VIENNA, Austria,
March 23, 2011
(Press Release) -
Mondi Syktyvkar conducted a two-day technical seminar for its partners specialising in the production of corrugated boxes and sheets. The event was attended by representatives of more than 40 companies from more than 20 different countries within Europe, Russia and the CIS.
"We invited buyers of white-top liner to see for themselves the results of our mill modernisation project. The STEP project is the biggest mill upgrade to occur in the Russian pulp and paper industry in the last three decades. With an investment of €545 million, we have made Mondi Syktyvkar the leading pulp and paper company in Russia and the CIS. In the containerboard sector we modernised the existing PM21 and increased production output to 280,000 tonnes per year," says Gerhard Kornfeld, Managing Director of Mondi Syktyvkar.
Since the modernisation project was completed in September 2010, this was the first opportunity for customers to see the rebuilt facilities in operation. Major improvements have been achieved in terms of paper quality. Most of the PM21 production is dedicated to the white-top kraftliner ProVantage Komiwhite. The top sheet consists of 100% bleached fibre. The base sheet consists of unbleached softwood fibre. ProVantage Komiwhite containerboard is available in the range from 115 - 200 gsm. This paper grade is primarily used as outer liner for corrugated boxes, carrier board in higher grammages and for various applications in retail and shelf-ready packaging. PM21 containerboard grades have food packaging accreditation.
"Our modernised PM21 has restarted production of white-top kraftliner. All 3 paper grades - ProVantage Komiwhite, ProVantage Komimottled and ProVantage Komipak - have FSC® certification for the export market. Following the rebuild of PM21, the paper grades have improved strength parameters and feature better printing properties. Improvements in sheet formation and profile in particular make for attractive results in high-definition printing," says Florian Stockert, Sales Director Containerboard at Mondi.
Mondi Syktyvkar has been conducting technical seminars since 2006. This was the first time customers from Europe, Russia and CIS joined the same event.
"The visit to the modernised mill was a real pleasure for me and my colleagues. In particular I was curious to see how things were working with the upgraded PM21. I was surprised by the Russian winter and the effects it has on paper logistics. I've seen that a lot of effort goes into bringing the paper reels to the port of St. Petersburg," says one of the participants, Gerard de Vries, Managing Director of A&R Carton Sneek in the Netherlands.
