May 2026

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oneBW is a monthly newsletter designed to deliver information and inspiration to BW’s 12,000 team members around the globe. To read a web version in the language of your choice, click the link above. Do you have an idea for a story? Send it to bwcommunications@barry-wehmiller.com.

REMEMBERING CHAIRMAN BOB CHAPMAN

BW community gathers to honor Bob Chapman's life and legacy with special memorial celebration in St. Louis

A celebration of the life of late BW CEO and Chairman Bob Chapman was held May 21 at BW’s global headquarters in St. Louis, MO (US). Almost 400 BW team members, members of Bob’s family, and special friends of Bob and BW gathered to remember Bob and his contributions. The event included videos and photos of Bob through the years, a Gospel ensemble performing “Amazing Grace”, Josh Groban’s “You Raise Me Up” and Frank Sinatra’s “I Did It My Way” and moving remarks by Pastor Jerry Zandstra, longtime friend of Bob and BW, and Bob’s son and BW CEO Kyle Chapman. A Spotify playlist showcasing Bob’s eclectic choice in music—including the closing song by Rob Base “Joy and Pain” was shared and can be found here. Earlier in the day, the Chapman family remembered Bob at a private service in Chapman Plaza (across from the BW headquarters) where a permanent memorial to Bob now stands next to the whirlygig statue, waterfall and gardens he loved. A video retrospective of the celebration will be shared in the near future.

BARRY-WEHMILLER & PLATFORM NEWS

BW CORPORATE

BW accelerates innovation across global teams 

BW's recent Innovation Event was the largest yet, with 564 global team members participating in 33 presentations over six days. Sessions covered project showcases, digital and non‑digital technologies, innovation process initiatives, continuous improvement and customer‑experience efforts. Under the theme "Insight to Impact" the event reinforced BW's Change the Game strategy and our partnership mindset to embrace customer needs, improve processes, unite thriving teams and leverage the power of our scale to deliver innovation driven growth. Kyle Chapman, BW CEO, shared "When we create a culture to foster innovation and invest resources with purpose and discipline, we create solutions that strengthen our customers, energize our teams and build sustainable value." The real work begins now as participants apply what they learned to accelerate their innovation journeys.

BW FORSYTH PARTNERS

Afinitas invests in future growth with Mediapolis facility expansion

Afinitas, a leading global infrastructure equipment and services company headquartered in St. Louis, MO (US), recently announced plans to expand and modernize its manufacturing facility in Mediapolis, IA (US). The expansion will add approximately 30,000 square feet of new manufacturing space and include reconfiguration of existing areas to improve efficiency, safety and production flow, with completion anticipated by the end of 2027. This approximately $12 million investment reflects Afinitas’ confidence in the Mediapolis site and its role in supporting current and future customer demand for precast concrete and infrastructure equipment across the globe.

BW CONVERTING

BW Converting welcomes industry partners for IMPACT 2026 showcase

BW Converting’s Ashland team members recently rolled out the red carpet to host IMPACT 2026 at their Packaging Innovation Center in Green Bay, WI (US). With more than 40 registered attendees, the event brought industry partners like AVFlexologic, Hybrid Software, Miraclon and Polymount together to exhibit the latest prepress and platemaking technology. While BW Converting enjoyed showing off its PCMC Fusion C press and Meridian Elite+ laser anilox cleaner, the real highlight was seeing the printing community and industry experts join together for impactful discussions and strategic networking.

BW PAPERSYSTEMS

Purposeful people planning strengthens BW Papersystems' teams

BW Papersystems is seeing the power of purposeful people planning in action. For example, Paul Stack prepared Tyler Burr to take over finishing sales, Karol Warnock transitioned finishing parts leadership to Jack D’Angelo and Dennis Hentschel partnered closely with Tom Carr to transfer financial responsibilities. These recent transitions—from sales to value stream leadership to finance—help strengthen our organization by keeping teams confident and momentum strong as knowledge is carried forward to our next generation of leaders.

CHANGE THE GAME: STRATEGIC PLAN 2032

Why is Continuous Improvement one of CEO Kyle Chapman’s favorite Transformation Plays? Click here to find out.

Ready to learn more? Go to bwchangethegame.com. (Password: CTG2032)

BW AROUND THE WORLD

Teams across BW unite to promote the Every Voice Matters cultural assessment

To encourage completion of the Every Voice Matters assessment, teams got creative and hosted events and competitions. And it paid off! More than 7,850 team members across 32 countries made their voices heard and helped us reach 84% participation! That’s four percentage points beyond our goal and 24 percentage points beyond the manufacturing industry and similarly-sized organizations averages! Thanks to everyone who shared what is great about working at BW as well as constructive feedback about the challenges you face, so we can continue building a culture that reflects our commitment to people and performance in harmony.

THURSDAY BWU WEBINARS

To sign up, please click on your preferred date and time.

FINANCE FOUNDATIONS (supports Leverages Business Insights)

Learn about the essential financial charts used in BW and the deeper concepts that underlie them to confidently apply in your team or project.

LEVERAGING AI FOR TRULY HUMAN WORK (supports Ensures Accountability)

This webinar will explore how AI can be used in line with the principles that are core to BW's culture of care and accountability, with both theoretical knowledge and practical application.

PROBLEM SOLVING BASICS (supports Leverages Business Insight)

Effective problem solving is at the heart of any successful continuous improvement initiative. This webinar will equip you with fundamental tools and techniques to identify, analyze and resolve problems systematically.

GLOBAL LEADERSHIP PART I (supports Values Differences)

Cultures of different countries can profoundly affect how people work and communicate. Based on the book "The Culture Map" by Erin Meyer, these insights will help enhance your skills as an international leader.

CTG TRANSFORMATION PLAY: CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

BW Continuous Improvement: Reducing frustrations, improving performance

Meaningful progress is being seen as continuous improvement efforts strengthen across the BW organization. Team members report fewer delays, better parts availability, smoother coordination and stronger safety practices. Sites like Brooklyn Park, MN (US), and Phillips, WI (US), have made major gains in reliability and delivery. With 500-plus people engaged and more than 80 CI events completed, daily frustrations are being reduced and performance is steadily improving across the organization.

BW COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

BW Design Group and Mercy Health Care host life‑saving blood drive

BW Design Group, in partnership with Mercy Health Care, hosted a blood drive at BW headquarters in St. Louis, MO (US). The event honored our beloved BW Chairman Bob Chapman, who received numerous transfusions during his treatment, and brought colleagues together to give back to the community. St. Louis team members donated 27 units of blood and platelets, a contribution that can help save more than 80 lives and provide critical support to families in need. The drive reflects BW’s commitment to community care and the spirit of service that Bob inspired. Thank you to everyone who donated!

FROM THE AIRWAVES

Inc. Magazine honors Bob Chapman in special feature article

“Perhaps the most enduring aspect of Chapman’s legacy is the cultural shift he inspired. He helped shape the broader ‘conscious capitalism’ movement, a growing community who believe business can and should be a force for good.” 

BW RECOGNITION

Shine the Light Award: Harish Maheshkumar, BW-Chennai

Congratulations to Harish for receiving an award for Drives Results. "Harish joined us as an intern fresh out of college and transitioned into a regular role at BW. In a remarkably short span of time, he has demonstrated exceptional adaptability, professionalism and a strong commitment to excellence," said his nominator Saravanan Ravi. "His ability to quickly grasp our organizational standards and deliver flawless outcomes has been truly commendable."

Shine the Light Award: Niko Zalamea, BW Design Group-Roseville

Congratulations to Niko for receiving an award for Customer Focus. His nominator Danny Wopata said "The outcome of this project is directly tied to the dedication, focus and energy Niko brought every single day. I am extremely proud of what he accomplished and how he carried himself throughout the engagement. I sincerely hope to have more opportunities to work with Niko on future projects. He is an exceptional young engineer with a very bright future."

Shine the Light Award: Carmen Gonzalez, BW Packaging-Cuyahooga Falls

Congratulations to Carmen for receiving an award for Customer Focus, based on a nomination from a prominent external client. "Carmen is one of the very best in representing BW to customers," said the client nominator. "Carmen stands out with her dedication and willingness to provide us with the type of service that meets and exceeds expectations. Carmen represents her team well, and it's an absolute pleasure to work with her. I know I can always count on her when we are in a bind."

Shine the Light Award: Robert Reidinger, BW Converting-Green Bay

Congratulations to Robert for receiving an award for Drives Results. "Robert cares about the department he is in. He has been very faithful and loyal to the company and goes out of his way to make sure that team members are exceptionally trained before he retires," said his nominator Andrew Ebbole. "He has impacted the company in a positive way to ensure we are set up for success once he leaves with his 30 years of knowledge and commitment."

NEWS YOU CAN USE

FOR US-BASED TEAM MEMBERS AND SPOUSES

Better You Incentive (BYI) deadline approaching: September 30, 2026

BW medical enrollees and covered spouses: Want to save up to $2,400 on your 2027 BW medical premiums? Earn the BYI by Sept. 30! Here’s how: Get current on all preventive screenings AND reach GOLD status in Vitality. Visit bw.care/byi for details, and check your progress on your Quantum Health Track: login to mybwbenefits.com and click Wellbeing > Get Started > if prompted, grant consent and complete the optional user profile > Continue > Incentives > Complete.

FOR ALL TEAM MEMBERS

Reduce notification noise in Teams channels

If a channel is busy, switching notifications to "Mentions only" helps you stay focused while still seeing messages that require your attention. Follow these steps to update a channel’s settings:

To change a channel's notifications:

1. In Teams, open the Team and locate the channel

2. Select the channel's "More options" (...)

3. Choose "Channel notifications"

4. Set it to "Mentions only" or "Off"

3.Repeat these steps for any other high-traffic channels you prefer to adjust

Tip: Ask teammates to use @mention for anything urgent so you’ll be notified even when a channel is set to Mentions only.

PEOPLE TECHNOLOGIES TIP

Set up delegations in Workday for tasks before going on vacation

Before you leave for vacation or go on holiday, ensure a smooth workflow in your absence by setting up delegations in Workday. This keeps tasks and approvals moving while you're away. Use these guides to help you set up the process in Workday: Click here for instructions to delegate tasks to other team members and click here for instructions for how to complete tasks that have been delegated to you.

FOR US-BASED TEAM MEMBERS AND SPOUSES

Vitality Mall changes coming in June

To provide an enhanced rewards experience for U.S. team members and spouses, Vitality is upgrading its Mall in mid-June. ALL of your Vitality Bucks will roll over, but be sure to record any unused gift card numbers/codes by May 31. Here’s how: login to powerofvitality.com and click Rewards > Mall > person icon in upper right > order number. You don’t need to use your gift cards, but simply record the codes.

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