Company:Bemis Company

Bemis Company, Inc.

Type	Public
Traded as	NYSE: BMS S&P 400 Component
Industry	Packaging
Founded	1858
Founder	Judson Moss Bemis
Headquarters	Neenah, Wisconsin , United States
Key people	William F. Austen, President and CEO Michael B. Clauer, Vice President and CFO
Revenue	US$5.3B(FY 2011)
Operating income	US$367M (FY 2011)
Net income	US$184M (FY 2011)
Total assets	US$4.32B (FY 2011)
Total equity	US$1.58B (FY 2011)
Number of employees	20,165 (2011)
Website	www.bemis.com

Bemis Company, Inc. is a global manufacturer of flexible packaging products (ranging from self-venting cook-in-bag packaging and retort packaging for shelf-stable products, to vacuum packaging for meat products and puncture-resistant, sterile medical packaging) and pressure-sensitive materials. Bemis is headquartered in Neenah, Wisconsin in the United States. Its divisions are located in 12 countries and its films for packaging products and adhesive materials are distributed worldwide.

History

Bemis Inc. was founded by Judson Moss Bemis in 1858 in St. Louis, Missouri, as a manufacturer of printed cotton bags for food products. Its first location was on the second floor of a machine shop, which provided steam to operate the printing presses and readily available maintenance personnel for machine repairs.

Two key innovations Bemis' company originally pioneered were the printing and machine-sewing of bags. (Traditionally, bags were stenciled and hand-sewn.) Bemis' first order was for 200 half-barrel sacks. To allay worries that machine-sewn bags were inferior to traditional hand-sewn bags, Judson Bemis unconditionally guaranteed every bag his company manufactured.

In 1867, Judson Bemis' brother, Stephen A. Bemis, returned from the gold rush and joined Judson in the bag manufacturing business. Bemis Bro. Bag Co. opened its second plant in 1880 in Minneapolis, followed by a third in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1888. These plants were followed by others in New Orleans, Superior (WI), San Francisco, Indianapolis, Memphis, Kansas City, Seattle, and Winnipeg. In the early 1900s, Bemis opened its first paper bag manufacturing plant.

On July 25, 2003, Bemis Company, Inc. and UPM-Kymmene (NYSE:UPM) agreed to terminate their agreement to sell Bemis' Pressure Sensitive Materials Business to UPM-Kymmene. On April 15, 2003, the Department of Justice was granted an injunction to block the transaction.

In 2011, the company had net sales of $5.3 billion, operating 78 facilities in 12 countries. Over two-thirds of Bemis packaging is used in the food industry, with the balance used in markets including medical, pharmaceutical, chemical and agribusiness. Bemis' pressure-sensitive products are used in industries including graphic arts, digital imaging, assembly engineering, communications and medical. In July 2012 Bemis company announced a strategic partnership with Norwegian printed electronics company Thin Film Electronics ASA to bring printed electronics to existing Bemis packaging lines. In 2013 the company acquired a China-Based film platform. In 2014, Bemis Sold its Paper Packaging Division to Hood Packaging Corporation.

See also

• Bemis Omaha Bag Company Building
• Bemis, Tennessee
• Bemiston, Alabama

References

• Bemis 2007 Annual Report and Form 10-K as of December 31, 2007
• Bemis Company, Inc. - 150th Anniversary
• Bemis To Acquire Alcan Packaging Food Americas

External links

• Company homepage