Registration for the R2R USA Conference & Expo, May 19–21, at the Huntington Convention Center in Cleveland, Ohio, is open for attendees and exhibitors. Sponsorship opportunities are also available. Plan now to participate as an attendee, exhibitor, and/or sponsor.
Organized by ARC, the first springtime R2R USA Conference & Expo will bring together the entire industry for technical sessions, networking opportunities, and an expanded exhibition where converters, suppliers, and manufacturers can collaborate.
For sponsors and exhibitors, the event will present unparalleled opportunities for meeting customers and prospective customers. The expo portion of the event will offer more floor space and booth options. “Exhibitors requested larger booths to show more of what their companies offer,” says Chris Kerscher, executive director of ARC. “This year, we have 10 x 10-, 10 x 20-, and 20 x 20-foot booths. Bigger booths attract more attention and provide more space to highlight equipment and other products. We anticipate exhibitors will make their booths more interactive with demos, hands-on experiences, or equipment to engage attendees and convert them to customers.”
“We invite all members of the converting industry to attend what is expected to be a record-breaking R2R USA Conference & Expo,” says ARC President Bob Pasquale, who also serves as senior vice president of technology at New Era Converting. “Everyone in attendance will reap the benefits ARC offers the industry: access to industry experts, new business development, and educational opportunities focused on the latest technology, best practices, and skill building.”
With the shift from its usual fall dates to May 2026, ARC’s R2R USA Conference & Expo will carry on the tradition of the International Converting Expo and Conference (ICEC), its long-time partner, which united the industry each spring for education, networking, and business development. Pasquale notes, “For more than a decade, ARC (formerly AIMCAL) partnered with ICEC USA to provide technical programming at the show. With ICEC USA no longer taking place, ARC’s R2R USA Conference will now fill that role.”
Attendees at R2R USA will benefit from an expansive educational agenda, including half-day converting fundamentals sessions for newcomers to the industry, keynote addresses, and technical presentations organized in seven tracks: battery, coating and laminating, printing, sustainability, flexible packaging, web handling, and vacuum metallizing. Additional presentations will focus on emerging trends, such as extended producer responsibility and AI in manufacturing. With a full slate of technical content, R2R USA provides the ideal setting for continuing education, troubleshooting, and innovation. The agenda also includes ARC’s annual meeting.
Connecting the industry is core to ARC’s mission, and the R2R USA schedule delivers multiple opportunities for networking, including the kickoff and evening exhibitor receptions, the annual 5K run to benefit the Bernard Henry Scholarship Fund, and the farewell happy hour. Another highlight, the ARC awards ceremony, recognizes innovations in product, technology, and sustainability categories, a WISE (Women in Industry Scholarship for Excellence) winner, Hall of Honor inductees, and other honorees.
Cleveland, the host city, is within easy driving distance for many global brands, as well as printers, converters, and material providers. It also boasts deep industrial roots associated with polymers, coatings, packaging, solar, rubber and tires, paints, batteries, and labels.
For more information and to register for, exhibit at, or sponsor the R2R USA Conference & Expo, please visit www.rolltoroll.org/2026-r2r-usa. You can also flip to page 24 for further highlights of key sessions and reasons you don’t want to miss this groundbreaking event! █
In 2026, Converting Quarterly (CQ) celebrates its 15th year of serving the roll-to-roll industry. As ARC marks this milestone, it has partnered with YGS Association Solutions to publish the magazine, handle its digital activities, and continue broadening its connection to the converting community.
“The YGS team has decades of experience working with associations,” reports Chris Kerscher, executive director of ARC. “Their knowledge in marketing, design, and digital media will help expand CQ’s reach and impact in exciting ways. For 15 years, CQ has been a leading publication for our industry. We will remain true to the core strategy while exploring new ways to reach our audience.”
Kerscher also expressed heartfelt thanks to Mark A. Spaulding and Peterson Media Group for their many years of partnership and care in editing and publishing CQ. He notes, “Their leadership helped make CQ the trusted, respected publication it is today. We’re grateful for everything they helped build and look forward to continuing it as CQ enters its next chapter. ARC is proud to call CQ our magazine, and we look forward to serving our members the highest-quality technically focused industry content.” █
Applications are open for the 2026 Women in Industry Scholarship for Excellence (WISE). Each year, ARC honors a woman making an impact in the roll-to-roll industry and invests in her career growth by providing funds to pay down student loan debt.
“The WISE is different from the traditional model because it supports women who have already chosen careers in our industry,” says Ginger Cushing of G Prime LLC, chair of the Women’s Leadership Committee. “Instead of funding upfront education costs, it helps them reduce the burden of student loans, allowing them to focus on building their careers in the roll-to-roll industry. For our member companies, the WISE provides a tangible way to attract and retain talented women in our field. We invite corporate partners to join us in sustaining this effort by sponsoring our endowment fund.”
“Investing in women within the roll-to-roll industry … means encouragement, inclusivity and opportunity,” says Kenzie Claypool Justice, scientist II, North America flexible packaging R&D, at H.B. Fuller, who won the WISE in 2024. “I would encourage anybody to apply,” adding that the impact of the WISE goes far beyond the financial. When Justice won, she had been in her position for about five months.
Receiving the WISE not only provided some debt relief but also gave her an introduction to the industry. “I had the opportunity to go to the R2R Conference and meet people I wouldn’t otherwise meet and hear their perspectives as well as learn more about the scope of the industry beyond adhesives and laminating,” she recalls.
Since then, she’s continued to gain knowledge within the field, and her career is evolving with added responsibilities and independence.
To learn more about the WISE and submit an application, visit www.rolltoroll.org/wise-scholarship or scan the QR code on this page. █
The 2026 ARC Industry Awards, celebrating the best in roll-to-roll manufacturing, will recognize the best product, technology, and sustainability advancements in five technical groups: coating and laminating, printing, sustainability, vacuum web coating, and web handling.
Winners will be announced at R2R USA Conference & Expo, May 19–21, in Cleveland, Ohio. Winners will be featured year round on the ARC and Converting Quarterly websites, receive press coverage, social media highlights, and exposure at PACK EXPO and the WorldStar Global Packaging Awards.
ARC awards are open to everyone regardless of membership status. Entries must represent roll-to-roll manufacturing or related products, equipment, or materials. To submit an entry, visit www.rolltoroll.org/arc-industry-awards or the links at the end of this page. █
The ARC Summit program continues in 2026 with technical sessions focused on accelerating medical manufacturing by connecting engineering excellence with leadership decision-making. The event, scheduled for Sept. 29–30, 2026, in Minneapolis, will focus on six roll-to-roll segments in the medical field: wound care, dressings, and first aid packaging (sterile, barrier, sustainable); wearables, sensors, and flexible electronics; PPE and disposable medical products; diagnostic test strips and biosensors; filtration and membranes; wipes and cleaning supplies.
Potential topics include: scaling innovations from prototype to roll-to-roll process to improve time to market; materials, coatings, and functional laminations compatible with medical applications; regulatory compliance and documentation for supplier validation; web handling and process reliability for thin medical films; medical packaging (barrier coatings and sterilization); role of contract converters for supply chain resilience; and capital investment decisions —contract vs. in-house production.
Plan now to attend. Sponsorship opportunities are also available. █
Membership in the Association for Roll-to-Roll Converters (ARC) continues to grow, especially internationally. Since the last issue of Converting Quarterly, six organizations have joined. The newcomers are headquartered in the U.S., France, and Germany and represent an array of products and services for the converting industry.
44 Maple Group companies, such as Flexcon (Spencer, MA), Arlon Graphics (Placentia, CA), and Blueshift (Spencer, MA), specialize in coating, laminating, and finishing process knowledge of roll-to-roll flexible materials to produce graphic films, thermal management, color-changing film, functional films, labels, and adhesives. Key markets include durable packaging, automotive, aerospace and defense, and medical. (www.44maplegroup.com)
ATE (Alsace Techniques Etiquetage, Val de Moder, France) focuses on printing, cutting, and laminating adhesive and non-adhesive materials. An international expert in high-precision, technical die-cutting, its equipment guarantees tight tolerances and repeatability in the automation of label application and die-cutting. (www.alsace-techniques-etiquetage.fr/en)
HS Group GmbH manufactures systems for precision vacuum coating and substrate drying. Located near Frankfurt in Hainburg, Germany, and part of Von Ardenne Group since March 2022, the company offers PVD and PECVD technologies — including magnetron sputtering, ion beam sputtering, and boat evaporation — for lab-scale to fully automated production applications. Retrofits extend the lifespan of older systems. (www.hsg-vacuum.com/english)
IST America, Shorewood, Illinois, a subsidiary of IST METZ GmbH & Co., Nürtingen, Germany, was founded in 1992 and offers sales, service, parts, and application expertise for advanced curing systems for inks, varnishes, silicones, adhesives, resins, and other materials. Options include high-performance ultraviolet (UV) lamp and UV LED systems, warm air infrared drying systems, excimer, hybrid, FREEcure, and SMARTcure technologies. (www.ist-uv.com/en-us)
tms, Chicago, Illinois, combines world-class capabilities in marketing, technology, and sourcing to reimagine how brands present themselves. Operating as a creative agency, a strategic consultancy, a sourcing business, and a technology provider, the company connects people to brands via 30 offices worldwide. With more than 400 brand partnerships, the firm engages 100 million people per day across 100 countries. (www.tms.com)
Visit rolltoroll.org/2026-r2r-usa to register for the R2R USA Conference & Expo today.
Visit rolltoroll.org/2026-arc-summit to learn more about the ARC Summit, coming this fall to Minneapolis.
Visit rolltoroll.org/arc-industry-awards to submit your entry to ARC’s 2026 Industry Awards.
WEKO (Weitmann & Konrad GmbH & Co. KG), a specialist in fluid and powder coating, was founded in 1951. Based near Stuttgart in Leinfelden-Echterdingen, Germany, the company serves the print, paper, plastic film, textile, nonwoven, tissue, and wood fiberboard industries from 13 offices around the globe. WEKO North America, Inc., established in 1997 with a print industry focus, now serves all WEKO’s customers from Spartanburg, South Carolina. (www.weko.net/en) █
