Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note.

Kyle Stavig is CEO of North Coast Container, a steel drum maker founded in 1917 that he bought with his brothers. He and Ron talk about Europe's new packaging waste rules and how tariffs raise U.S. steel costs. Kyle also explains why drum reuse gets tricky with hazardous materials.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro

01:17 The big shifts in liquid packaging

03:10 Supply chains and steel tariffs

05:19 Sustainability and the limits of drum reuse

11:02 Technology and the future of packaging

12:48 Industry groups and the Las Vegas conference

17:12 How Kyle and his brothers built North Coast

19:32 Opportunities and one challenge for the industry

ABOUT THE TOTE GUYS

The Tote Guys is hosted by Ron Althouse and produced by Container Technology Inc., a liquid packaging distribution and recycling company supplying new and reconditioned IBC totes since 1990. Each episode, Ron sits down with leaders across the industry for straight talk on totes, drums and the business of liquid packaging.

Website: https://www.containertechnology.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/container-technology-inc/

Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note.

David Levine chairs RIPA, the Reusable Industrial Packaging Association, and his family business, Ted Levine Drum, traces back to 1906. He and Ron talk about why reconditioned drums and totes meet the same standards as new ones. David also describes visiting the Army depot where packaging is drop-tested.

00:00 Intro

00:24 How Ted Levine Drum began

02:38 How the industry has changed

09:43 Leading RIPA and working with Washington

16:32 Common misconceptions about reconditioned packaging

18:18 RIPA collaboration and the Army drop-test depot

23:26 RFID, AI and automation

30:01 Legacy, and the one thing David would change

ABOUT THE TOTE GUYS

The Tote Guys is hosted by Ron Althouse and produced by Container Technology Inc., a liquid packaging distribution and recycling company supplying new and reconditioned IBC totes since 1990. Each episode, Ron sits down with leaders across the industry for straight talk on totes, drums and the business of liquid packaging.

Website: https://www.containertechnology.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/container-technology-inc/

Noah Flom is the third-generation owner of Apex Drum Company in Southern California. He and Ron talk about rising resin costs and why certified reconditioned totes are worth a closer look. Noah also explains the real risk behind cheap "hose job" reconditioning.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro

00:33 Apex Drum's story

03:58 Rising resin and freight costs

10:06 R&R: a dry cleaner for your totes

15:19 The international conference in Las Vegas

24:22 How totes are tested, and the risk of hose jobs

32:05 Who adapts if resin prices keep climbing

ABOUT THE TOTE GUYS

The Tote Guys is hosted by Ron Althouse and produced by Container Technology Inc., a liquid packaging distribution and recycling company supplying new and reconditioned IBC totes since 1990. Each episode, Ron sits down with leaders across the industry for straight talk on totes, drums and the business of liquid packaging.

Website: https://www.containertechnology.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/container-technology-inc/