Daily News

Hazen Paper Recognized at Manufacturing Award Ceremony

HOLYOKE — The state’s third annual Manufacturing Award Ceremony, sponsored by the Legislature’s Manufacturing Caucus, was recently held at the State House in Boston. Hazen Paper was one of 58 manufacturers recognized for their success.

Hazen is known worldwide for its holographic paper and manufacturing in Holyoke. Well-known examples its work include the Stadium Edition Super Bowl Program and the Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Yearbook.

“In 2009, when the world was embroiled in the Great Recession, Hazen launched a new holographic and metallizing factory in the industrial sector on Main Street in Holyoke,” said John Hazen, president of Hazen Paper. “This was bold timing, and it was an aggressive, forward-driving venture that required extreme fortitude on the part of Hazen Paper.”

Hazen started an apprentice program in 2007 to train the expert workers required for this high-tech factory. Hazen has hired and trained more than 50 apprentices in the last 10 years. In 2010, Hazen started an internship program with engineering students from Western New England University, several of whom now work full-time on the Hazen management team. Hazen has been proactive in helping to build the future workforce via the World Is Our Classroom program, whereby every fifth-grader in Holyoke public schools visits Hazen for a full day of teaching and tours. Hazen started the program in 2004, and an estimated 4,000 fifth-graders have participated since that time.

The State House ceremony honored the manufacturers and showcased their innovative and revolutionary manufacturing capabilities and products. The event included companies who make furniture, jewelry, handcrafted electric bicycles, precision-screw-machined parts, marble and granite, custom paper, flutes and piccolos, precision-machined parts for the aerospace industry, and even hummus and peanut butter.

Hazen Paper was nominated by state Rep. Aaron Vega. “Manufacturing is not only an essential component of our economy in Massachusetts, it’s in the DNA of cities like Holyoke,” he said. “We are a city born of innovation and manufacturing. Most of Western Mass. has a rich history of making things, from paper to bikes, motorcycles to parts for our military and NASA.”