Pulp Paper & Logistics


INDUSTRY NEWS 9


Voith expands its recovered paper trading platform


A


s part of an expansion of Voith’s platform for trading recovered paper, its merQbiz


division has agreed to an exclusive cooperation with US logistics provider C H Robinson. “The fact that we were able


to win C H Robinson, one of the world’s largest logistics groups, as a partner for our digital trading platform shows that we have hit a nerve in the market with merQbiz,” said Dr Hubert Lienhard, chief executive of Voith GmbH. The B2B trading platform merQbiz was launched in 2017 by Voith. It connects buyers and


sellers of recovered paper in a digital marketplace. In addition, users can securely


conduct their sales and purchasing transactions on the trading platform. Similar to the well- known online marketplaces, merQbiz evaluates the merchants, the buyers and the quality of the goods. This ensures a high level of security for all goods, logistics and payment flows as well as a high degree of transparency and professional handling. In the medium term, the trading platform’s offers will also be available to customers outside the US.


Abelan Board acquired by private equity group


The southern Europe operations of Abelan Board Industrial SL, a major producer of core board and solid board packaging products, was bought by Aurelius Equity Opportunites from PHI Industrial late last year for an undisclosed sum.


The deal is the third acquisition in the European packaging sector since 2015 by Aurelius. Founded in 1911, Abelan has


grown to be one of Europe’s leading providers of core board


Huhtamaki has agreed to set up a joint venture with Smith Anderson Group Limited, one of Europe’s leading paper bag suppliers, to manufacture and sell foodservice paper bags in Eastern Europe.


and solid board packaging. Based in San Andrés in northern Spain it employs around 250 people in three manufacturing facilities in Spain and France. It was projected to generate sales of about €70m in 2017. Abelan’s managing director Simón Roda will continue to lead the company. Following completion of the


deal, the operations of Abelan will be combined with those of another Aurelius company, Solidus


The joint venture will start manufacturing paper bags at Huhtamaki’s facility in Czeladz, Poland. Manufacturing operations are expected to begin during the first quarter of 2018. Huhtamaki currently


Solutions, one of Europe’s leading producers of solid board, graphic board and solid board packaging. With around 1,000 employees, Solidus already has significant market share in Europe with production facilities in the Netherlands, Belgium and the UK, having integrated its sites after Aurelius acquired the Northern European activities of Abelan in June 2016, as well as dedicated sales offices in France and Norway.


Huhtamaki to establish a paper bag joint venture


manufactures paper bags in Russia only and this initiative further strengthens its position as a one-stop-shop to foodservice customers. As the majority shareholder Huhtamaki will consolidate


the joint venture company as a subsidiary. The business will be reported as part of the Foodservice Europe-Asia-Oceania business segment but will not have a significant impact on the segment’s net sales initially.


January/February 2018 Publicly-listed C H Robinson


serves more than 113,000 customers worldwide, of which 2,600 are in the paper, board and packaging industry. Last year its sales totalled around €10 million. “The integrated logistics solution


is a game-changer for the industry. The supply of recovered paper will become even more predictable for our customers in the paper industry,” said John Fox, chief executive of merQbiz. In addition to its existing


research and development budget, Voith invests around €100 million a year in digital products and services.


News in brief


● Mondi has relaunched its office and professional printing paper IQ with new branding for applications from offset to digital printing and a claimed 99.99 per cent trouble-free runnability. “IQ is already one of the best-known paper brands in Europe,” says Johannes Klumpp, marketing and sales director at Mondi Uncoated Fine Paper. “So we want to maintain its high profile and also highlight the great versatility of this portfolio: There is an IQ suitable for every printing technology and every purpose. Whether for office or professional printing, IQ has the solution for you.”


● South African-based global supplier of dissolving wood pulp (DWP), speciality and packaging papers, printing (graphic) papers and biomaterials, Sappi Ltd has confirmed plans and ongoing projects to significantly increase DWP capacity by 2020. Sappi has started preparatory work for the expansion of its Saiccor DWP Mill to ensure that the company is in a position to increase the mill’s capacity by up to 250,000 tpa to meet strong demand growth. Sappi has also expanded its container board product range with Fusion Uncoated which offers an uncoated fully- bleached fresh fibre liner in the corrugated board market.


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