02.16.23
After over 50 years in the converting industry, Mike Wilkinson, known as Wilkie to many, will retire from Universal Convering Equipment. During his career he has also worked for Chambon, Titan/Atlas, Comexi and Kampf.
"Commenting on his time in the industry Wilkie said “I have seen the transformation of the packaging industry from paper/cellulose based materials to plastic materials and the rapid growth in packaging to preserve and protect food products," Wilkie says. "As Managing Director of Titan, I was responsible for the development of a small UK engineering company into one that could compete on a worldwide basis. Finally, at Universal I have seen the same happening. The Universal X8 machine is the best slitting machine I have seen with fantastic automation and it can achieve productivity levels that I am told other manufacturers cannot match. It has been a pleasure to end my career, in the slitting industry, with a company that is technically leading the market.”
Alan Jones, director, Universal Converting Equipment, adds, “Mike Wilkinson joined our company at a time when most other people would be retiring. With Universal, he wanted to make a difference. He helped to open the door with Bryce Corporation in the U.S., which led to Universal installing an automated slitting operation at their Searcy factory. This $8 million investment was the largest order received by Universal and it has been followed with an order for an additional two X8 slitter rewinders. Personally, I have enjoyed working with MIke and being able to tap into his wealth of knowledge and experience. Mike was taken ill at the recent K2022 exhibition but has thankfully recovered. At Universal, we all wish him the best for the future.”
