Willem (Bill) Nikkel passed away on January 26th just 2 days shy of his 95th birthday. He was born in
Moiokerto, Indonesia and later served in the Dutch Army.
Bill immigrated from Amsterdam, Netherlands after college and worked in the paper industry in
Montreal beginning in 1956. In 1960 he relocated to the US to work for West Virginia Pulp & Paper
(Westvaco) as an Engineer and Scientist in the Research Facility in Covington, VA. He spent the rest oi
long career with Westvaco assisting paper mills and container plants in the US and also at the
Westvaco subsidiary Rigesa in a number of locations in Brazil. He was awarded over a dozen patents it
both paper and corrugated board manufacture.
Bill was also a full time member of the Corrugated Industry Development Corporation (C.I.D.) during
1971-72. This was an effort funded by 11 of the integrated paper companies in an effort to solve the
industry wide problem of warp in corrugated board. The successful study identified a number of areas
to reduce warp though adhesive control, moisture and heat control and roll stock specifications.
After his retirement Bill consulted with Harper Love Adhesives and Stickle Steam starting in 1993 until
his second retirement. His assistance in training new technicians and assisting in complicated problem
solving was invaluable.
Bill was very active in the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI) for over 60
years. He was named a TAPPI Fellow in 1982 and served on the Board of Directors from 1984 to 1987
He received the Corrugated Division Technical Award and Bettendorf Prize in 2000 and received the Division’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.