Charlotte, North Carolina, September 4, 2015—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America is hosting another stop on its Harper Roadshow 360 tour in Seattle, Washington. Seats are going quickly for this free, one-day seminar, so interested individuals are encouraged to register now to reserve their spot.

This year’s Harper Roadshow features new topics and industry-leading speakers who will discuss not only high quality production of products, but also how to get the most out of them. Attendees will learn more about running efficient and competitive operations and incorporating some of the latest flexographic technology and principles into their business.

Converters/Printers from the Flexographic industry are invited to attend, including managing directors, print managers, supervisors, pre-press managers, graphic designers, press operators, general managers, and purchasing staff. 

The event will be held at the Doubletree Suites, 16500 Southcenter Parkway, Seattle, Washington, on September 22, 2015. There is no charge to attend but seating is limited, so register online today at www.harperimage.com/roadshows/Seattle-WA/453

For more information, please contact Jazmin Cordero at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jcordero@harperimage.com

 

Charlotte, North Carolina, October 15, 2018—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America has been traveling around the United States for its 2018 Harper Expo & Solutions Tour. These events have all been met with great success, and the Tour is about to host its final stop for the year in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on October 25.

This one-day event brings together professionals from all facets of the flexographic industry to learn more about running efficient and competitive operations, succeeding in the short run, and implementing solutions to address current pressroom challenges. There will be presentations that appeal to Print Managers and Supervisors, Press Operators, Pre-Press Managers, Graphic Designers, General Managers, Purchasers, and Ink, Plate, and Pre-Press Suppliers and Operators.

Flexographic printing experts from Harper Corporation of America and Harper GraphicSolutions will be joined by representatives from Flexo Wash, GEW Limited, Meca Solutions, and Enercon Industries to provide technical presentations on the latest issues and trends within the industry. There will also be more than a dozen exhibitors with tabletop presentations that attendees can browse.

The event is free for converters, printers, teachers, students, and educational institutions, but seats are filling up fast, so make sure to register online at http://www.harperimage.com/roadshows/Brooklyn-Center-MN/632. The event will be held on Thursday, October 25, 2018 at the Embassy Suites Minneapolis North, 6300 Earle Brown Drive, Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Siancas at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jsiancas@harperimage.com.

 

 

Charlotte, North Carolina, October 6, 2015—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America will be hosting a complimentary one-day seminar in Mesquite, TX, as part of its 2015 Harper Roadshow. The seminar will feature experts from the throughout the industry discussing a wide range of topics regarding flexographic printing.

Presentations will cover not only how to produce high quality products, but also how to use them most effectively. Attendees will be able to see valuable demonstrations and hear speakers both from Harper and other leading companies in the industry. Topics covered will appeal to everyone from print managers, print supervisors, general managers, graphic designers, pre-press managers and press operators. The Harper team will also demonstrate how to match ink proofs to press using Harper's QD™ proofer in order to improve press up time.

Harper Corporation of America encourages interested individuals to attend and learn more about how to incorporate the latest flexographic technology and principles into their business to run operations as efficiently and competitively as possible.

There is no charge to attend, but seating is limited, so register quickly to reserve a spot. The one-day seminar will be held on Thursday October 15, 2015 at the Hampton Inn & Suites in Mesquite, TX. Register online at http://www.harperimage.com/roadshows/Mesquite-TX/456.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Cordero at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or via email at jcordero@harperimage.com.

Charlotte, North Carolina, December 17, 2012—The DePere, Wisconsin, location of global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America has been honored with a 2012 Best of DePere Award in the category of printing trades machinery. The Harper team appreciates this recognition and thanks all of its customers for their support.

The company was selected for the 2012 Best of DePere Award because of the strong work ethic that its team demonstrates. Ensuring customer satisfaction is more than a goal at Harper Corporation—it is a way of business. Additionally, the Harper team works diligently to create flexographic tools and solutions that will assist customers in improving their printing operations. The innovation that has stemmed from the efforts of the professionals at Harper Corporation is groundbreaking, and the technology and products that the company has designed have positively impacted the efficiency, accuracy, and capabilities of its customers.

Harper Corporation of America is honored to receive the 2012 Best of DePere Award and will continue to provide the customer service for which it has become known. The company invites individuals in need of flexographic solutions to contact a Harper representative to learn more about the ways in which the organization has improved the communities in which it is located while providing the highest degree of service to its clientele.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Kluttz at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jkluttz@harperimage.com. 

Charlotte, North Carolina, January 7, 2013— An innovative force in the flexographic industry, global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America is already turning its attention to 2013. The company is scheduled to participate at the Flexible and Printed Electronics Conference and Exhibition from January 29 until February 1, where its representatives will be performing live flexographic and gravure process demonstrations and training.

For the event, Harper Corporation will team up with Clemson University and Cal Poly State University in the “East teams up with the West” double booth 51/52. Tony Donato and Alexander James will be working as educators and assisting the Universities in promoting the uses of package printing processes. They are excited to have the opportunity to promote flexography and gravure processes to the growing application of printed electronics and displays. Clemson will also be demonstrating screen printing. “This is a great opportunity to promote the processes of the packaging industry to the researchers and developers who attend FlexTech 2013,” says Chip Tonkin, director of Clemson’s Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics.

"This year, we will be performing live drawdowns for all three days using the Phantom QD System’s flat bed printing features," Donato reports. "We are eagerly anticipating the chance to showcase how this technology can be used to simulate these printing processes for the researchers who are pushing the ever growing printed electronics to their limits. The QD system has been expanded to print as a flexo coater, printing flexo plate images, direct gravure coatings, and offset gravure images. Harper Corporation has been and will continue to be a big promoter of industry education and we are proud of what these schools are doing to train tomorrow's industry leaders."

The event will be held at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, Arizona. The Hyatt Regency Phoenix has been designated as the event's conference hotel. With over 75 technical sessions, over 20 student presentations, and over 600 attendees, it is expected to be incredibly insightful while allowing professionals the ability to network with industry leaders.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Kluttz at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jkluttz@harperimage.com.

Charlotte, North Carolina, July 01, 2014—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America is excited to announce that Greg Harms has accepted the position as Technical Account Manager for the Midwest Narrow Web territory. He will start in this new role on July 1 and will be relocating to Minnesota.

Harms has amassed more than 20 years of experience in production and management throughout the flexographic industry. He joined Harper Corporation in May 2012 as the Southeast HGS Advisor, a role that he has excelled in. Prior to this position, he was the Operations Manager at St. Louis Pressure Sensitive. As operations manager, he focused on team building, lean manufacturing, cost reduction, and more.

Through his diverse experience and knowledge, Harper Corporation is confident that Harms will be successful in helping the Northeast grow and thrive. During his free time, Harms enjoys spending time with his family and friends.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Cordero at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jcordero@harperimage.com

Charlotte, North Carolina, May 6, 2013—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America is saddened to announce the passing of Mrs. Katherine Harper, 80, of Stanley, who joined her Lord in Heaven on May 3, 2014.

Mrs. Harper was born August 23, 1933 to James and Margaret Hodges of Charlotte. She spent her childhood at her home on Kenilworth Avenue in Charlotte, and in her father’s downtown restaurant, Jim’s Grill. Mrs. Harper graduated from Charlotte’s O’Donoghue Catholic High School in 1951, and met Ron Harper, the love of her life, later that year in Wilmington, N.C.  Katherine and her husband Ron raised a family of five children and spent nearly 40 years of their married life working together in the printing industry.  In 1971, they founded their own manufacturing company, Harper Corporation of America, with manufacturing facilities in Charlotte, NC and DePere, WI, as well as a licensee in Bangkok, Thailand – Harper/Asia Pacific – which Katherine was the President of for 36 years until her retirement in 2006.  They formed a joint venture, Harper/Love Adhesives Corp. with an N.B. Love Adhesives – Australia, as well as Harper Machinery Corp. (which they sold in 1989).  Katherine and Ron worked successfully as a team, side-by-side in their companies.

A loving devoted wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, entrepreneur, business woman, and philanthropist, Mrs. Harper was a compassionate, poised, and inspiring woman. Her ready smile and warm hugs will be deeply missed by those who knew her.

In addition to a devoted and loving family, Mrs. Harper leaves a legacy of business success and extensive philanthropy. During her career, she served on – and led – many boards and committees in flexographic technical associations – often as the first woman to do so. The Business Journalrecognized her as Business Woman of the Year in 1999.

Mrs. Harper also has worked extensively in government. North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt appointed her to the N.C. Banking Commission (1983-1985), the N.C. Advisory Board for Workforce Development (1990-1992), and the N.C. Small Business Council (1993-1997). The U.S. Secretary of Commerce appointed Mrs. Harper to the U.S. Export Council of North Carolina (1995 – 2000), and she received the Governor’s Excellence in Workforce Development Award in 1995. Mrs. Harper served as Gov. Jim Hunt’s Mecklenburg County Finance Chair for his Senate campaign in 1984, and ran for the U.S. Senate herself in 1986.

Mrs. Harper’s dedication to philanthropy, alongside with her late husband, Ron, particularly in flexo education, made her truly legendary. Evidence of it is visible in the myriad of institutions and endowments that bear her name: Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) is home to a Harper Campus and the Harper National Flexographic Center. The college also manages a Ron and Katherine Harper Scholarship Fund. Appalachian State University in Boone is home to Katherine Harper Hall and the Harper Flexographic Museum.

The Flexo Trade School in Fort Mill, South Carolina, boasts a state-of-the-art Harper Lab of Flexography. DiTrolio Flexographic Institute in Chicago features the Ron and Katherine Harper Flexo Lab.

Other enduring testaments to Mrs. Harper’s generosity are the Harper Endowment at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California; the Harper Scholarship Fund and the Harper Flexo Technology Wing at Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton, Wisconsin; and the Ron and Katherine Harper Scholarship Fund and Harper Center of Graphics Technology at Dunwoody College of Technology in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Phoenix Challenge Foundation offers a Katherine Harper Teacher’s Education Fund. The Foundation of the Flexographic Technical Association in Ronkonkoma, New York, also offers a Ron & Katherine Harper Scholarship.

Mrs. Harper was the first female chairman of the Foundation of the Flexographic Technical Association International Forum and also the first female to chair an International Conference for the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry. In 2007, Mr. and Mrs. Harper became the founding sponsors of the FTA Technical Education Services Team (TEST) program, an extensive industry educational initiative.

She was a board member of the Appalachian State University Foundation as well as the Central Piedmont Community College Foundation. CPCC honored her with the Ben Franklin Award in 1996, and three years later, she won the Flexographic Technical Association’s (FTA) President’s Award. In October 2007, Appalachian State University`s Chancellor, Ken Peacock, bestowed honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters degrees upon both Mr. and Mrs. Harper.

During a lifetime of 75 years in Charlotte and then Stanley, Mrs. Harper contributed to the community in numerous other ways. She served St. Patrick Church as president of the Ladies Guild, and conducted numerous fund raising activities for the Catholic school system. She served A Child’s Place as a member of the advisory board. Her ardent support for the Greater Carolinas Chapter of the American Red Cross moved the organization to name a facility that improves response time to citizens in crisis the Katherine Harper Disaster Staging Area, and appoint her the honorary co-chair of the Tiffany Circle, a Red Cross-sponsored organization of successful business women.

For her generosity and commitment to community service and philanthropy, Mrs. Harper was selected as Charlotte’s 2007 Woman of Spirit, and she and her husband were named 2007 Manufacturing Champions by the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce. That same year the couple also was honored with Printing Industries of America’s Excellence In Education Award.

In 2008, the American Technical Education Association presented the Harpers with the Silver Star of Excellence Award, the National Technical Honor Society inducted them both into its Hall of Fame, and the Flexographic Technical Association honored them with the Educational Leadership Award.

Mrs. Harper made a great impact in Gaston County with husband Ron Harper in leading the program to place a Smart Board in every classroom in the county. The Harper’s contribution to the Smart Board program exceeded two million dollars. Mrs. and Mr. Harper led the drive for a community park in Stanley that opened in 2012 and is named Harper Park.

In her memoir, The Longer I Live, the More I Learn, Mrs. Harper wrote that she wished to be remembered "as someone who had experienced and shared the love of God in this life."

She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Ron Harper on April 14, 2012. She is survived by her sons Daniel Harper, Jim (Heather) Harper, and Christopher Harper; daughters Margie (Hal) Kluttz and Georgia (Derek) Patterson; twenty grandchildren and thirteen great-grandchildren; and brothers-in-law Dick (Norma) Harper, Gary (Mona) Harper, and Steve (Linda) Harper. A special thanks to Candi Lethcoe, Kim Jones, Morgan Foxx and all of the caregivers with Stress Free Home Care for their dedication and tender loving care.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at Carothers Funeral Home, 412 South Main Street, Stanley, NC on Friday, May 9, 2014 at 2:00 p.m. 

Friday, May 9th….We will have a "Gathering" of Family and Friends at the First Baptist Church – 409 Old Mount Holly Road, Stanley – after the Celebration of Life Service. First Baptist is about 2-3 minutes from Carothers Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to: Gaston Hospice, P.O. Box 3984, Gastonia, NC 28054; or Alzheimer's Association Western Carolina Chapter, 3800 Shamrock Drive, Charlotte, NC 28215.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Cordero at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jcordero@harperimage.com.

 

Charlotte, North Carolina, March 4, 2019—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America recently participated in the FLEX 2019 and MSTC event and was able to showcase its cutting-edge technology and products to professionals from throughout the flexible, hybrid, and printed electronics fields. Attendees could visit FLEX 2019 programs as well as sessions through the MEMS & Sensors Technical Congress (MSTC).

This year’s FLEX theme was Electronics Out of the Box, while the theme for MSTC was Sensor Systems Enabling Autonomous Mobility. The event offered a multitude of informational sessions, keynote speakers, and exhibits for participants to learn, discuss, and network with one another regarding the latest advancements in the industry.

Harper Corporation of America marked its 10th anniversary participating in the MSTC conference this year. The company hosted a booth exhibit and had personnel on hand to answer questions regarding the company’s advanced technology, products, and equipment. The company discussed many of its ground-breaking offerings, including the QD™ Flatbed Ink Proofer and Multi-Process Printer. This system provides both direct and offset gravure printing capabilities and utilizes Harper’s XDI™ imaging engraving, allowing it to engrave almost anything that can be imaged in a TIF file. All of Harper’s cylinders are ceramic coated and laser engraved to the same high-quality standard that makes Harper the leading anilox supplier.

When Harper attended its first FLEX and MSTC conference in 2010 in Phoenix, Arizona, it introduced QD as a way to stimulate roll-to-roll printing processes. Since then, the company has adapted its QD family of flatbed printers to add new features and options that facilitate the testing and development of functional inks for the printed electronics emerging market. Now, 10 years later, Harper is a trusted and accepted member of the printed electronics (PE) community.

Harper Corporation of America looks forward to the FLEX and MSTC conference each year as a way to engage with users and exchange ideas and techniques to best conduct testing in the functional printing market. As the number of universities and research laboratories that use QD continues to grow, students are beginning to transition into professional roles within the industry and leverage their QD experience. Harper remains committed supporting education and research as it explores new features that are necessary to continuously improve the QD flatbed printer in a changing market.

FLEX 2019 & MSTC was held February 18-21, 2019, in Monterey, California. Harper Corporation of America looks forward to attending future events and sharing its latest technology with industry professionals.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Siancas at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jsiancas@harperimage.com

 

 

  

Charlotte, North Carolina, October 6, 2014—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America is committed to providing exceptional products and services to its customers throughout the country and the world. To continue building on this success, Harper is pleased to announce that Gerry O’Hanlon has accepted the position of National Sales Manager for Wide Web effective October 1, 2014.

O’Hanlon joined the Harper Corporation of America team in 2012 as Southeast Technical Account Manager for Wide Web and will continue to assume these responsibilities simultaneously until the role is filled. With more than 25 years of experience in the printing industry, O’Hanlon brings fresh and creative ideas to the team that align with client needs and industry trends.

His solid knowledge of the industry is backed by a City & Guilds from the London College of Printing, which equates to a Bachelor’s degree in Printing Management and Printing Science accredited by Clemson University. In addition, O’Hanlon amassed 14 years of experience at RockTenn where he assumed positions of increasing responsibility and served as Plant Manager for the RockTenn Lebanon Folding Carton Facility in Lebanon, Tennessee, prior to joining the Harper Corporation.

O’Hanlon has a proven track record of building high performing teams and implementing cost-saving six sigma initiatives. He is passionate about sharing his knowledge and expertise in the industry and has been a valuable addition to the Harper Corporation team over the past two years.

Harper Corporation of America is proud to announce O’Hanlon’s transition to National Sales Manager for Wide Web and is excited about all that he brings to this role and the future of wide web services.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Cordero at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jcordero@harperimage.com

 

Charlotte, North Carolina, March 11, 2019—Global anilox roll supplier Harper Corporation of America is honored to once again be a purple sponsor for the 22nd Annual Phoenix Challenge High School Skills Competition, an event that the company has supported since its inception.

The competition brings together high school student teams from across the United States to demonstrate their skills in the flexographic process. They spend two of the two-and-a-half-day team event competing in five skill-related tests. They take a math test, the FTA FIRST Level One Operator examination, and a prepress skills test. For the hands-on portion, they are tested in plate making and a 90-minute two-color flexo press run judged by industry expert volunteers. There are other educational events and a plant tour for the students as well. There are expected to be 30-40 students competing in teams.

In addition to being a purple level sponsor for the competition, Harper Corporation of America encourages its employees to help as volunteers and pressroom judges. The first-place student team will receive medals and scholarships as well as a plaque and the coveted “Harper Cup” to display at their school for one year.

Harper Corporation of America is a strong supporter of education and both sponsors and participates in various initiatives throughout the year to raise funds for educational programs, scholarships, and other causes. The company, starting with Ron and Katherine Harper who were instrumental in the establishment of the Phoenix Challenge, continues in its commitment to helping build future generations of flexographic professionals.

The 22nd Annual Phoenix Challenge High School Skills Competition will be held March 20-22, 2019, at the Harper Campus of Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, North Carolina.

For more information, please contact Jazmin Siancas at 704-588-3371, ext. 4292, or jsiancas@harperimage.com