Stora Enso completes co-determination negotiations at Hylte Mill in Sweden

Appvion, a Wynnchurch Capital, L.P. portfolio company, announced the addition of Nekoosa Coated Products, LLC to the platform. Headquartered in Nekoosa, Wisconsin, Nekoosa is a leading provider of specialty engineered materials for the graphics and commercial print markets in North America and Europe. Laurie Andriate, CEO of Appvion, said in a statement, “We are bringing together two great companies with complementary businesses and capabilities to accelerate growth and create additional value for our customers. I’m excited to welcome the Nekoosa team to Appvion.” “I’m excited for our teams as we move forward and write a new chapter together,” said Paul Charapata, CEO of Nekoosa. “We know each other well and will build upon our long history to proudly produce innovative products that help all our stakeholders succeed.”

Ahlstrom is leading the marketplace towards more sustainable, fluoro-free solutions for fiber-based solutions. Today, Ahlstrom extends its innovative fluoro-free technologies into a wide range of industrial air filtration applications to support filter manufacturers in creating products with long-lasting filtration performance without the use of fluorochemicals. Ahlstrom’s new fluoro-free filtration materials are ideal for gas turbine air intake, air pollution control, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) applications. The new range of materials offers water-repellent properties, which increase the durability and stability of the final filter in wet conditions. In global filtration markets, hydrophobic properties are essential to maintaining the highest filtration performance in challenging environments. In air pollution control applications, for example, hydrophobic materials save energy by limiting the pressure drop increase in humid conditions. Specifically, in gas turbine applications, water repellency prevents liquid water ingress and dissolved salt penetration through a filter, protecting the turbine from corrosion.

International Paper (NYSE: IP) today announced plans to invest approximately $300 million to convert its No. 15 paper machine at the Riverdale Mill in Selma, Ala. from uncoated freesheet to high quality whitetop linerboard and containerboard. The conversion is targeted to be completed by mid-year 2019. The investment will add 450,000 tons of annual capacity, with flexibility to shift between containerboard products. Converting Riverdale No. 15 will position International Paper to grow its Industrial Packaging business, continue to provide attractive jobs to Riverdale team members and remain a significant supplier of uncoated freesheet in North America. "Our customers expect us to support their growth and this machine conversion will meet their needs," said Tim Nicholls, IP's senior vice president, Industrial Packaging the Americas. "Our Industrial Packaging business continues to focus on our customers in strategic channels including our box business, domestic and export containerboard and specialty grades."Click Read More below for additional detail.