Chat with Matt: Recession Proof Your Business with Packaging Optimization

Bridget Grewal has been with Magna International since September 2013 and is currently assisting the 136 plants in North America with improvements and cross-group synergies that relate to packaging and transportation. She has built a Steering Committee that includes all of the Magna group leads to optimize this non-core business area and provide a platform for cooperation. They identify cost-saving opportunities using the volume of all the divisions in North America. She also serves as the Global Strategy Lead for Packaging within Magna and communicates common guidelines to Europe and Asia. Bridget has lead industry wide teams to develop automotive guidelines for packaging sustainability and asset tracking technologies. Outside of Magna, she holds the position of Great Lakes Regional Vice-President for the Institute of Packaging Professionals, has also served as President of the MSU School of Packaging Alumni Association and was inducted into the Packaging Hall of Fame in 2015. She has 20+ years of experience in the automotive industry including roles at Ford and The Budd Company, and in 2008 started Packaging Consultant Group, supporting firms like Mobis, Polaris and Caterpillar with a focus on packaging optimization. Bridget has two daughters, Chantel who is a packaging engineer at Nestle and Nicole who is a registered nurse at Pace Healthcare.

Matthew Wright is the founder & CEO of Specright, the first cloud-based platform for Specification Management. Specright has been recognized by Fast Company’s prestigious Most Innovative Companies list, named a Gartner Cool Vendor, and as one of the Top Places to Work by the OC Register and Built in LA. Wright is also a published author and his book, “The Evolution of Products and Packaging,”was named to the Amazon Hot New Release List for Industrial Relations Business and has a five star rating. 

Prior to founding Specright, Wright spent more than 25 years in the packaging industry, holding leadership positions at International Paper, Temple Inland, and rightPAQ — a packaging company he co-founded. He has also been involved in leading multiple M&A deals in the packaging industry, currently sits on the MSU School of Packaging and Industry Advisory Board and previously served on the Packaging Advisory Board at Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo.