LIVERMORE FALLS – Dick Jackson has been in the paper industry all of his life, just like his father before him.
Jackson, the new International Paper Androscoggin Mill manager, who grew up in the small mill town of St. Marys, Ga., introduced himself to community and state leaders, and longtime IP employees Wednesday at a gathering at Murray Hall.
He has been with IP for 26 years, working in mills for 23 of those.
“I’m comfortable working in a mill,” he said.
His experience at various IP mills runs the gamut from working on paper machines to working in the technical group at corporate office. He has worked in several states, including Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina and Louisiana.
During his career, he was trained to make quality paper by workers from the Androscoggin Mill, he said.
Jackson was previously the plant manager of IP’s mill in Roanoke Rapids, N.C. He became the Androscoggin Mill manager on Jan. 3.
Former Manager Rildo Martini, who is still in Maine, is staying with IP after the sale of the Jay and Bucksport mills and two other coated paper mills in Minnesota and Michigan, which is expected to be finalized in early summer.
When Jackson was asked by his bosses to make the commitment to the Jay mill, Jackson said, he asked himself if he could contribute up here.
“I’ve always heard they were some great people,” he said, “they could walk on water.”
When he arrived in December, he said, he discovered that no wonder they can walk on water. It’s frozen, he said, which prompted laughter from the audience.
No matter who owns the mill, this mill has a great future, he said.
Jackson has a wife, Fran, two sons – one out of college, one in – and daughter who is a senior in high school in North Carolina.
Though the details are not finalized, he said, he expects his family to move to Maine this summer.
“Maine is a gorgeous state,” Jackson said. “I realize that.”
When he takes a job, he said, he wants to look out for the long-term future of the mill.
A handful of prospective buyers are going through the Androscoggin Mill, Jackson said.
“I feel good we’ll get an owner who wants to invest in the mill,” he said. “I have confidence that’s going to happen.”
He said he thinks the mill will be in good shape; not that this business is bad, it’s a growing business. It’s just that IP has decided to focus on its packaging and uncoated paper business.
Whoever buys the mills is going to supply the North American market.
“We’ll do good, I think,” he said. “Our people at the mill have a survival mentality. They realize they’ve got to do better every year.”
During the fourth quarter of 2005, they set production records, he said.
They have a “can do” attitude, he said.
IP has invested nearly $250 million in the Jay mill over the last 10 years, he said.
He said he’ll focus on sustaining the improvement in production seen last quarter, making sure the mill can produce enough pulp on the No. 1 paper machine to feed the Bucksport mill, and keeping distraction at the mill to a minimum by keeping workers informed about what’s going on.
“I’m going to try my best to be as transparent as possible,” he said. “We want to be good corporate citizens. A good environmental steward to this state. We feel we are. And provide a safe workplace for our employees.”
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