, the visitors were taken on tours of the plant, in groups of 20 to 25 people.

The Cape Girardeau M&W plant will concentrate on the production of plastic bags for five Procter & Gamble Paper Products plants in the U.S., although it will also produce other products.

More than 50 percent of all M&W products consists of high-quality packaging materials, with the seven-color plastic bags for P&G comprising about 30 percent of the packaging materials.

The other 50 percent of the company's products consists of a film product used for the packaging of handkerchiefs, frozen food and other consumer items.