Metsä Group invests in startup FineCell that produces pulp-based materials for beauty, healthcare, and paint products

International technology group ANDRITZ has received an order from Bracell SP Celulose Ltda. to supply four PrimeLineTM W 2000 tissue production lines to its mill located in Lençóis Paulista, São Paulo. Start-up is scheduled for 2024. The four tissue machines are of the type PrimeLineTM W 2000, with a design speed of 2,100 m/min and a working width of 5.68 m. They are equipped with fully cantilevered shoe presses for gentle dewatering and easy maintenance and 18 ft. steel Yankees with steam-heated hoods for energy-efficient drying. The new tissue mill will be self-sufficient in steam and electricity consumption for the drying process, making it one of the tissue mills with the smallest CO2 footprint in the world.

Billerud announces the temporary idling of the Escanaba Mill for up to three weeks as a precautionary measure to protect the health and safety of its employees and contractors due to a blastomycosis fungal infection outbreak. “Our top priority now and always is protecting the health and safety of our employees and contractors who work at our Escanaba Mill,” says Christoph Michalski, Billerud President and CEO. “We care deeply about their well-being and are doing everything we can to protect them and identify and address the root cause of the blastomycosis fungal infections. As a precautionary measure, we will temporarily idle the Escanaba Mill for up to three weeks to facilitate additional proper cleaning based on recommendations from NIOSH and other organizations, which requires larger portions of the mill to be vacant while this work is performed. The financial impact is assessed to be limited since the production at the Escanaba Mill was being adjusted to meet current market demand.”

Members of the Technical Association of the Pulp & Paper Industry (TAPPI) recently elected Bill Edwards, Domtar’s senior vice president of pulp and paper operations, to serve on the TAPPI board of directors. TAPPI is the leading association for the worldwide pulp, paper, packaging, tissue and converting industries. Through information exchange and events, it has provided management training and networking to the pulp and paper industry’s leaders for more than 100 years. Edwards leads Domtar’s pulp and paper manufacturing, converting/coating operations, and optimization efforts, and he brings more than 30 years of experience in the industry to his role on the TAPPI board of directors.