Synergy between tissue companies will meet customers increased needs for speed, choice and technologically advanced solutions

With the strategic aim of becoming the most advanced and complete supplier in the world of technologies dedicated to tissue, Fabio Perini, Casmatic and MTC reach out to the market with one strong brand: Körber. The companies of the Körber Groups Business Area Tissue offer holistic solutions for the converting and packaging of toilet rolls, kitchen towels, and folded products.

Over the past few years, the tissue industry has been dealing with unprecedented pressure and challenges. Pulp price volatility, fierce competition across global markets, and the need for stronger differentiation are just the beginning. Combined with an increasing strive for sustainability and the difficulty in recruiting skilled operators - this all adds to the demanding market environment as producers also aim at enhancing their overall operational efficiency.

“It’s tougher than ever for our customers to run their operations in a profitable and sustainable way,” says Oswaldo Cruz Junior, Chief Executive Officer of the Business Area Körber Tissue. “Fabio Perini and Casmatic have been the reference points for quality and innovation in converting and packaging in tissue for more than fifty years, while MTC is a world leader in the development, production, and marketing of machines for folded products. Today we unify, underline and strengthen this triple capability under a single brand: Körber”.

“The success of our customers has always been at the center of our innovations in technology”, continues Cruz. “We support them with outstanding solutions, an active approach towards market challenges and an unmatched service portfolio and presence around the globe. These tangible benefits for our regional and global customers can lead to more benefits as we combine the competencies of all our companies even more effectively than in the past. So, the new joint brand is a logical step in bringing this strong message to the market.”

The Körber Business Area Tissue provides advanced, automated and easy-to-use integrated solutions, key resources for increasing efficiency via its global expert team that supports customers globally and locally.

Cruz concludes: “This step represents an important opportunity for our customers too as we will be able to meet the most challenging needs for speed, choice and technologically advanced solutions, relying not only on the integrated offerings of the companies of the Körber Business Area Tissue. We can also draw from the technology expertise of around 10,000 employees of the Körber Group”.

AMETEK Surface Vision, a leading provider of online surface inspection solutions, has upgraded its SmartAdvisor^® web and process monitoring system, providing additional benefits for customers.

Versatile and easy to use, SmartAdvisor is a video monitoring solution that helps maximize machine efficiency and yield rates. It provides high-speed, high-definition video monitoring, and process analysis to the paper, board, and tissue industries.

Camera synchronization technology delivers real-time root cause analysis of defects and process interruption. This is supported by simultaneous video capture and review that provides multiple hours of footage for troubleshooting.

Key benefits of the SmartAdvisor system include:

• Increased line efficiency and yield
• Accurate image synchronization
• Multiple views across the process line
• Seamless integration with the SmartView web inspection system

Additionally, SmartAdvisor’s customizable system configuration can be applied in a flexible, scalable way to fit individual production requirements, delivering the most capable and cost-effective solution for each user.

Volker Kölmel, Global Manager Plastic, Nonwovens and Paper at AMETEK Surface Vision comments, “Designed for today’s hands-on troubleshooter, SmartAdvisor delivers proven and significant benefits from the moment it’s installed. Using perfectly synchronized high-speed cameras, strategically placed along the paper machine, SmartAdvisor accurately syncs video frames from each camera to generate a complete overview that helps identify the root cause of web defects and breaks.”

The latest version of SmartAdvisor has a new user interface that improves ease of use and supports Windows 10 and Windows 7 for installation on mill networks. The upgrade also increases storage capacity for video review, allowing more than three days of image storage all at full resolution and framerate. Higher-definition cameras and multi-light control further improve image quality and the capability to identify the root cause of web breaks.

Installation costs are lowered by the introduction of a fiber-optic backbone for the cameras, which offers higher system reliability and performance. This further facilitates the modification of camera locations if required.

AMETEK Surface Vision’s process experts will help customers select the best web and process video monitoring solution for their individual process, with modular hardware and advanced technical support.

Find out more about the SmartAdvisor solution at www.ameteksurfacevision.com.

About AMETEK Surface Vision

AMETEK Surface Vision is a world leader in automated online surface inspection solutions with a broad product portfolio optimized for web and surface inspection and monitoring and process surveillance applications.

Its product portfolio includes two distinct product lines: SmartView^® systems and SmartAdvisor^® systems. Each product line uniquely enables customers to inspect the surfaces of materials processed in a continuous fashion across the metals, paper, plastics, nonwovens and glass industries. Learn more by visiting ameteksurfacevision.com.

AMETEK Surface Vision is a unit of AMETEK Process and Analytical Instruments, a division of AMETEK, Inc., a global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices with annual sales of approximately $5 billion.

Local and state officials to welcome new manufacturing facility in Hamilton

Saica Group has held a groundbreaking event at the site of its first U.S. plant, 2995 McBride Court, Hamilton Enterprise Parkway in Hamilton, Ohio. The 350,000 square-foot plant will manufacture corrugated packaging. The project marks Spanish company Saica’s expansion into the U.S. market, and represents a $72-million investment.

Because of COVID-19 concerns, in-person attendance at the event was limited, but several regional government officials were on hand to welcome Saica to the region, while others joined via video messages. Cincinnati-based Miller-Valentine Group is building the project.

“This event marks the start of ambitious expansion plans for the U.S. market,” said Saica Group President Ramón Alejandro. “We’re excited that this day is here, and truly appreciate the support we’ve received from our partners here in the U.S.”

State and local incentives are supporting Saica’s investment in Hamilton. In June, the Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved an eight-year job creation tax credit to build the new facility in Hamilton.

JobsOhio is supporting the project through an economic development grant and a JobsOhio Workforce Grant. The project also will receive a job creation tax credit and property tax abatement by the city of Hamilton.

“We’re happy to see this project moving forward,” J.P. Nauseef, JobsOhio CEO. “Saica Group is a great fit for this region, and this plant will help create opportunities in Hamilton and beyond.”

REDI Cincinnati also supported this project, and credits collaboration between JobsOhio and the city of Hamilton for successfully attracting Saica to the region.

“Saica selecting our region is the direct result of several organizations working together to bring manufacturing jobs here,” said Brandon Simmons, REDI Cincinnati vice president of project management. “I look forward to seeing the company thrive as it expands to the U.S.”

Saica Group expects to create 64 new jobs in the region, including 27 skilled operators, 15 manufacturing, engineering and supply chain professionals, 13 sales staff and nine office and management jobs.

Miller-Valentine is partnering with Phoenix Architecture, Advantage Engineering, Genesis Design and Terracon Consultants to complete this project.

To know more about the project, you can visit: https://usa.saica.com/en/

About Saica Group

Saica Group is one of the largest European players in the development and production of recycled paper for corrugated board, with a production of 3.5 million of short tons of paper. With more than 10,000 employees across Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, United Kingdom, Ireland, Turkey, Luxembourg and The Netherlands; Saica Group has four business areas: production of recycled paper for corrugated board (Saica Paper), waste management and environmental services (Saica Natur), production of corrugated packaging (Saica Pack) and flexible packaging (Saica Flex). The consolidated turnover of the multinational is nearly 3.4 billion dollars (consolidates sales, 31.12.19).

Learn more at www.saica.com

Growing consumption and demand for more sustainable packaging is boosting the need for new innovations. To develop solutions for packaging today and into the future, Metsä Board, part of Metsä Group, has started up operations in its new Excellence Centre at the unique bioeconomy site in Äänekoski, Finland.
 
The centre, with its cutting-edge technology for R&D, packaging design and paperboard and packaging performance, aims to accelerate material and packaging innovation and provide a collaboration platform for customers and technology partners globally.
 
“As the amount of packaging continues to grow, new, sustainable solutions are needed to replace fossil-based materials and ensure circularity. The Excellence Centre concept enables paperboard and packaging solutions that look at the entire value chain, and not just at its separate parts. With the material knowhow, competence and tools now available, we can optimise performance throughout the packaging lifecycle”, says Mika Joukio, CEO of Metsä Board.

The Excellence Centre, which covers a total of 1,500 square meters, includes R&D facilities, a packaging design studio, a customer feedback centre and a state-of-the art laboratory providing more than 100 different measurement methods and analytics.  The centre also features a virtual store and a computer-aided engineering (CAE) tool to allow sophisticated simulation and analysis of packaging performance.
 
Metsä Board’s Excellence Centre brings together Metsä Board’s own competencies and deep expertise in fibre-based solutions with that of various experts and partners, such as material suppliers, technology providers, start-up companies, universities and research companies. Virtual collaboration workshops have also been developed to enable joint development and co-creation if physical meetings are not possible.
 
“Renewable and recyclable fresh fibre paperboard can be utilised for packaging in many ways. Fibre-based packaging has a lot to offer, and together with our partners and the new Excellence Centre, we are able to explore the possibilities even more comprehensively. I am excited about the opportunities this will bring for today and the future,” says Metsä Board’s CEO Mika Joukio.
 
Äänekoski’s world-unique bioeconomy ecosystem includes a next-generation bioproduct mill, a paperboard mill, plywood mill, the Pro Nemus visitor centre, and a textile fibre demo plant.

Metsä Board
www.metsaboard.com
 
Metsä Board is a leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and forerunner in sustainability. We produce premium lightweight folding boxboards, food service boards and white kraftliners for consumer goods packaging as well as retail-ready and food service applications. We work together with our customers on a global scale to innovate solutions for better consumer experiences with less environmental impact. The pure fresh fibres Metsä Board uses are a renewable resource, traceable to origin in sustainably managed northern forests. We aim for completely fossil-free mills and raw materials by 2030.
 
The global sales network of Metsä Board supports customers worldwide, including brand owners, retailers, converters and merchants. In 2019, the company’s sales totalled EUR 1.9 billion, and it has approximately 2,400 employees. Metsä Board, part of Metsä Group, is listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki.

Metsä Group
www.metsagroup.com
 
Metsä Group is a forerunner in sustainable bioeconomy utilising renewable wood from sustainably managed northern forests. Metsä Group focuses on wood supply and forest services, wood products, pulp, fresh fibre paperboards and tissue and greaseproof papers.
 
In 2019, Metsä Group’s sales totalled EUR 5.5 billion, and it employs approximately 9,300 people. Metsäliitto Cooperative is the parent company of Metsä Group and is owned by approximately 100,000 Finnish forest owners.

Futura, technological leader in creating and delivering tissue converting solutions, whose production value in 2019 was over 60 million euro, has finalized the acquisition of Plusline, a company active in ‘smart’ tissue packaging technology operative from its headquarters in Bologna.

Plusline is an innovative start-up company, launched a few years ago at the initiative of Bolognese entrepreneur Vittorio Gerri, with the aim of creating a new era of packaging technology that guarantees increased performance and integrated systems within the world of converting.

After a few months collaborating on the development of key systems and a unique, strategic and shared vision between their respective teams, Futura acquired a 100 percent shareholding of Plusline through the completion of a capital injection to support future growth.
“For Futura, Plusline represents the continuation of our strategic plan dedicated to the progressive and continuous improvement of the solutions we offer,” said Futura Chairman Fabio Boschi. “Solutions that, in line with the philosophy of our Founder Fabio Perini, are always created from the knowledge, passion and dedication of the people who work with them.”

Faper Group

The Group, founded by entrepreneur Fabio Perini, operates from its headquarters in Viareggio, Italy. Following its formative heritage in tissue equipment solutions and the iconic experience within the superyacht industry, today Faper Group, led by CEO Fabio Boschi since 2009, currently has interests in engineering solutions for tissue, sterilization equipment, real estate and start-ups.

The Group’s activities are rooted in the distinct DNA of its founder Fabio Perini and his concept of vision, invention and simplification. As he says: “Invention is the key to simplicity”.

Futura 

Futura, part of Faper Group, is the brainchild of Fabio Perini, the man who changed the world of converting and instilled his vision in Futura: imagining the future and transforming it in technological solutions.

Over 17 years the spirit and vision that drives Fabio Perini has permeated the company, as has his ambition for Futura to be the most innovative company in the sector, which is ingrained in each and every team member.

Futura, led by CEO Piero Ceccon, works constantly to create tangible, sustainable innovation which will enable roll manufacturers the world over to improve the quality not only of their products but also their financial performance, thereby gaining significant competitive advantages.

Headquartered in Coquitlam, BC, West World Paper (WWP) is a merchant that services the commercial print market in Western Canada. The company offers a wide range of fine paper products, office papers, envelopes, wide format media, janitorial and industrial products. In addition, WWP has an internal converting department that produces engineering/CAD rolls, films, kraft paper and newsprint rolls.  From its 30,000-square-foot headquarters and another 12,000-square-foot facility in Calgary, AB, the company manages more than 2,000 products and operates its own fleet of trucks, making distribution to customers in the region fast and efficient.

West World Paper has built a strong reputation not only for providing high quality products, but also for its commitment to environmental sustainability and social responsibility. The company assures that the pulp in all products it buys is sourced from sustainably managed forests. They have an extensive internal recycling program as well as a recycling program for customers. And they are big supporters of other local businesses and charities. WWP Director Shawn Leach says Two Sides membership is a perfect complement to the company’s sustainability efforts.

“Two Sides is a tremendous advocate for our industry, and West World Paper is proud to be a member,”  Leach says. “There are so many misconceptions about our industry and our products, and Two Sides effectively busts those myths by highlighting the many studies and facts from trusted third-party sources in an easy to understand format. And being a non-profit organization only adds to the credibility of their messaging and materials, which West World Paper uses regularly to help educate our customers and consumers,” he says.

West World Paper’s extensive internal recycling program recovers all paper, corrugated, wood and plastic used in its facilities, which is then sent to a local recycling company. The wide format paper rolls that WWP converts for the reprographic industry include paper cores and plastic caps. When the company delivers new rolls to a customer, they pick up the cores and caps from the empty rolls and reuse them in the converting process, preventing them from going to the landfill.

“In addition to our environmental commitment, we’re also big supporters of our local economy,” WWP Director Kevin Burden explains.  “We make every decision with our local community top of mind.  We use a local bank, local legal and accounting services, local graphic designers and of course, local printers.  We want people to understand that when they support West World Paper, they are supporting our local community.”

WWP also supports the local community with its charitable contributions.  One of the company’s key efforts is its participation in the Starfish Backpack Program, an effort supported by local Rotary Clubs across British Columbia which provides weekend meals to families in need.  Many weeks throughout the year, WWP employees fill backpacks with meals and snacks and deliver them to a local school for students to take home for the weekend.  The students return the empty backpacks to the school, and the volunteers pick them up to be refilled.

“We have a highly experienced, dedicated team that takes a great deal of pride in going above and beyond for our customers and our community,” Burden says.  Giving back is just one of the many ways they help transform West World Paper’s sustainability commitment into action.”

For more information about West World Paper, visit www.westworldpaper.com.

Metsä Board, the leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and part of Metsä Group, is delighted to announce that two of its folding boxboards, MetsäBoard Natural FBB and MetsäBoard Pro FBB OBAfree, as well as two food service grades, MetsäBoard Natural FSB Cup and MetsäBoard Pro FSB Cup, have now received home compostability certificates complying with NF T 51-800 standard. Metsä Board’s eco-barrier paperboard MetsäBoard Prime FBB EB already holds the same certificate. 

“In order to enhance a circular economy our main target is that our paperboards are recycled after use. But recycling is not always possible – the paperboard may be contaminated due to its contents and therefore cannot be recycled. In such a situation compostability is the next best alternative,” says Helena Moring-Vepsäläinen, Product Safety Manager at Metsä Board.

All Metsä Board’s paperboards, excluding PE coated grades, already hold industrial compostability certificates complying with DIN EN 13432 and ASTM D6400 standards. They are all made of pure fresh fibres sourced from sustainably managed Northern European forests. They are also lightweight, contributing to a reduction of the carbon footprint throughout the whole supply chain as well as following the circular economy principles thanks to easy recyclability.

For further information:
Helena Moring-Vepsäläinen, Product Safety Manager, Metsä Board
Mobile: +358 (0) 50 523 6474 
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Metsä Board 
www.metsaboard.com 

Metsä Board is a leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and forerunner in sustainability. We produce premium lightweight folding boxboards, food service boards and white kraftliners for consumer goods packaging as well as retail-ready and food service applications. We work together with our customers on a global scale to innovate solutions for better consumer experiences with less environmental impact. The pure fresh fibres Metsä Board uses are a renewable resource, traceable to origin in sustainably managed northern forests. We aim for completely fossil free mills and raw materials by 2030. 

The global sales network of Metsä Board supports customers worldwide, including brand owners, retailers, converters and merchants. In 2019, the company’s sales totalled EUR 1.9 billion, and it has approximately 2,400 employees. Metsä Board, part of Metsä Group, is listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki. 

Metsä Group

www.metsagroup.com

Metsä Group is a forerunner in sustainable bioeconomy utilising renewable wood from sustainably managed northern forests. Metsä Group focuses on wood supply and forest services, wood products, pulp, fresh fibre paperboards and tissue and greaseproof papers.

In 2019, Metsä Group’s sales totalled EUR 5.5 billion, and it employs approximately 9,300 people. Metsäliitto Cooperative is the parent company of Metsä Group and is owned by approximately 100,000 Finnish forest owners.

Stora Enso has completed the co-determination negotiations concerning the closure of one standard newsprint paper machine (PM3) and the deinking plant at Stora Enso’s Hylte Mill in Sweden. The maximum personnel impact is 140 people.

As a result of the co-determination negotiations, PM3 will be shut down by the end of 2020 and the DIP latest in Q2 2021. Negotiations on organizational restructuring, including the risk analysis, have started.

Stora Enso will continue to produce standard newsprint at Hylte, Langerbrugge and Sachsen mills. The closure of Hylte Mill PM3 will not impact Stora Enso’s newsprint product offering, and we will be able to serve our customers as today.

Investor enquiries:
Ulla Paajanen
SVP, Investor Relations
tel. +358 40 763 8767

Part of the bioeconomy, Stora Enso is a leading global provider of renewable solutions in packaging, biomaterials, wooden constructions and paper. We believe that everything that is made from fossil-based materials today can be made from a tree tomorrow. Stora Enso has some 25 000 employees in over 30 countries. Our sales in 2018 were EUR 10.5 billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in the USA as ADRs (SEOAY). storaenso.com

WRI’s Hardwood Fiber Price Index fell to a 16-year low in the 2Q/20, driven by lower pulplog prices in Brazil, Russia and Eastern Canada

Wood raw-material costs fell for most pulp manufacturers throughout the world in the 2Q/20, reducing WRI’s two fiber price indices for the fifth consecutive quarter. The q-o-q declines for the Hardwood Fiber Price Index (HFPI) and the Softwood Fiber Price Index (SFPI) were 4.8% and 1.9%, respectively. The HFPI Index reached $79.88/odmt in the 2Q/20, the lowest level since 2004, and substantially below the average rate since the Index’s inception in the 1Q/1988.

The HFPI is composed of regional prices for wood chips and pulplogs delivered to pulpmills in 14 key regions around the world, and is weighted based on the proportional amount of fiber consumption in each region. Over the past year, fiber prices (in US dollars) have fallen the most in Brazil, Russia, Eastern Canada, France, Chile, and the US South (in descending order). Brazil has a long history of having some of the lowest wood fiber costs in the world. This was cemented in the 2Q/20 when the country had both the lowest softwood and hardwood fiber costs of all 18 regions tracked by the Wood Resource Quarterly.

Hardwood fiber prices have dropped in US dollar terms, in part due to the strengthening of the dollar against all currencies in the WRQ countries over the past year, barring the Yen, over the past year. In local currencies, wood fiber costs from the 2Q/19 to the 2Q/20 have fallen the most in France, Eastern Canada, the US South, Russia, and the US Northwest (in descending order).

Prices for softwood fiber have also been declining the past few years, albeit in a less dramatic fashion than hardwood fiber. As a result, the SFPI was almost six dollars per odmt higher than the HFPI in the 2Q/20, the biggest discrepancy since 2Q/07.

Over the past year, softwood fiber prices (in US dollars) declined predominantly in Latin America and Europe. Prices in Brazil and Chile were down because of the weakening local WRI Market Insights 2020 - a subscription service from Wood Resources International Global Wood Fiber Markets Wood Resources International currencies, while an oversupply of residues and pulplogs in Central Europe resulted in continued downward price pressure on wood fiber in key markets.

Interested in wood products market insights from around the world? The Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ) is a 70-page report, established in 1988 and has subscribers in over 30 countries. The report tracks prices for sawlog, pulpwood, lumber & pellets worldwide and reports on trade and wood market developments in most key regions around the world. For more insights on the latest international forest product market trends, please go to WoodPrices.com Contact Information Wood Resources International LLC Hakan Ekstrom, Seattle, USA This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. www.WoodPrices.com

Earlier this year Recard S.p.A. signed a contract with the Greek company MAXI S.A. for the supply of a second complete turnkey plant for the production of Tissue Paper.  Installation and start-up are scheduled for 2021. For MAXI this will be PM2 but for the owners of MAXI this is the third plant ordered from Recard  (the first was Papyros PM1, installed in 2006), as they were the founders and previously main shareholders of Papyros Paper Mill, nowaday belonging to an international Group.

With regards to this project the Chairman of the Board and CEO Mr. William Papadopoulos said: “Following the recent completion of a new investment in Tissue Roll Converting with the installation of a new Perini line for consumer products, MAXI has ordered a complete new Tissue Plant from Recard S.p.A, the supplier who already delivered two successful turnkey plants in Katerini in 2006 and 2010 and that we are willing to entrust again with this milestone project.”

The signing of the contract. From left: Spyros Deliadis - Recard Area Agent; William Papadopoulos - Chairman of the Board and CEO MAXI SA; Silvio Renieri - Shareholder of Recard S.P.A.

The new production line will be installed at the Katerini factory, where MAXI PM1 built by Recard has already been in production for some years

The new turnkey plant includes a Crescent Former Tissue Machine which will produce 115 tonnes/day and reach a speed of 1,850 metres/min.  With this new production plant, the Greek company will increase its total production from the current 28,000 tonnes per year to approximately 68,000 tonnes.

The second Recard Tissue plant actually operating at MAXI company.

The turnkey plant includes 3 stock preparation lines for long, short fibres and broke/rejects from the converting area.

The delivery scope also covers all machine auxiliaries, including the latest generation of recovery boiler and a top performance 4-ply hydraulic Rewinder.

In terms of services Recard will be responsible for all plant engineering, project management, goods transportation till mill site, full mechanical and electrical installation, plant commissioning, machine start up and post start up baby sitting.

About MAXI S.A.

1988 marked the company’s foundation as a commercial business for the sale of sanitary household products under the name MAXI S.A.

Three years later, in 1991, the small scale production of Toilet Paper, Kitchen Towel and Napkins began with a work force of eight employees in a factory located at the 1^st kilometre of the old Katerini – Thessaloniki motorway, where it remains until today.

Today, MAXI S.A. is a leading force in Paper production and converting, running several high speed lines and producing a great variety of Tissue products.

With customer satisfaction as a priority, the company continues to develop a wide variety of prime quality products, investing in a highly trained workforce and state-of-the-art machinery.

Following the recent completion of a new investment in Tissue Roll Converting with the installation of a new Perini line for consumer products, MAXI have placed the order for a complete second Tissue Plant from Recard S.p.A, the supplier who also delivered the first successful turnkey plant in Katerini in 2010 and who they choose to entrust again with milestone project.

About Recard S.p.A.

Founded in 1962 Recard Spa has attained industrial dimensions all the while maintaining its philosophy of a “craft laboratory”, a working philosophy that guarantees top production efficiency and allows placing the customer always at the centre of attention.

The watchword at Recard SpA is “customization”, for this reason the Italian company is specialized in designing, manufacturing, shipping and installing of complete Tissue plants from stock preparation to paper machine, slitting rewinder and finished roll handling, including every process system required inside the production building.