Weekly Spotlight
KPS to Sell Expera Specialty Solutions to Ahlstrom-Munksjö for $615 Million

Over the Wire

TAPPI

Thursday, July 26, 2018 - Member
Cristini
Expera is a leading North American manufacturer of specialty paper products for the industrial and technical, food, and pressure-sensitive release liner segments.
 
Help Save the Planet with Print
Silicon Valley Print Shop Goes Green with Recycled Stock Paper.
 
Swedish Research Breaks New Ground – Closer to a Commercial Paper Battery
BillerudKorsnäs and Uppsala University are making paper batteries a reality, paving the way for energy storage in packaging materials. Small paper batteries with sensors can in the future open up new sustainable products that can be traced through the entire transport chain.
 
ASTM, Auburn, NASA, EWI, MTC Launch Additive Manufacturing CoE
Auburn University and NASA also formally launched the National Center for Additive Manufacturing Excellence (NCAME).
 
Merichem Company
Market Roundup
N.A. P&W Paper Demand Continues Decline in June
Printing and writing paper demand was down 1.9% y/y in June 2018, better than the 3.8% decline ytd.
 
China Paper/Paperboard Output Slides 5.1% y/y in June
Country’s paper and paperboard output was down 0.7% y/y through the first half of 2018.
 
U.S. P&W Paper Shipments Decreased 6% in June 2018
Total P&W paper inventory levels decreased 2% from May. Imports of P&W papers in May increased 18% compared with May 2017 imports, while exports declined 3% compared with May 2017.
 
Agriculture Packaging Market to Raise at a CAGR of 5.3%, 2018 – 2028
Agriculture packaging is used for the storage of agricultural products such as pesticides, seeds, food grains, silage, fruits and vegetables, etc., by using pouches, bags/bins, silo bags, clamshells, bottle, trays, and bulk containers.
 
Synthetic Paper Market to Reach 7.1% CAGR, $1.3 Billion by 2024
The market is subject to substantial growth due to the growing environmental concerns and numerous initiatives taken by local governments coupled with a rising need for packaging and labeling in packaged food and beverages.
 
U.S. Boxboard Output Increases in June
Total boxboard production increased 3.6% compared with June 2017 and decreased 3.1% from last month (May 2018).
 
Warehouse Specialist
Pulp & Paper
APP Starts up Three New Tissue Winders at Perawang Mill, Indonesia
A.Celli Paper EWIND generation winders are part of a larger order under delivery and/or installation, consisting of two E-WIND T200 winders, a calender, and Slittomatic automatic knives positioning system, and an additional E-WIND T200 winder.
 
Celupaper S.A., Argentina Starts up Toscotec's MODULO-PLUS Tissue Machine
PM4 is part of repeated orders awarded to Toscotec by the South American tissue producer. In 2015, the Italian manufacturer carried out the rebuilding of PM2, an existing Fourdrinier machine, and supplied a new steel Yankee dryer and the complete steam and condensate system. In 2016, Toscotec supplied PM3, a complete MODULO tissue line.
 
Feldmuehle Reports on Progress After Restructuring
The company is continuing with regular production and considering new projects. Feldmuehle is presently continuing production on two paper machines.
 
Sappi Commits to Dissolving Pulp Investment in KwaZulu-Natal Economy
Investments include a R 2.7 billion capacity expansion project and a planned R 5 billion over five years in various continuous improvement initiatives and upgrade projects at its Saiccor Mill.
 
Sappi Approves Construction of Demo Plant for Xylitol & Furfural Production
The biorefinery plant will be located adjacent to the existing sugars and lignin extraction plant at Ngodwana Mill. It should be operational early in 2019. Pending successful results and further approvals it is anticipated that Sappi may construct commercial Xylitol and Furfural plants adjacent to mills in the U.S. and South Africa.
 
Orient Paper Announces Corporate Name and Ticker Changes
Company’s board of directors approved to change its corporate name to IT Tech Packaging Inc.
 
Tesa Tape, Inc.
Containerboard/Packaging
Progroup Selects Voith Propapier PM 3 Packaging Paper Line
New PM 3 will produce 750,000 metric tons of testliner and corrugated medium annually. Startup planned for 2020.
 
Thai Containers Group to Deliver Breakthrough Corrugated Solutions
Region’s First EFI Nozomi Inkjet Press will make TCG a regional leader in full-scale, inkjet corrugated production using one of the only digital systems in the world capable of printing up to 10,000 boards per hour.
 
Legislative
AF&PA Thanks U.S. House for Continued Recognition of Biomass Carbon Neutrality
AF&PA President and CEO Donna Harman noted that "when public policy supports U.S. paper and wood manufacturers’ ability to operate on a level playing field with global competitors, that’s good for the economy and job creation."
 
U.S. Lawmakers, Printers and Publishers Testify Against Import Tariffs on Canadian Newsprint
On July 17, Congressional lawmakers from both sides of the aisle, publishers, printers, newspaper advocacy groups, and newsprint paper producers testified in Washington before the International Trade Commission (ITC) to express their strong opposition to preliminary paper tariffs.
 
New Products
SKF Offers New Ultrasonic Leak Detection Device
SKF Ultrasonic Leak Detector TKSU 10 simplifies leak identification.
 
UPM Raflatac Launches Sustainable RAFNXT+ Version BPA-free Thermal Label Materials
In addition to being BPA-free, the label materials are proven to be 20% more carbon positive than standard paper materials, using less energy and water and generating less waste during their lifecycle.
 
Valmet Launches New Tool to Monitor Former Dewatering
Valmet extends its quality control systems expertise to the paper and board machine forming section with the introduction of the Valmet IQ Dryness Measurement (IQ Dryness). Utilizing microwave technology, the IQ Dryness measures the water layer thickness on the web, which can be used to calculate the web dry content.
 
Toscotec S.p.A
Published Pricing
Sappi Announces Web Paper Line Price Increase
Price increase on new and unconfirmed orders that book with confirmed delivery dates on or after Monday, July 23.
 
Sustainability
DS Smith Publishes 2018 Sustainability Report
Following this most recent review, DS Smith shared a range of nine new ambitious, long-term targets which will be reported for the first time next year. The full report for this year is now available for viewing online.
 
DS Smith Silverton Mill Remediation Project Wins Best Biodiversity Enhancement Award
Silverton Mill was one of the U.K.’s oldest paper mills, and was located within the Killerton National Trust estate in Devon. It closed its doors in 1999 after a paper manufacturing history that had lasted over 200 years, but had left the surrounding area contaminated with industrial waste.
 
Sappi to Fund AI Research, Bring Carbon Emissions to Net Zero in P&P Industry
Actions will be conducted as one of the founding partners of The Prince of Wales Global Sustainability Fellowship Programme.
 
Smurfit Kappa and Scania Collaborate on Sustainable Packaging Solution
Along with the switch from multiple materials with a wooden pallet design to a single material solution, the storage space required was cut by 50% which resulted in significant transportation savings for Scania using a new design based on honeycombs made from sustainable paper.
 
Stora Enso Invests EUR 25 Million to Boost Green Energy at Maxau Mill
Finland-based company will install a new steam turbine with a closed-loop cooling system and additional biomass storage at its paper mill in Maxau, Germany.
 
People
LyondellBasell Names Guilfoyle EVP, Advanced Polymer Solutions
Guilfoyle has spent his career at LyondellBasell and its predecessor companies, starting in 1993 as a chemical engineer in La Porte, Texas, before attaining several managerial and technical positions within the company.
 
TAPPI News
Learn Industry Best Practices for Higher Reliability and Maintenance
TAPPI and IDCON Deliver Back-to-Back Training this Fall to Improve Operations and Minimize Costs.
 
Attend NPIRI’s Fall Technical Conference in October: New Research, New Ideas
Three days of networking and must-see presentations on the latest research, methods, and best practices.
 
Scale, Corrosion, RoHS, and FRPs – Their Impact on Today’s Mill Production
At PEERS 2018, the Corrosion and Engineering Track features three sessions devoted to examining not only those issues, but the effectiveness of RoHS and FRPs in today’s mill plant.
 
Registration Open for TAPPI Yankee Dryer Safety and Reliability Fall Meeting
The committee chairs and subcommittees have been working diligently to prepare an exciting agenda for October 2, at the Fox Cities Exhibition Center (FCEC) in Appleton, Wis., USA.