Gary Brewer of Package Crafters and Len Prazych, President/Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Board Converting News, co-presented the 2025 BCN/AICC Innovator of the Year Award. Atlas Container took home the first-place award for its Second Chance Program: From Detention to Successful Reintegration.
The Second Chance Program was designed to help incarcerated individuals to rediscover purpose through gainful employment. Through on the job training and mentorship, work release candidates receive on the job career training, a sense of purpose and a paycheck to help them re-establish their lives after their release. Atlas partners with local government agencies to identify and recruit candidates from local detention centers to fill open roles in the plant. The runner up for the Innovator of the Year Award was Liberty Diversified International with its innovation: Lead the Line Innovation in Frontline Leadership. In third place was Coastal Container and its One Page Plan Visual Management, which uses a forward-thinking strategy and quarterly planning to stay aligned with organizational goals and gaining buy-in from all team members.
