07 Dec Aldez Goes International

Diane Copek

I just had the pleasure of attending a whirlwind 5-day trip to China for business, a significant change from the old days, back when I founded Aldez and we were brand new with only a US presence.

Fast forward 20 years and, today, Aldez is now a part of Tri-Wall Group an international conglomerate, which is giving me and the team exposure to some fantastic new experiences. In this case, it was a trip to China, where my colleague, Mike Byrne, and I spent 5-days in Xiamen, a beautiful coastal city in southeastern China. The event was attended by 105 people from more than 40 companies worldwide, all a part of the Tri-Wall Group.

What was remarkable about this trip is that we were able to blend business activities with fun. Over the course of 5 busy days, we attended trainings and meetings and a variety of activities. Our trip started with a meeting with the management committee of the Tri-Wall Group. Held at the Shangri-La Hotel, Xiamen, the meeting included Tri-Wall employees who had come from different corners of the world. On our first night we were invited to a welcome dinner hosted by Tri-Wall China at a restaurant where everyone had a chance to taste Fujian local cuisines, best known for their seafood. This dinner served as the opening ceremony for the next day’s Innovation Contest, our first as part of the Tri-Wall Group.

Tri-Wall’s global Innovation Contest is held annually to celebrate the best ideas and projects across the company. This year, there were 12 presenters — the most ever — who presented on behalf of 12 companies hailing from China, Japan, India, Singapore, Thailand, Poland, Turkey and the United States. Each team presented its project in a 15-minute presentation followed by a 15 minutes Q&A.  They were judged by a committee of judges comprised of key management members from Rengo and Tri-Wall.

The exciting day of competition concluded with a large dinner party and awards ceremony. Dinner began with the splendid “Dance on A Drum,” a traditional Chinese dance which is customarily performed at festivals and celebrations. Each year, the hosts of the contest select entertainment for the awards ceremony carefully to give their foreign guests a glimpse of the culture of the hosting country.  In this case they selected the performances which featured the best of China and Xiamen local community: Monkey King, Face Changing, and Hui’an Maidens.

Tri-Wall Packaging (Thailand) was the first prize winner with their project, The Improvement of Silk Screen Printing Process. And, we were excited to learn that next year’s event will be held in Vietnam!

The next day, guests were also treated to an adventure of Chinese culture – a ferry cruise & Nanputuo Temple tour.  In the afternoon, the group arrived at Tri-Wall Packaging (Fuzhou) Co., Ltd. for a brief factory tour. Accompanied by their colleagues at TWPF, participants from all over the world were able to get a general understanding of its business. At the end of the activity day, all participants gathered at Fuqing to conclude the Contest with a farewell dinner.

All in all, it was an amazing look into the Chinese culture. I’m extremely appreciative of the hospitality we were shown and am looking forward to the event in Vietnam next year!