Displaying items by tag: holmen

This year’s Christmas card from Iggesund Paperboard has all the requirements to be a classic that many people will keep for a long time. The van Heertum Design agency from the Netherlands has made a name for itself by not flinching from design commissions that demand both complex printing and intricate finishing.

The motif is a starry sky featuring both reindeer and celestial objects done in an extremely fine laser cut, complemented with several foils and then printed in three PMS inks. The tabs attaching the laser-cut sections to the rest of the card are so fine that they are hard to see, and it is only thanks to Invercote’s superior tear strength that the card stays in one piece.

Iggesund Paperboard has a tradition of creating intricate Christmas cards that demonstrate, and in the best cases stretch, the limits of what can be achieved with Invercote as the base material.

“We want to produce more than a Christmas card, we want designers to challenge Invercote and give us something that reflects its essence,” explains Carlo Einarsson, Director Market Communications at Iggesund Paperboard.

Each paperboard sheet was printed using three different techniques and more than 30 inks and varnishes. The printed sheets then passed through various finishing stages a total of 14 times.

“I take on these projects because I want to know how far the material can be pushed,” he says, clearly satisfied with this year’s Christmas card for Iggesund Paperboard.

The card is made of Invercote Creato 350 g/m² and van Heertum Design VHD was responsible for both the design and implementation. The agency was assisted by a group of Dutch suppliers, such as the printers Drukkerij Tielen, Boxtel, and the foil printers Hensen Foliedrukkers, Oirschot, using foil supplied by Leonhard Kurz Benelux of Nijmegen. The characteristic laser cutting was done by Point to Paper, Waalwijk.

Frans van Heertum, founder of van Heertum Design and winner of a number of awards for sophisticated printing projects, has done large, advanced projects a number of times using Invercote as the base material. One recent project is his contribution to Iggesund’s Black Box Project, in which he printed a series of cards.

At an event in Moscow in December a seventh box will be presented, this time by the Swedish photographer and filmmaker Jens Assur.

For almost two years Iggesund Paperboard has been running the Black Box Project, with exhibitions in cities like Paris, London, Amsterdam, Hamburg, Milan and New York. Iggesund has challenged a number of well-known international designers and design companies to fill a black box of a specified format with contents which in some way test the limits of Iggesund’s Invercote paperboard. Six designers have taken part in the project so far. When the doors open on 6 December to an exhibition at the Flacon Club in Moscow, a new box will be unveiled with contents created by the Swedish photographer and film director Jens Assur.

Assur began his career as a photographer for the daily press. In the 1990s he became Sweden’s most award-winning photojournalist. He gradually left the press world and began focusing on filmmaking. His films such as The Last Dog in Rwanda and Killing the Chickens to Scare the Monkeys have won multiple international awards. Partly as a result of this recognition, at the beginning of 2012 he was the first Scandinavian to win the Sundance/NHK International Filmmaker Award, the Sundance Festival’s prize for promising filmmakers.

“When I was asked to take part in the Black Box Project I didn’t hesitate a second,” he says enthusiastically. “As a creative artist, it’s rare that I have the opportunity to work so freely and at such a high artistic level in projects developed by customers. But in this case we could do so on both a conceptual and intellectual level.”

Carlo Einarsson, Director Market Communications at Iggesund Paperboard, is very pleased with Assur’s participation in the project.  

“We’re looking for creative individuals who really push the limits of what can be done with Invercote,” he explains. ”But the project is also a tribute to all the designers who have chosen over the years to make fantastic creations using Invercote as their starting point. We’re especially pleased by the great interest our exhibitions have received from designers and the graphic industry in many parts of the world.”

Einarsson says that the Black Box Project is not a traditional advertising campaign in which the client expresses detailed wishes and closely supervises the project’s execution. The participating designers have great freedom – the only stipulations are that they must work with Invercote and create something that reflects their own distinctiveness and Invercote’s possibilities.

“The degree of freedom combined with the opportunity to create something extraordinary has made it easy to find interested participants,” he says. “A number of designers have contacted us and asked to be part of the project. We’re very satisfied with the response so far, both to our exhibitions and to our web pages about the project.

“In a world where the choice of materials is unfortunately often a matter of habit, it’s important for us to showcase the extra possibilities which Invercote offers designers to fully realise their creative ambitions.” Last November the Black Box Project presented a fifth designer’s work in Hamburg. The newcomer was designer and illustrator Sebastian Onufszak, based in Augsburg, Germany, but with all of Europe as his workplace. His contribution to the exhibition was unveiled at an event at the Prototyp Museum in Hamburg. This spring saw the addition of a work by the Japanese-American paper sculptor Jeff Nishinaka of Los Angeles in conjunction with a Black Box exhibition in Milan.

The other exhibitors are the Dutch firm of van Heertum Design, who are technical magicians who delight in combining printing techniques, use more than 30 inks and varnishes, and then add extra finishing touches, to the joy of printing aficionados and the despair of production economists. Landor, Paris elegantly demonstrates how designers break through all boundaries established by their clients. Brunazzi & Associati from Turin have created a survival kit for pasta lovers with both pasta tongs and a colander, all made of paperboard. And New York-based Frenchman Marc Benhamou presents his concept of beauty in a new interpretation of the Tarot’s 22 Major Arcana cards.

Sebastian Onufszak’s creation will now join this series of challenges. His contribution is a film about life as a closed loop system. The film is played on a video player integrated into the paperboard box.

“This project is an adventure and we don’t really know where it will all end,” Carlo Einarsson concludes. “But Invercote is one of the strongest brands on the European paperboard market, and with that as a secure foundation we can dare to try new channels of communication.”

The next Black Box, by photographer and filmmaker Jens Assur, will be presented at the beginning of December in Moscow.

Incada, which is made by Iggesund Paperboard in Workington, England, featured in two winning entries when the Pro Carton/ ECMA annual packaging awards were presented recently.

The folding box board Incada was the surface material – the one visible to customers – in the packaging which won Carton of the Year, “Rose” by champagne producer Taittinger. Incada was also used in the winner of the Beauty & Cosmetics category, Nivea Mini Treats.

“This clearly demonstrates that Iggesund has two strong brands in its portfolio,” comments Guy Mallinson, business director of European sales at Iggesund Paperboard. “Customers who want outstanding quality in folding box board choose Incada, and if they need the properties offered by a solid bleached board then they choose our Invercote.”

Taittinger’s Rose carton was converted by Van Genechten of Angoulême, France, which also created the structural design. Incada Exel was used to cover and add elegance to a base structure made of recycled-fibre material from Meyer Melnhof. The Nivea Mini Treats carton was converted by Clondalkin Pharma & Healthcare, which also created the structural design commissioned by Beiersdorf UK.

Incada was used to give Taittinger’s elegant Rose carton the elegance and élan which captures the  consumer’s attention on the retail shelves.

Holmen VIEW was a great product when it was launched in 2011, but has now been improved even further in several areas to meet customer demands.

The new Holmen VIEW has a silkier feel and gives the reader a comfortable reading experience without glare and reflexes. Holmen VIEW also has higher brightness which makes it an excellent choice for all types of magazines and catalogues. A lot of work has been put into securing reliable runnability to ensure easy and problem free printing.

Tommy Wiksand, Sales and Development Director at Holmen Paper, is very pleased with the improvements.

“The first version of Holmen VIEW had good properties, but as with all products, things have to move forward, and Holmen VIEW is no exception,” Tommy Wiksand says.

Holmen VIEW is suitable for offset and gravure printing and comes in basis weights between 48 g/m² and 57 g/m².

Holmen Paper is starting work aiming to concentrate production at the mill in Hallstavik to two paper machines with strong positions in their respective product segments: MF Magazine and book paper. The result of this is that the mill’s oldest machine, PM 3, is being shut down. At the same time, there are plans to invest in energy efficiency measures that, together with the closure, will considerably reduce the mill’s future investment needs. These measures will strengthen the mills competitiveness.

“The restructuring programme will ensure that Hallsta Paper Mill continues to play an important role in the switch towards becoming a speciality paper company, a process that has been under way at Holmen Paper’s Swedish units for a long time. It will help improve our chances of growing in the areas of importance to us,” says Henrik Sjölund, head of Holmen Paper.

The aim is to close down PM 3 during the second half of 2013. The paper machine manufactures 140 000 tonnes of SC paper annually for a market with excessive overcapacity. Closure is assessed to lead to a reduction in the workforce of around 230.

No Swedish Christmas is complete without Aladdin – a classic chocolate box whose journey starts in the UK and ends under Christmas trees across Sweden.

The Aladdin box is made from Incada Silk, a multi-layered paperboard that is produced by Iggesund Paperboard in Workington, in the north of England. And at the factory production is stepping up ready for the festive season. From Workington, the paperboard is shipped to Iggesund Paperboard's customer Å&R Carton, but sales manager Bengt Johansson also sees the chocolate producer Marabou as his customer.

"There is a huge amount of openness and trust between us, and we have a good dialogue with both Å&R Carton and Kraft Foods, who own the Marabou brand," he explains. "We often discuss with them how we can develop the paperboard for improved printing and runnability in the machines. That's important since the production and packing are fully automated. It's also equally important that the chocolates don't pick up any other flavours along the production chain."

The Aladdin box dates back to the late 1930s and Iggesund Paperboard's partnership with Å&R Carton and Kraft Foods also goes back a long way, to at least the 1970s or 80s, according to Bengt, who has been around for the past ten years himself.

"They are important customers of ours, and of course Incada Silk is used in other chocolate packaging too," he concludes.

Holmen is reorganising its management teams in two of the Group's business areas. This will also affect the composition of Group management.

Arne Wallin, head of the Holmen Paper business area, will take up the equivalent role in the Holmen Energi business area. The new head of Holmen Paper will be the business area's current marketing director, Henrik Sjölund.

"Holmen Energi will be focusing on several new areas, including wind power and biofuels. To be successful, we need to strengthen our competence in preparation for the major projects that are in the pipeline. Arne 
Wallin has many years of experience of both major investment projects and advanced business negotiations," says Magnus Hall, President and CEO, Holmen.

"With his solid knowledge of the major market challenges faced by the printing paper industry, Henrik Sjölund will be a force to be reckoned with at Holmen Paper. He will also be a welcome addition to Group  
management."

Henrik Sjölund will be succeeded as marketing director of Holmen Paper by Nils Ringborg, who is currently responsible for recovered paper purchasing at Holmen Paper and managing director of the part-owned paper recovery company PÅAB.

Brynolf Alexandersson, currently head of Holmen Energi, will be taking on the role of production manager in the same business area.

"Brynolf Alexandersson did an extraordinary job during the first phase of development, but it's now natural for someone else to take the helm," says Magnus Hall.

All changes are applicable as of 15 September.

Holmen Paper has appointed Kenneth Ohlsson as the new manager of Hallsta Paper Mill.

Kenneth Ohlsson, 49, currently production manager at Stora Enso's Hylte Paper Mill, succeeds Hannele Arvonen, who will leave Hallsta at the end of August to take up new duties in the Holmen Group.

Mikael Wahlgren, production manager at Hallsta Paper Mill, will take over as temporary mill manager until Kenneth Ohlsson takes up his new position later this autumn.

"Kenneth Ohlsson has long experience of our industry, at mills in Sweden and abroad. He will bring with him important experience, which will be valuable input for us in the future development of Hallsta Paper Mill and Holmen Paper", says Arne Wallin, head of business area Holmen Paper.

High Definition Television is a reality. The high definition image gives HDTV an extra dimension. Don’t be surprised to see paper offering a kind of ‘HD quality’ – with extremely good image reproduction – on the market in the not too distant future.

The people whose job it is to speculate on the paper of tomorrow are Tommy Wiksand, sales and development director, and Jan Andersson, technical sales & product development manager.

Looking ahead, the duo see today’s standard paper being replaced by other types of paper. Some of them will have top-class image reproduction and a feel that underlines the message that the sender wants to communicate.

New and more refined

Holmen VIEW can be seen as a step in this direction. Compared with traditional standard paper, the newly developed paper has excellent image reproduction and a silky feel.

Keeping a product range in step with the market is not just about launching new additions. Existing products with low demand must, of course, be weeded out. It is also important to take existing knowledge in one segment and see if it can be applied to others.

Tommy Wiksand comments: “We’ve refined the surfaces of our directory paper, for example. This has allowed us to reach other segments of the market that need this type of paper with high opacity and good print surfaces.”

Increased business

Across the market, more and more players are also realising what an even more effective collaboration between different message-carrying media can lead to.

“The paper catalogue is very important for online trade, acting as a tangible reminder that the company exists. Combining media thus helps to secure more business,” states Tommy Wiksand.

With refined segmentation and greater knowledge about customer preferences, large-scale print runs are no longer necessary, suggesting that the pace of development is likely to accelerate.

No nerds

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Tommy and Jan are convinced that paper has its place in tomorrow’s media mix.

“But don’t think we’re just some kind of narrow-minded paper nerds. It’s all about making smart use of paper in different communication situations. And paper doesn’t have an automatic place in the media mix,” says Jan Andersson.

It is necessary for the producers to keep a close eye on customer wishes and work their way up the value chain, an approach that forms an integral part of Holmen Paper’s overall strategy. The company has been working for a number of years now on migrating its mills from standard to specialist products. In this respect, the company has an important competitive advantage in its access to virgin fibre and what that means in the form of bulk and scope for bleaching.

Win-win

Another strategic move by Holmen Paper is to get even nearer to its customers. A close dialogue often provides a good idea of what products customers really want.

Naturally, not all wishes can be realised, but in the majority of cases any wishes are carefully analysed to examine which segment a new/adapted product would fit into and what potential exists.

“If the analysis suggests that it feels right and that we have the resources to take it forward, we then carry out a more extensive customer survey,” explains Jan Andersson.

If the response is positive, an internal development process is launched. When it comes to the initial test-runs, it is often necessary to work on site with the customer. This is an excellent way to build up experience, in order to further fine-tune the product, creating a win-win situation for both parties.

Product development in practice

Holmen VIEW, Holmen XLNT, Holmen PREMIUM and Holmen BOOK – four examples of new and improved products from Holmen Paper.

The latest example is the uncoated paper that feels like silk, Holmen VIEW, which was developed as an attractive alternative to LWC and SC paper for magazines, supplements and product catalogues. The well established Holmen XLNT has also broadened its range in recent years. The paper is now available in a brightness of 60 and in four grammages. Customer demand for wider reels – over 3.8 metres – has also been satisfied.

In addition, a larger range of the SC paper Holmen PREMIUM is now a reality. There were many requests for brightnesses of 72 and 80, which have given rise to Holmen PREMIUM 72 in four grammages and Holmen PREMIUM 80 in six grammages.