The term “family business” usually conjures images of mom-and-pop operations, nestled in a small town, with employees who are on a first name basis with all of their customers. And while flexible manufacturing giant Printpack may have started this way, it’s anything but small now.

The Atlanta-based company, founded in 1956 by the late J. Erskine Love, Jr., ranks No. 5 on our list, with annual sales exceeding $1.3 billion. Printpack boasts 4,400 associates in 25 manufacturing facilities in the United States, England and Mexico. Today, Love’s son, Dennis, serves as the company’s president.

Printpack’s flexible packaging manufacturing capabilities include rotogravure and flexographic printing, adhesive and extrusion lamination and metallization. The company competes in several key markets, such as snack foods, confectionery, meats, cookies and crackers, sauces and puddings, cereal, bread and fresh bakery, pet food, tissue and towel overwrap, frozen foods and personal care products.

Like other top converters, smart acquisitions have helped the company expand. In 2006, Printpack purchased Seal-It Inc., which makes sleeved and flat heat-shrink films from a number of different materials, including polyvinyl chloride (PVC), bio-based polylactic acid (PLA), polyethylene terephthalate gly (PETG) and oriented polystyrene (OPS). Then, in August of 2007, Printpack acquired Grupo Industrial Plástico (GIPSA) of Guadalajara, Mexico, a fully integrated flexible packaging manufacturer of bags, pouches and value-added laminated structures.

Printpack’s expertise in printing and graphics is evident judging just from the awards it has won. The Flexible Packaging Association (FPA) honored the company with multiple awards this year. One was a Silver Award in the Environmental and Sustainability Achievement category, for a sleeve shrink label on a line of nutritional supplements made by AgroLabs. The label-manufactured, converted and printed by Seal-It-is rotogravure printed in 10 colors. The full-body label conforms to the shape of the bottle.

Printpack earned a Gold Award in the Packaging Excellence category for its Daniele Delizia Presidents Sliced Meats Re-Seal It package, which combines proprietary label technology with high-performance barrier films. The package features an easyopen/reclose feature. High-quality rotogravure graphics are combined with a clear window to maximize shelf impact.

Printpack’s Re-Seal It package also earned a Silver Award in the Technical Innovation category for the Plumrose Supreme Center Cut Bacon package. Plumrose chose the Re-Seal It package because it provides an easy-to-open label with repeatable resealability.

Like all responsible manufacturers, Printpack is proactive in its efforts to promote sustainability. The company has designated five full time corporate level environmental professionals who are responsible for providing services in the areas of regulatory interpretation, auditing, environmental engineering, environmental data management, permitting, environmental policy development and legislative affairs. It has also launched internal initiatives, such as an internal waste reduction and recycling program; and a solvent and waste-handling program that minimizes the potential for both on- and off-site contamination.