From recycling packaging materials, to using equipment that produces zero carbon emissions, Pro Tapes has demonstrated a commitment to sustainability that is both responsible and necessary.                                                       

In this blog post, we will explore some of the ways that Pro Tapes can continue to improve their environmentally friendly practices and maintain their commitment to sustainability.

Reduce Energy Consumption

While Pro Tapes already uses equipment that produces zero carbon, there is always room for improvement when it comes to reducing energy consumption.

One way to achieve this is by conducting an energy audit of our facilities. This would help identify areas where energy is being wasted and provide recommendations for reducing energy consumption and improving energy efficiency.

Pro Tapes has already invested in energy-efficient lighting and HVAC systems, which have significantly reduced energy consumption and lowered utility costs over time.

Explore Alternative Packaging Materials

While Pro Tapes currently uses packaging materials that are predominantly made from recycled materials, we are always looking at alternative materials that are even more environmentally friendly.

For example, we have explored the use of biodegradable packaging materials or materials made from renewable resources. By researching and testing alternative materials, we are looking to potentially reduce the environmental impact of our package materials even further while still maintaining the same level of protection for their products during shipment.

Implement a Waste Reduction Program

While Pro Tapes already recycles nearly 80% of the packaging materials we receive from our suppliers, we’re studying additional opportunities to reduce waste.

One option is to find ways to improve upon our waste reduction program, which encourages employees to reduce, reuse, and recycle. This includes initiatives such as using reusable containers for lunches, providing recycling bins throughout the facilities, and encouraging employees to print only when necessary.

By finding more ways to reduce waste, Pro Tapes not only helps to improve our environmental impact but also save money on waste disposal costs.

Encourage Sustainable Transportation

Pro Tapes encourages sustainable transportation among their employees.

We look for ways to help coordinate for carpooling and provide information to make public transportation more viable. We also provide secure bike storage for employees who choose to cycle to work.

By promoting sustainable transportation, Pro Tapes helps reduce our carbon footprint and potentially reduce traffic congestion in the surrounding areas.

We at Pro Tapes have already demonstrated a strong commitment to environmental sustainability. However, there are always opportunities to improve and reduce our environmental impact even further.

By implementing the suggestions outlined above, Pro Tapes will continue to be a leader not only due to how we create innovative solutions for our customers, but also in how we help create a more sustainable future.

The post Creating a Sustainable Future at Pro Tapes appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

Our new employees go through an intensive onboarding program, designed to make them feel comfortable with their responsibilities and provide extensive knowledge about the adhesives industry.

Get a head start on that training by reading the blog below, and check out our Open Positions!

Some Fun Facts you may not know about TAPE:

#1: It has an expiration date

Unlike food, tape doesn’t grow mold when it passes its expiration date. But it does become less tacky (or sticky), so it won’t perform as intended.

#2: It starts off as one huge roll

When tape is manufactured, it is placed on gigantic rolls, called log and pony rolls. These large rolls are then cut down to size based on demand and customer orders. This is where Pro Tapes® excels! We provide a wide variety of manufacturing and converting solutions. Check out our Virtual Tour to see all the cool

#3: Weather has an effect on it

If the environment is too humid, some tapes’ ability to adhere to surfaces is in jeopardy.  If it’s too cold, the tape could lose its overall tackiness.  You’ve got to be like Goldilocks: store your tape in a place that’s just right, or it won’t perform as expected.

CAREERS AT PRO TAPES®

If you would like to learn more about careers at Pro Tapes, please reach out to us at hr@protapes.com or visit our Careers page.

The post 3 Things You May Not Know About Tape appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

What do we look for in a candidate at Pro Tapes®?

When I am interviewing a candidate, these are the three things I look for, regardless of the role:

#1: Commitment

Our customers are counting on us, and if we are short-staffed, that means we can’t get product out the door and we are letting them down. 

#2: Motivation

In order to continue to grow our business, we need employees who are self-motivated, excited to learn, and want to grow with us.  We have many advancement opportunities, and I like to see employees who take advantage of that.

#3: Teamwork

There isn’t any role at Pro Tapes that does not require some level of teamwork, so much so that it is one of our Core Values.  If you cannot effectively work with others, then you won’t be successful at Pro Tapes®.

Once I am confident that a candidate demonstrates these qualities, then I explore role-specific skills and accomplishments. After all, a strong foundation is necessary to build and grow successfully!

CAREERS AT PRO TAPES®

If this sounds like an environment you would thrive in, please reach out to us at hr@protapes.com.

The post 3 Things I Look for in a Pro Tapes® Candidate appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

“Learning never exhausts the mind.”

In today’s high tech, fast-changing world, learning and development are essential to stay competitive. This applies whether you’re at work or at home. Think about the last update for your phone and you will realize just how important learning and adapting are!

At Pro Tapes®, we provide learning opportunities for our employees based on the position they are currently in, the position they aspire to, and any other skills they would like to learn to better themselves. Today, we’ll share a few examples of how we support learning at Pro Tapes®.

Language Learning

In today’s increasingly global workplaces, the ability to communicate is important to safety and productivity. We have a diverse workforce, and an even more diverse customer base. That is why we provide our employees with language learning classes, which can be completed on the go via a mobile app or on a website.

Cross-Training Opportunities

Doing the same thing, in the same location, day in and day out can get boring and lead to accidents. We encourage our employees to get cross-trained on different machines and equipment so they can expand their skills and make their day more interesting. This can also lead to promotional opportunities.

Professional Development

We have a wide range of vendors we work with to provide professional development, which allows our employees to choose from thousands of options. Want to learn Excel or PowerPoint? How about Running Effective Meetings? This flexibility allows us to offer specific courses just when an employee needs them the most!

CAREERS AT PRO TAPES®

If this sounds like an environment you would thrive in, please reach out to us at hr@protapes.com.

The post 3 Ways Pro Tapes® Supports Learning & Development appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

How Pro Tapes® Empowers Employees to Give Back

Our Community Out-Reach & Empowerment (C.O.R.E) program encourages employees to make meaningful contributions to the communities they reside in, as well as the communities that Pro Tapes® operates in.

Through the Pro Tapes® C.O.R.E program, we engage our employees in company-sponsored initiatives that align our company’s core values with activities that give back to our community.

1. If an employee volunteers their own time, we will award them with Paid Time Off.  This way, an employee can participate in a cause near and dear to their heart.
2. Sometimes, you don’t have the time to volunteer. Monetary donations are a great alternative for supporting causes that mean something to you.  Pro Tapes® matches employee monetary donations, up to $500 annually.
3. Pro Tapes® organizes and participates in various local events (Back-to-School Supply drives, Adopt-a-Family Holiday events, etc.).  Most of our employees live near our facility, so it’s important for us to give back to these communities.

To learn more about the C.O.R.E. program, please visit here.

Careers at Pro Tapes®

If you are interested in working for a community-centric organization where you can make a difference, please reach out to us at hr@protapes.com.

The post Three Ways Pro Tapes Gives Back to the Community appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

At Pro Tapes®, in addition to almost daily check-ins with our teams, we conduct an annual employee engagement survey. In addition to all the typical engagement questions, we ask our employees “What does Pro Tapes & Specialties® do that makes it a place where people want to work?” 

These are some of our most popular answers from employees:

Diversity – our employees come from a wide variety of backgrounds, and we all come together as a team to get the job done for our customers.

Quality – our employees take pride in the high-quality products we produce and the reputation we have in the industry.

Reward – Pro Tapes® has a generous profit-sharing plan, which enables employees to share in our successes.  We pay competitively, and provide a variety of perks, such as Summer Fridays, and awards for various milestones.

Careers at Pro Tapes®

We continue to develop employee-centric programs and policies that align with our Core Values, while leaning in to what we do well as an organization.  If this is something you would like to be a part of, please reach out to us at hr@protapes.com.

The post Three Reasons Our Employees Love Working at Pro Tapes® appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

With the Entertainment Industry recovering from the effects of the pandemic, touring, events, and film productions are re-opening around the world. There is a renewed, even increasing, demand for adhesive tape expendables.

But with recent supply chain crises and raw material shortages, the management team at Pro Tapes® understood that we would need to invest in new and improved solutions to remain a dependable supplier.

That is why Pro Tapes® leadership has recently invested in technology and productivity across our company in order to continue supporting our global distributor network to the best of our ability.

In today’s blog post, we’ll take a look at some of the investments Pro Tapes® has pursued so that we can continue to support our distributors and the Entertainment Industry at large.

Expanding our Manufacturing Space to Stay Ahead of the Supply Chain

Since 2008, Pro Tapes® has been headquartered in North Brunswick, New Jersey in the US. We currently operate out of a 150,000 sq. ft. facility. This facility is equipped with a complete series of state-of-the art converting and custom packaging equipment.

With the uncertainty on lead times of all raw materials, many suppliers have struggled to keep key items in stock when their customers most require them.

That is why Pro Tapes® has recently invested in an additional 25,000 sq. ft. of warehouse and manufacturing space. This investment is part of our strategy to better weather the peaks and valleys in the current global supply chain.

When you offer Pro Gaff® in 21 colors and hundreds of SKU’s, you require a sizable inventory level on raw materials and finished goods! The investment in additional space will allow for greater inventory levels on all of our key raw materials.

Our most popular tapes – including Pro Gaff®, Pro® Console, Pro Glow®, and Pro® Spike to name a few – are all in stock and ready to ship.

Improving our Packaging and Converting Technology to Add Value for Distributors

Pro Tapes® has also invested in new, high-speed automated packaging lines. These new lines can greatly speed up the process of packaging our Pro Gaff® in the most popular sizes.

Now, we are also packaging Pro Gaff® shrink wrapped with a scannable UPC label. This new packaging setup adds values for our distributors, who can display our tape straight out of the case and while staying presentable.

The scannable UPC labels also allow our customers that sell online to use our GS1 registered UPC numbers to sell our high quality items easily and in an organized fashion.

These investments in our converting technology are custom made to fit our unique needs. To learn more about the converting capabilities Pro Tapes® offers, check out this virtual tour of our headquarters.

Investing in our People

Pro Tapes® continues to invest in the future to ensure we can meet the demands of our customers. We are continuing to hire more customer success representatives, IT personnel, machine operators and warehouse personnel.

Improvements to our IT Infrastructure

Additionally, Pro Tapes® has invested in upgrading our IT and computer systems. Information technology, when managed properly, lowers the costs of every financial aspect of the company.

Our online security was and still is a priority and will continue to be one. It is imperative that we protect our data and intellectual property, as well as our customers.

Pro Tapes® is Here for You.

The show must go on. We at Pro Tapes® are committed to supporting our distributors to the best of our abilities.

The investments we’ve reviewed today are helping us minimize increases in raw materials in every aspect of our business. This is how we at Pro Tapes® thank our valued customers for their business.

If you have any questions, you can reach out to me any time at dennism@protapes.com.

The post Pro Tapes® Supports the Entertainment Industry with New Investments appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

I’m Van, the Lead Generation & Business Development Analyst here at Pro Tapes®. As of writing this blog, I’m officially 7 months into my role. With that said, I want to give you some of my strategic tips for being successful at your first job.

It’s vital to understand the knowledge that is being provided to you, but even more vital to understand how to use it.

The amount of schooling that is applicable to your first job tends to not be much. That does not mean that your schooling was not worthwhile. A lot of what you get out of school prior to your first job no one tells you.

College Class Material Isn’t Everything at Your First Job

When you enter into your first real job out of college, you may think what you learned there will help. However, figuring out how to succeed at work comes down to understanding your company and asking the right questions.

There will rarely be a formula you were taught in school that’ll help you succeed perfectly at your first job. That knowledge will come through internal training and using the resources that are provided to you.

What college courses do provide is an opportunity to develop a strong work ethic and organization skills. Developing those two traits in school puts you at a strong starting point to handle work related tasks when you first begin.

Work Hard, but Work Smarter

In school, you go through a process of figuring out the most efficient ways to get assignments done while maintaining a high standard of quality. The thing is, this concept is not taught, it is acquired. Most professors don’t sit you down and teach how to study in a way that maximizes your time.

The same applies when it comes to your job. When you start working it is on you to teach yourself how to get everyday tasks done in a time efficient manner that holds a strong standard of quality.

If you don’t balance working hard and working smart, you may find yourself lacking enthusiasm about your job. Putting too much energy into just one of these concepts could result in burning out.

Confidence is Key – If You Do It Right

Your first job will introduce a whole new level of nerves. At first, you’re not going to feel sure about how to do things the right way. But acting confidently allows for others to be confident in you.

Portraying that you are confident and not afraid to make mistakes is a good thing. As long as you learn from mistakes that you make and you ask the right questions.  

Being confident does not mean acting like you know everything that you’re doing right away. It’s completely ok to ask questions, it shows that you care and want to be accurate in your work. Coming off as if you know exactly what you’re doing, even though you might not, can lead to mistakes being made resulting in a lack of confidence in yourself and from others.

Moving Forward at Your First Job

When it’s all said and done you will realize there were many things that no one told you before you started your first real job. Go in with an open mind and be able to see things from multiple perspectives.

School gets you into a mode where there is only one right answer to many questions. Your first real job will show you that there are many answers to solve certain problems, it’s a matter of achieving the best way. Applying some of the above tips will make your transition a lot smoother.

The post What No One Tells You About Your First Job appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

According to data from the United States Census Bureau, nearly a quarter of the manufacturing workforce in the United States is age 55 or older.

Not only do these upcoming Baby Boomer retirements lead to hiring challenges, they could also result in the loss of substantial company and industry knowledge, if not successfully planned for in advance. This is the motivation behind our Succession Planning Program at Pro Tapes & Specialties, Inc.®

We are now almost one year into our maiden voyage of succession planning, and I would like to share 5 tips I have learned from the process.

#1: Re-evaluate Job Descriptions

A position does not need to fill the same duties and responsibilities that exist currently. See succession planning as an opportunity to evaluate what is and is not being done, and redistribute the work if necessary.

#2: Seek Feedback

To learn more about potential successors, get input from a variety of sources. 360 Feedback Surveys are a great way to gather confidential information from employees throughout the organization.

The results could either support or alter your successor decision.

#3: Talk with Potential Successors

Talk to potential successors to ensure they are in fact interested in moving to another role and assuming other responsibilities. Sometimes, people are happy as individual contributors, and that is OK. We set others up for failure if we assume they want more at this point in their career.

Additionally, if an employee passes on the successor opportunity this time, do not assume that will always be the case. Their answer could change over time based on changes to their personal situation, skillset, desire, etc.

#4: Review Your Plan Often

A succession plan cannot be a static document that is you complete once a year, or even less.

Developing your succession plan should be a process you frequently revisit. The needs of the business and its employees change over time. Follow your process, but remain fluid.

#5: Let the Plan Inform Your Work

A robust succession plan affects almost every aspect of Human Resources, especially recruiting, training, and employee engagement. All of these specialties must work together to prepare your company for the future.

Succession planning is certainly about playing the long game. You will not see the results of your efforts right away, but know that the work you do today will have an impact on your organization for years to come!

The post 5 Tips For Starting a Succession Planning Program in Your Organization appeared first on Pro Tapes®.

Below, you’ll find our top recommendations and advice from our team on how to mitigate supply chain issues for your business, too.

Top 3 Recommendations to Get Ahead of Supply Chain Disruptions:

1. Continuously review and update stocked inventory levels to catch trends early (minimum/maximum stock levels).
2. Constantly communicate externally with customers and vendors on product availability/constraints.
3. Constantly communicate internally on any changes (sales with purchasing, and production with customer service).

What do the Pro’s Recommend?

We asked folks across our many teams for more advice – see their recommendations to help your business below.

In Depth Response from our Global Sourcing Manager, Russell Hart:

Increasing min/max levels to comply with the longer leads times from vendors helps keep stock levels at normal to higher levels.

Most vendors are suffering from the same issues, from producers of adhesive resins, pigments, and material backing. Unfortunately, these issues are nationwide at this time. Working with the “worst case scenario,” our lead time from vendors have tripled in the past year.

One way Pro^® handled this shortage was to change the lead times accordingly. We also raised our stock levels to meet a 3 month supply of goods. This allows us to service our customers with fewer delays.

Increasing our stock levels to a 6 month supply when dealing with product coming from overseas.

Overseas shipments are more challenging to control because of various reasons, including:

• Cost of freight has increased 25-30%
• Tariffs are 25% with no exclusions
• Weather conditions (major storms) are causing interruptions on shipment arriving to port

Delays with docking times at port are another challenge. More than 200 vessels (East and West coast) compete at any given time for their turn to dock and get unloaded.

Once unloaded, the next hurdle is getting a truck to pick up the container. The shortage of drivers and restrictions on driving hours presents an additional obstacle.

We increased our stock levels to a six month supply so we could better weather these unpredictable situations.

Daily communication with all vendors on product availability/constraints, so we can communicate back transparently with customers.

During these trying times, communication is critical. We communicate with our vendors on a daily basis about material delays and shortages of components to make raw materials and finished goods. This valuable information allows us to give updates to our customers in a timely fashion.

We also hold production meetings twice a week with our customer support team, shipping managers and production managers. Based on these, we can adjust any dates on customer orders and communicate that back to them.

See More Advice from Our Pro’s on Mitigating Supply Chain Issues:

Kimberly Karmaou, CMA, Business Analysis & Planning Manager: “Have approved alternate sources in case they are needed.”

Michael Harned, Vice President of Operations: “Pro Tapes^® took on the financial risks necessary to ensure minimal service disruption to our overall customer base. In addition, we now monitor stock levels to actual sales on a more frequent schedule.”

Chris Hart, Vice President of Sales & Marketing: “Practice good communication with customers and forecasting as often as possible. Communicating current lead times by item to customers is key, so we can book the order with enough time to fill within the quoted lead-time.”

Dana Hart, Customer Success & Business Development Manager: “We give weekly status updates to our customers regarding back orders, relaying extended lead time information accurately at the time of quotation. We proactively change estimated ship dates on items we are aware are on back order, prior to confirming the purchase order. We also provide substitutions/alternatives where and when we can, to keep customers production lines running.”

Pro Tapes & Specialties^® is continuing to diligently monitor our extended lead times and countless other supply chain disturbances.

We’re here to do our best for you – reach out to us anytime at sales@protapes.com

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