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Rick Pallante is a highly accomplished President at Baumer hhs gluing systems, overseeing operations in the USA and Canada. With a tenure of over six years in his leadership role, Rick has played a pivotal role in advancing innovation and value within the adhesive solutions industry since assuming the presidency in February 2020. Based in Dayton, Ohio, his strategic guidance has positioned Baumer hhs as a key player in cutting-edge cold glue and hot melt dispensing and verification technology for the folding carton, corrugated, ppga, and packaging markets in North America. Before his presidency, Rick served as an astute Business Development Manager for Baumer hhs, where he demonstrated strategic acumen in fostering growth and expansion. His remarkable track record of over four years in that role contributed significantly to shaping the trajectory of the company. Prior to joining Baumer hhs, Rick held the position of Technical Sales Manager for EUKALIN Spezial-Klebstoff Fabrik GmbH, focusing on folding carton and corrugated markets in the Greater Atlanta Area. Throughout his career, Rick has consistently delivered value-added solutions, showcasing an unwavering commitment to driving success in the folding carton and corrugated manufacturing sectors.
Chad Petzke emerges as a pivotal force in the realm of print finishing, having assumed the vital role of Print Finishing Sales Manager at Baumer hhs GmbH for an impressive tenure exceeding nine years and eight months, commencing in June 2014. With an extensive background and steadfast commitment, Chad has been instrumental in propelling Baumer hhs to unparalleled success within the intricate landscape of print finishing. His wealth of experience not only showcases his profound industry knowledge but also positions him as a driving force behind the company’s achievements in this specialized sector. Chad’s unwavering dedication to excellence is evident in his tireless pursuit of delivering top-tier solutions to clients. As the Print Finishing Sales Manager, he consistently leads Baumer hhs towards sustained growth and success, navigating the dynamic and ever-evolving print finishing landscape with precision. Chad Petzke’s enduring impact and strategic contributions solidify him as a linchpin in the company’s journey, actively shaping its trajectory in the competitive print finishing market and establishing Baumer hhs as an industry leader under his adept guidance.
Baumer HHS, headquartered in Krefeld, Germany, is a global leader in providing dependable and innovative glue application and quality assurance systems. With a commitment to quality and precision as fundamental engineering principles, we offer professional services integral to our products. Collaborative partnerships with customers and suppliers drive solutions tailored to individual needs, supported by our trained sales staff and technicians, ensuring optimal system configuration, production, maintenance, and servicing. Specializing in industrial applications for over 35 years, Baumer HHS focuses on delivering specialized solutions for folding carton and corrugated board production, end-of-line packaging, print finishing, and other industrial applications, aiming to exceed customer expectations with premium products and impeccable all-round service.
Chris: I’m your host, Chris Santomassimo from OGC Solutions. And what part of what we do sometimes with the Think Factory podcast is to spend time at industry trade shows. In this case, our relationship with the folks that will spotlight today comes from the Printing United Expo. But what we always look for people that are doing interesting things with the products and services that they offer and solving problems for clients. And that’s ultimately what we all need to do as service providers and manufacturers. So I’m really happy to introduce everyone on the podcast to Rick Pallante and to Chad Petzke of BAUMER, HHS. Specifically, Rick is the President of the company, and Chad Petzke is the Sales Manager for the Print Finishing group at BAUMER. So welcome to the podcast.
Rick | Chad: Thank you.
Chris: So again, you know, we’re always looking for people that are not only friendly and and have, you know, and it can get into an interesting conversation. But I was really impressed with some of the things that your equipment does. And, you know, I’m always looking for a story that talks about a problem and a solution or an issue and a solution and why somebody was able to attack the problem. So I’d love to hear a little bit about to start off with. Tell us a little bit about Baumer that folks may not know. Baumer hhs, excuse me. Let’s talk about what what your equipment does. I want to circle back to some of the problem solvers that we chatted about before the podcast.
Rick: Baumer is just has a manufacturing company that makes hot melt, cold glue and verification equipment. And we make it for besides the print finishing industry we do for folding carton and end of line packaging and corrugated are our main markets. Chad is our industry specialist within our print finishing group. And one of the things for like trade shows like Printing United that we really like is customers come with us with different types of applications and different types of issues that they have. And these are people that you normally wouldn’t necessarily have easy access to. So it’s kind of good at a trade show when you have your products in front of you and you have your experts there in the booth. It’s a one stop shop for a lot of customers to come into this. So Chad can go through like one for a check manufacturer or for it was a company that uses rebate checks and they came to us with an application. And Chad, I think, can can walk you through that.
Chris: If you don’t mind me interrupting for one second, Rick, I think you’re being a little humble about some of the things that your products do, you know, especially when you talk about packaging or and we’re going to talk about the check production that your equipment gets used on. You know, I don’t think people in the industry get quite the respect that they should, because what you’re doing or let’s say it this way without what you do, we wouldn’t have these products because they you just have a piece of you’d have a piece of cardboard in the case of corrugated, that doesn’t stay together because there’s no glue. Well, it’s kind of funny. We’ve had we tell customers that a like a folding carton is the most expensive piece of printed paperboard they will ever have until it gets glued together. Because at that point, it’s just a pretty piece of paper. And until it actually gets glued into a into a tube or has glue applied to it ends up as a as a viable product. It is just work in process. And so, you know, we’re we’re an important part of the whole issue. We have, you know, go on almost every OEM machine and it’s 100000 to $1000000 machine. And it doesn’t work unless the glue application works. And unless anybody’s ever sorted a semi truck full of product, you haven’t lived, you know, you have to live till you’ve been able to do that. That’s where QC systems are so important that today’s is. It gives you that reliability that everything gets checked before it goes out to the customer so that you’re not getting anything back and your reputation or your work account are not both being hit.
Chris: Correct. Yeah.
Chad: It’s the same way in the binary too, you know, in print, finishing and all. If it’s a pharmaceutical piece of leaflet or if it’s a direct mail piece, you know, it is quite the until it gets the glue on it and gets in the mail or under the package, whatever the case is, it really is not a finished product. And we’re kind of the last step in where sometimes that something that the customer’s maybe not think about right away or until the very end or, you know, there’s a problem. So yeah, we’re kind of that the last touch of the piece before it gets into the consumer’s hands.
Chris: Yeah. And the glue application that we’re talking about is not just willy nilly. Let’s use whatever kind of glue we want and squirt it around. Just to use layman’s terms, this is pretty precise stuff that goes on on it, you know, in a certain thickness, it goes on in a very specific place. And the type of, you know, the glues that you’re going to use are very, very application dependent. I would think.
Chad: They are. And, you know, different types of glue for different applications. And a lot of our pieces are have to be very precise if it’s in the folding part of the industry or it’s in direct mail or pharmaceutical, you know, we just can’t just put it anywhere. It’s got to be in the right spot for post the regulations for, you know, pharmaceutical FDA regulations. So we’ve got to be quite accurate at all times to be able to meet those customer needs.
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