Nordic innovation - Innovation in pulp and paper is alive and kicking and living in the Nordic countries

By Mark Rushton, Editor, PPI magazine, RISI

BRUSSELS, May 30, 2008 (Viewpoint) - We hear the word 'innovation' a lot in this industry, but what is the true definition of the word? Is it simply a clever word for invention? Well after a little bit of investigating, it actually means a lot more that just inventing. Take the wheel for example, probably the most referred to invention of all time, but should the person who invented this genius addition to transport be called an inventor, or an innovator? Well the clever person who came up with the idea of the wheel was out smarted by the innovator who put it to use, because he put it on a cart and suddenly made getting around a whole lot easier. A wheel without a cart - is, well - a wheel without a cart, it might roll nicely down a hill, but it's not going to take you or your bags with it!

So innovation is first establishing the norm, investigating the limits and possibilities, then coming up with solutions that will make a difference in an attempt to revolutionize the norm. Then comes the hard bit, putting the whole thing into practice, producing and then selling the idea – and the icing on the cake is the possibility of making money out of it.

Innovation in the paper industry

Despite, and maybe because of hard times for the Nordic region over recent years, there are plenty of innovations going on in the region which are having a worldwide impact. In fact the area is a veritable hot bed of new ideas right from the ability to train fibers like 'you train a cat and dog' - according to a UPM specialist speaking recently - all the way to the ideas for final product, such as Stora Enso's DBS system (see next page) of producing CD and DVD boxes that are catching on with consumers worldwide.

There are also huge innovations going on in the area of power generation and biomass in Nordic countries, in fact the Paper Province located in central Sweden has recently been voted as one of the 16 most innovative areas in Europe, in part due to The Energy Square, which is the first center of its kind to focus purely on products and services for the paper industry (PPI, February 2008).

More than 300 artists titles are now packaged using the DBS system

A classic innovative product

But whether its the products themselves or methods of making the products, innovation is the key to increasing sales of fiber based goods and Stora Enso appears to be getting the message across about the environmental friendliness of these products in the burgeoning CD/DVD market, up until now totally dominated by plastic. Leading music companies, such as Sony BMG, are now selling a growing number of titles using the company's highly innovative DBS Discbox Slider case which is made from 100% paperboard. The faces of artists such as Christina Aguilera and Avril Lavigne can now be seen on album titles all over the world, and more than 300 titles in Europe are packed in DBS cases amounting to 6.4 million of them – and growing.

"We are looking at environmental and cost-efficient packaging as sales increasingly switch to digital. This is married with more deluxe packages as a way to differentiate from the digital market. DBS adds a point of difference at retail and has a strong visual presence in store. It is a new range that retailers are very supportive of," says Jörn Hermelbracht, senior director supply chain services, Sony BMG European Services.

"The primary function of packaging is to effectively protect the valuable content. Besides being renewable and recyclable, the sustainability of DBS lies in our wood procurement based on sustainable forestry, the certified environmental management systems at our mills, the use of best available techniques and the high share of bioenergy in board production," says Matti Koski, director, Stora Enso Media Solutions.

The very cleverly designed packaging remains true to its mission and has no plastic parts whatsoever. It also has benefits when it comes to logistics as the case weighs in at half as much as a plastic jewel case and takes up less space than a standard plastic CD case. And there is good news on the emissions front as well, Stora Enso states that "it is possible to significantly reduce the CO2 emissions of disc packaging by using the board-based DBS case instead of the standard plastic jewel case. The fossil CO2 emissions of the DBS case are only 10% of the CO2 emissions of the jewel case".

UPM - a raft of innovations

UPM is firing on all cylinders when it comes to innovation, and in almost all areas of the pulp and paper making business. In 2008 alone, the company is going to announce a raft of interesting research and development and cutting edge production activities which include: on going research for the use of non-wood fiber in Asia; a letter of intent for a forest industry joint venture with the Sveza Group in Russia; and the establishment of no less than three self adhesive label materials factories in China, the US and Poland.

The company is also investing in new business opportunities in Latin America which will see the use of agro residues, including straw and reed as raw materials in cooperation with local partner Chempolis, in biofuel concepts and technical solutions. More business opportunities come in the shape of another brand new factory in China which will make it the number one manufacturer of RFID tags and inlays, and the proposed opening of a factory to produce UPM Profi, a wood/plastic composite made of residues from the company's labelstock production.

At the sharp end, UPM is helping the printer in various ways with its own printing simulator, experimenting with hybrid printing – using various processes on the same pass through the printing machine and various online tools all designed to help the customer streamline ordering, technical and training issues. UPM is no slouch when it comes to the environment either, it was recently voted Time Inc's top environmental supplier and it has decreased fossil carbon emissions by 36% since 1990.

M-real: focus on the light

M-real's focus on innovations has been much more at the creative end, looking at how the look and feel of print, particularly in the field of packaging, is helping brand owners get their own message across. At the approaching drupa, commonly known as the Olympics of print, around 400,000 visitors will be searching for inspiration on some of the 8,000 exhibitors stands. M-real will be there displaying its lighter weight boards which it says "decrease the environmental impact and cost at all stages of the product life cycle as they require less raw material, lower transport weights and produce less waste". The company also has a carbon footprint calculator where customers can see the environmental credentials, including where it has come from for all its products.

KCL partners with a wide variety of wood, paper, board, chemical and machine suppliers as well as printing houses and publishers.

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