The Sterilization Packaging Manufacturers Council (SPMC®) recently added an associate member category to its structure. The expansion is a significant milestone for the council, which was founded by and composed of converter members for nearly 30 years.
“As a collaborative organization focused on medical packaging safety, we want the best and brightest within the SPMC®,” says Dhuanne Dodrill, SPMC® chair and PAXXUS, Inc. president and CEO. “Welcoming other organizations from our supply chain will expand our knowledge base and strengthen our consensus guidance.”
SPMC® worked closely with the Flexible Packaging Association (FPA) for nearly two years to develop the associate member category. It was agreed that SPMC® associate member companies must already be members of FPA, which are primarily engaged in the manufacture of materials, equipment or supplies, testing, or services related to healthcare flexible packaging. “Primarily” is defined as 50% or more of the company’s or division’s activities. SPMC® associate member companies must also have sales activity in the United States.
“SPMC® member companies enjoy high name recognition and collectively produce the majority of all sterilizable flexible packaging materials used in the U.S. We take our leadership role very seriously.”
—Dhuanne Dodrill, SPMC® chair and PAXXUS, Inc. president and CEO
To join SPMC® as a converter member, a company must be primarily involved in the conversion of raw materials into packaging components for devices that are sterilized in the packaging and maintained in sterile condition. “Conversion” is defined as at least two of the following: coating, laminating, forming, perforating, printing, sealing (including pouch and bag making), and cutting (as in precut lids). The company must also host converting activities in the U.S., be a member of FPA, and have a separate unit for healthcare or sterilization packaging sales. Companies that sell to healthcare but do not have a separate healthcare division or unit are encouraged to join as associate members.
SPMC® has welcomed several new companies, including associate members Berry Global, Charter Next Generation, and DuPontTM Tyvek® Healthcare Packaging.
SteriPax, Winpak Ltd., and Vonco Products, LLC have recently joined SPMC® as converter members. These companies join longstanding converter member companies Amcor Flexibles, Beacon Converters, Inc., PAXXUS, Inc., PPC Flex, Printpack Medical, and Technipaq, Inc.
“SPMC® member companies enjoy high name recognition and collectively produce the majority of all sterilizable flexible packaging materials used in the U.S.,” Dodrill explains. “We take our leadership role very seriously. This means collaborating voluntarily with standards organizations like the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation to create test methods and guidance that help advance the safety and efficacy of flexible medical packaging. Joining SPMC® is not only an opportunity to elevate your profile but an opportunity to give back to this incredible packaging sector that exists solely to protect patients.”
Representatives from SPMC®’s member companies are expected to be active on each of the council’s committees, which include the Technical Committee, Marketing Committee, Sustainability and Regulatory Committee, and Executive Committee. To learn more about the dues and membership structure, SPMC® encourages interested companies to reach out to Emily Patten, FPA director of membership and meetings, at epatten@flexpack.org.
Lourdes Pogue is partner and creative director at Merakke. Reach her at lourdes@merakke.com.