Weekly Spotlight
Verso Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

Over the Wire

TAPPI

Member
Cristini
Verso's board of directors authorized the filing of the Chapter 11 cases to facilitate a debt restructuring necessary to strengthen the company's balance sheet and to position Verso for long-term success.
 
In Memoriam: Wayne H. Gross
Longtime TAPPI President and Executive Director Wayne H. Gross passed away on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016. He was 69.
 
Two Lawsuits Filed by Halalt First Nation against Catalyst
Catalyst denies the allegations contained in both claims and intends to vigorously defend itself.
 
McDonald’s Partners with James Cropper for Pioneering Recycling Trial
Partnership will enable paper cups used in McDonald’s restaurants across the U.K., every week, to be recycled at James Cropper’s state-of-the-art reclaimed fiber plant—turning previously non-recyclable, plastic-coated paper cups into new paper products.
 
UPM Develops Mobile Game for Young Forestry Guides and Scouts
The company cooperated with the Guides and Scouts of Finland to create a forest mobile game. The purpose of the game is to encourage children and young people to learn about forests and the different species that live there, as well as the variety of ways that wood can be used such as in pulp and paper related bio products.
 
TAPPI Product Services Guide: A valuable Purchasing Tool
Annual publication is a comprehensive purchasing tool for pulp and paper industry professionals, exposing advertisements to decision-makers during the purchasing process.
 
Tissue360° Forum: Practical, Applicable Solutions
TAPPI’s 4th annual Tissue360° Forum, May 16-18, 2016 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, will bring together leaders to focus on technical advances and solutions in tissue making, converting, and on tissue education.
 
Tissue Operations and Runnability Course Opens Registration
Course will be conducted at the Miron facility in Neenah, Wis., USA. Register by March 22 to save.
 
Market Roundup
U.S. P&W Paper Shipments Continue to Inch Downward
Shipments decreased 1% in November 2015 compared with November 2014, and total P&W paper inventory levels were essentially flat compared with October 2015.
 
N.A. P&W Paper Demand Declines
North American December 2015 printing and writing paper demand was down 7.3% y/y, and full-year 2015 demand was off 5.3%.
 
World-20 Market Pulp Shipments Increase in 2015
World-20 pulp shipments were at 97% capacity vs. 92% capacity ytd, while end–December BSK and BHK pulp stocks both were down one day from end-November levels.
 
Global Corrugated Box Market to Grow 5.04% CAGR, 2016-2020
Report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years, and also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.
 
U.S. Boxboard Output Rises Slightly in December
Boxboard production in December 2015 increased 1.7% compared with December 2014 and increased 0.3% from November 2015. Unbleached kraft boxboard production increased over the same month as last year but decreased compared with November 2015.
 
Institute of Paper Science and Technology at Georgia Tech
Pulp & Paper
Andritz to Supply Two Tissue Machines with 20-ft Steel Yankees to Guizhou Chitianhua
TM 5 and TM 6 will be used for the production of high-quality facial wipes, toilet paper, and handkerchief paper.
 
Ence Granted Land Occupancy Extension to Carry out Pulp Mill Expansion/Upgrade
Extension is granted for 60 years, over the initial 50 years foreseen, given the announced investment plan of EUR 61 million at the facility.
 
New A.Celli Tissue Machine Starts up at Metalicplas Mill in Romania
High-speed tissue machine at Metalicplas (part of the Pehart Tec Group) in Romani, has a production capacity of 34,000 metric tpy (110 metric tpd).
 
Sappi N.A. Announces 2016 Printer of the Year Call for Entries
Winners will be recognized for print excellence and innovation across 10 categories for work produced primarily on Sappi paper.
 
Sappi to Invest for Future in Lanaken and Kirkniemi Paper Mills
Sappi Lanaken Mill will improve the performance of PM 7 by installing a state-of-the-art film press coater, and Sappi Kirkniemi Mill will undergo a variety of modifications to PM 3 to increase energy efficiency and further improve quality consistency. The EUR 25 million in work will be completed by the end of calendar year 2016.
 
SCA Closes on Wausau Paper Acquisition
SCA's (Sweden) acquisition of Wausau Paper Mosinee, Wis., USA, a North American Away-from-Home tissue company, has been closed for the total consideration of $513 million in cash.
 
Sulzer to Supply Pump Package for Fibria's Horizonte 2 Project
Pump package contains Sulzer's highly efficient AHLSTAR process pumps, MBN multistage pumps, and the latest generation of Sulzer MCE medium consistency pumps.
 
Containerboard/Packaging
ÅF to Modernize Control Systems at Metsä Board’s Husum Mill
Contract is for an end-to-end solution and covers conversion to new, modern Siemens control systems for the bleach, cooking, and recycling plants.
 
Cenveo Completes Sale of Packaging Business to WestRock Converting
Robert G. Burton Sr., chairman and CEO, said that "we are pleased not only to complete the sale of our packaging business to WestRock, but also with our expected operating results for the fourth quarter."
 
Tembec Paperboard, Hawk Converting Announce "Kallima Quick Turn Program"
Kallima Quick Turn Program is designed to provide customers greater flexibility with no minima on orders, special sizes, folio, digital, and large format sizes.
 
New Products
Appvion Expands Triumph High-Speed Inkjet Paper Line
New Appvion Triumph Treated Ultra P High-Speed Inkjet Paper is engineered to deliver superior results and improved productivity with roll-fed high-speed inkjet presses using pigment aqueous inks.
 
Iggesund Invercote G, Creato, and Duo for Embossing Swatchbook
"Invercote has dimensional stability and flexibility which make it a fantastic choice for people who want to use embossing to give their brochure or other printed material a third dimension," explained Alex Guglielmi, one of Iggesund’s market technicians.
 
Veritiv Packaging Launches Earth Pact Sugar Cane Paperboard
Earth Pact, developed in partnership with Carvajal Pulp and Paper, is well-suited for a variety of packaging applications in the food, cosmetics, and similar industries.
 
Neenah Packaging Expands Folding Board Portfolio
Expansion includes a broad range of papers designed for use in a variety of premium packaging applications including boxes, hangtags, gift card carriers, and luxe folders. The line now features 58 items, including 24 new colors, 13 new finishes, and three new digital-ready items, and is showcased in the new Neenah Folding Board swatchbook.
 
People
Haaparanta Becomes Uutechnic Group Deputy CEO
Ismo Haaparanta deputy CEO, previously was CEO of Sydvaranger Gruve AS, a Norwegian mining company. He also was with Yara Suomi Oy of Finland in various managerial positions for several years.
 
Koehler Group Appoints New COO
Dr. Stefan Karrer has been appointed New COO, and Werner Ruckenbrod has retired from the position. Karrer was appointed CEO of Sappi Alfeld in 2010. At that time, he managed to expand the factory and transform it into the market leader in one-side-coated paper
 
Multi Packaging Hires Weiner as Chief Accounting Officer
Ross Weiner will join the company as chief accounting officer effective February 15. The company specializes in paperboard as well as plastic packaging products.
 
Pamarco Appoints Chesley Sales Engineer
James Chesley brings to Pamarco 22 years of experience in flexo printing and package printing related industries.
 
Proposal for the Composition of the Valmet Board of Directors
The Nomination Board of Valmet proposes to the next Annual General Meeting, which is planned to be held on March 22, that the number of members of the BOD until closing of the General Meeting 2017 will be eight. Bo Risberg, Mikael von Frenckell, Lone Fønss Schrøder, Friederike Helfer and Rogerio Ziviani are re-elected.
 
Veritiv Names van Zijl Head of European Paper, Print Business
Chris van Zijl has held top positions within the European paper and print industry for more than 30 years, most recently with Norske Skog, a global producer of newsprint and magazine paper.
 
TAPPI News
Two Industry Leaders to be Keynote Speakers at Nano 2016
Learn from the experts: Bernard de Galembert of CEPI and Christoph Weder of AdolpheMerkle Institute
 
Resolve to Solve with IDCON for the New Year
Learn the latest best practices in maintenance planning and scheduling to improve your plant’s bottom line.
 
Learn How to Improve Recovery Operations and Revenue
Secure your seat now for the Pine Chemicals Association's Recovery Course.
 
Tissue Operations and Runnability Registration in Full Swing!
Registration opened a short time ago and already seats are beginning to fill for the TAPPI Tissue 201 Course this spring.
 
TAPPI Industry Career Center: Safety Manager Wanted
The essential function: protect the employees and the company against harm, maintain safe working conditions, and meet the food safety standards required by our customers. Learn more at the TAPPI Industry Career Center.
 
Results Are In for the 2015 TAPPI Industry Compensation Survey
Preliminary results for TAPPI’s Industry Compensation Survey are now available. Compare your compensation to others, see salary and benefit trends, and evaluate your potential career growth.