The Closure and Container Manufacturers Association (CCMA), Barrington, Ill., will become part of the International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT), Dallas, effective April 1. A group will be formed with representatives from both organizations to facilitate the transition.

“The CCMA board has decided that the time is right to tap into the resources of a larger organization with which we already share several common interests and initiatives,” said Roy Robinson, chairman of CCMA and vice president of business development for Portola Packaging Inc., Naperville, Ill., in a statement. “We now look forward to using our collective efforts to tackle key industry issues together.”

By joining ISBT, CCMA members now will have access to additional technical support and will be able to share industry guidelines and standards with a larger, more global audience. They also will be able to contribute to ISBT’s university program, which offers students basic training on beverage ingredients, quality, processing and packaging.

In gaining these additional members, ISBT will benefit by getting operations and processing knowledge from the manufacturers’ perspective, the association says.

“We are pleased to welcome CCMA members to ISBT,” said Larry Hobbs, executive director of ISBT, in a statement. “With their long history of packaging-component knowledge and issue-based advocacy, their participation will make ISBT an even stronger industry organization.”

ISBT’s ongoing participation in closure initiatives, including years of subcommittee work on finish/closure standards, also was a key factor in the partnership. A number of CCMA efforts are already coordinated with ISBT, such as the Threadspecs committee, which works on finish standards.

The CCMA consists of member companies, while the ISBT comprises individual members. Going forward, CCMA member company representatives will be invited to join ISBT as individual members. Key initiatives previously supported by CCMA, including sustainability and recycling, will be integrated into ISBT committees.