below please find a selection of the latest news from the world of pulp and paper.

ipw news

As a key technological partner in the tissue sector, Körber Business Area Tissue always looks ahead and offers solutions that are in line with the changing needs of the market while keeping sustainability and the aim of building a greener future in focus. "Looking for ways to improve the performance of our technologies and continuously innovating to open the market to new business areas is essential for Körber Business Area Tissue,” comments Dettori Daniele, R&D & Technical Fold Director.

Mondi opened the Group’s first recycling laboratory at its Frantschach mill in Austria to test the recyclability of paper and paper-based packaging using non-paper components such as coatings. Conducting recycling tests in-house speeds up the process for developing sustainable packaging. While paper packaging offers many sustainability benefits, it also has certain barrier functionality limitations for products like perishable food. To enhance its functionality, non-paper components such as barrier coatings may need to be added, which in turn can impact recyclability.

As part of services offering for tissue producers, Valmet has developed a service agreement to improve the performance and safety of the Yankee cylinder, hood, and air system. The dryer section consumes roughly 70% of all the energy used in the tissue-making process, and it is the major CO₂ producer in the process. A timely and correct maintenance plan as well as control of process parameters is essential for safety, end product quality and energy efficiency.

The Wepa Group has invested in a new converting line at its Leuna location. The highly efficient line was recently put into operation and enables the production of very soft and absorbent paper while using little raw material thanks to innovative technology. With this investment the Wepa Group underlines its objective of offering customers innovative products of the highest quality and to simultaneously act sustainably.

Design experts have awarded the new InfibraFiner refiner from Voith with the Focus Open 2022 Baden-Württemberg International Design Award in silver. The InfibraFiner represents the latest generation of Voith refiners and is part of Voith’s successful BlueLine product family. The committee was convinced by the design, innovative strength and future viability of the solutions, as well as the direct customer added value.

Yash Pakka Limited has awarded AFRY basic engineering assignment for the Ayodhya packaging material production facility expansion project in India. The expansion enables Yash Pakka to increase sustainable packaging materials production and, at the same time, continue to be low-carbon with 100% bio-based energy.

2020 was an unprecedented year as the COVID crisis impacted markets, industries and lifestyles around the world. But despite these many upheavals, recovered fibre succeeded in building upon its pivotal role in global paper and board production. Whereas paper and board production fell 3.4% worldwide in 2020, production of recovered paper declined by a significantly smaller 1.6% to a shade under 240 million tonnes. And of all the paper and board produced in that pandemic-hit year, 52.2% used recovered fibres compared to 51.2% in the previous year, revealed in the “Paper and board recycling in 2020: Overview of world statistics”.

Smithers, provider of testing, consulting, information, and compliance services, is hosting the annual Specialty Papers US 2022 conference this year on October 4-6 at the Westin Milwaukee in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. P3 / ipw acts as media partner for the conference.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing revisions to the Risk Management Program (RMP) rule to further protect vulnerable communities from chemical accidents, especially those living near facilities with high accident rates. The proposed rule, entitled the “Safer Communities by Chemical Accident Prevention Rule,” would strengthen the existing program and includes new safeguards that have not been addressed in prior RMP rules, such as enhanced employee participation and transparency for communities on safety decisions.

Simec Group, an Italian manufacturer of anilox, rolls and sleeves which serves a wide number of industries internationally, will attend to K-2022 (hall 4/A53), the international trade fair for plastics and rubber, that will take in Düsseldorf, from October 19th to October 26th. Simec Group is internationally known for being strongly oriented towards innovation with a wide experience in different application fields where engraved and special rollers are used. The company strategy has always been focused on finding innovative solutions for the development of solutions for the numerous industrial sectors served.

International technology group Andritz has received an order from the Spanish pulp and paper producer Papelera Guipuzcoana de Zicuñaga to deliver a new LimeFlash-H lime kiln for its pulp mill in Hernani, Spain. Andritz has been selected to supply, install, and commission an electrostatic precipitator (ESP) for this plant.

bio-fibre news

Elkem and AFRY have signed a frame agreement to provide engineering and consulting services for Elkem’s production plants globally. The global frame agreement is a continuation of previous local frame agreements. The agreement covers engineering and consulting services such as project management, multi-disciplinary engineering, risk assessments, process optimisation, inspections, digitalisation, construction management and delivery of complete electrical, control and automation systems.

Andritz has successfully received the Final Acceptance Certificate for a biomass handling plant at Eldorado’s Onça Pintada site in Três Lagoas, Mato Grosso do Sul. This plant is part of the first thermoelectric power plant in Brazil to consume eucalyptus stumps and roots. The plant will be able to generate 50 megawatts of electricity from an innovative source – eucalyptus stumps and roots, the parts of the trees not used in the pulp manufacturing process. This expands the capacity to generate energy from waste material originating from reforestation crops that are maintained by the company itself in the states of Mato Grosso do Sul and São Paulo.

The 3D fibre product demo plant jointly owned by Metsä Group's innovation company Metsä Spring and Valmet was inaugurated in Äänekoski on Monday, 22 August 2022. The demo plant was inaugurated by Minister of Science and Culture, Petri Honkonen, President and CEO of Metsä Group Ilkka Hämälä and CEO of Valmet, Pasi Laine.

Metsä Group has made funding decisions in the most recent application process of its nature program. A diverse set of cooperation projects to safeguard the diversity of Finnish nature was chosen to be funded. Experts from key stakeholders in the natural resources sector participated in the project evaluation.

Valmet further develops its press felt production facilities in Tampere, Finland by investing in new press felt machinery and equipment. The investment includes a new pre-needling line and a new needling line. The amount of the investment is around EUR 18 million.