CEPI, Brussels, Belgium, this past week reported that after the recovery in 2010, following the previous financial downturn, indications are that paper and board production by CEPI member countries fell in 2011 by close to 2% as the momentum of the revival was affected by the economic slowdown, particularly in the second half of the year. With overall volumes continuing to remain below pre-crisis levels, CEPI estimates that member countries produced around 95 million metric tons of paper and board in 2011. Most grades are expected to show lower annual production levels compared with 2010.

Paper production had reached 103 million metric tons 2007 and decreased by 13% between 2007 and 2009 before increasing by over 8% in 2010, according to CEPI. European pulp and paper levels remain slightly below the average European manufacturing industry performance but still above other energy intensive sectors.

Based on estimates, CEPI continues, it appears that the total performance of CEPI countries during 2011 is similar to that of most of the other major paper producing regions of the world, with the exception of South Korea and China, which have performed better. CEPI estimates that world paper production recorded very limited growth in 2011, at around 0.5%. The average quarterly production level for 2011 was between 23.5 million and 24 million metric tons, whereas in 2006 and 2007, the average quarterly production was more than 25 million metric tons.

CEPI estimates that 2011 production of pulp decreased by less than 1%, after a rise of more than 8% the previous year, with total output of approximately 39 million metric tons. It further estimates that utilization of paper for recycling by CEPI members fell by about 1.5%.

Based on cumulative data up to the end of the third quarter of 2011, CEPI expects that total paper deliveries for the year will have fallen by around 1% compared with 2010. Preliminary indications are that imports of paper into the region appear to have decreased slightly over 2010. Imports from North America accounted for 42% of all imports in the first three quarters of 2011 and imports from non-CEPI European countries had a share of 24%.

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Södra, Sweden, reports to have successfully installed a new machine for applying wax protection to its saplings as an effective, non-toxic means of guarding against pine weevil damage. This machine, the company notes, is the first of its type.

"Forestry operations at Södra focus on balancing profitability with environmental protection. Reducing the use of chemicals and investing resources in the development of non-toxic methods is entirely in line with this," said Göran Örlander, chief forester at Södra.

The machine has been on trial at Södra Skogsplantor in Falkenberg, Sweden, for a couple of weeks, and it is calibrated for future large-scale production. The wax protection will initially be used on bare root saplings and "plug plus one" saplings. The wax makes it difficult for pine weevils to gnaw their way through to the bark and has been specially developed for high elasticity. This means that the wax holds together even when the sapling grows during its first delicate growth season.

"The tests carried out by both Södra and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences have shown that this wax protection is very effective. Failing to protect saplings from pine weevil damage is a costly exercise, as on average more than half of unprotected saplings die as a result of the attack. This is why around 90% of all saplings sold nowadays are protected, but by means of chemicals. Being able to offer a non-toxic yet effective alternative to chemical protection is eagerly awaited," Andreas Alvehus at Södra Skogsplantor explained.

This project is a cooperative effort between Södra Skogsplantor, Ramlösa Plantskola, and Sundins Skogsplantor.

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A new report by Dovetail Partners Inc., Minneapolis, Minn., USA, titled The Impacts and Benefits of the Family Forest Indicators within the FSC-US Forest Management Standard, reviews the new FSC-U.S. Forest Management Standard and the new indicators and guidance that apply to family forestlands. An evaluation of the scope and scale of change is included as well as a discussion of the impacts and benefits.

Dovetail Partners explains that in 2010 the Forest Stewardship Council – U.S. Initiative introduced a revised forest management standard that applies to FSC certification audits throughout the U.S. Within the new FSC-U.S. Forest Management Standard, one of the most significant changes is the inclusion of specific indicators and guidance that uniquely apply to the auditing of family forestlands.

The FSC-U.S. policies define family forestlands eligible to be audited under these new indicators as ownerships that are up to 2,500 acres (1,000 hectares) in size or where harvest intensity is low. It is estimated that at least a half-million woodland owners in the U.S. own between 100 and 2,500 acres for a total of approximately 115 million acres of forestland.

By qualifying to be audited under these new "Family Forest Indicators," owners of small properties may see a more streamlined FSC auditing process and reduced auditing costs, Dovetail Partners notes.

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Biofuels Digest, Miami, Fla., USA, this week announced that U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack will deliver the principal keynote address at the Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference, which runs April 2 - 5 at the Capitol Hilton in Washington, D.C. Secretary Vilsack will be joined by other keynotes from former NATO Commander General and Growth Energy Co-Chairman Wes Clark, BP Biofuels CEO Phil New, Gevo CEO Pat Gruber, Solazyme CEO Jonathan Wolfson, Amyris CEO John Melo, Primus Green Energy CEO Yom-Tov Samia, and Genomatica CEO Christophe Schilling.

Biofuels Digest editor Jim Lane said that "we are looking forward to fostering even closer ties between the Secretary and advanced biofuels industry leadership, and also to hear the latest on the secretary's efforts to foster the development of advanced biofuels, and rural economic development through domestic energy and energy crops."

This year, Renewable Chemicals Live has been co-located with The Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference. Co-produced with Biofuels Digest, Renewable Chemicals Live features the top leadership in renewable chemicals, plastics, and bio-based materials, and a program featuring C-level presentations on finance, scale-up, R&D, policy, and global trends. The hottest companies in bioenergy will be represented and available for networking.

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Below is the latest listing of job openings in the TAPPI Career Center. The current listing includes a variety of engineering, technical specialist, and sales representative positions available in the U.S. pulp and paper industry. Current, specific job openings at companies and locations in the TAPPI Career Center include:

Employer	Title	Location
Filcon America	Technical Sales Rep	Southeastern U.S.
Lydall Filtration/Separation	Development Engineer	Rochester, N.H.
Rayonier	Area Manager, Pulp Machine	Fernandina Beach, Fla.
Global Paper Industry Supplier	Product Mgr.- Chemical Pulping	Cincinnati, Ohio
Global Paper Industry Supplier	(Senior) Application Engineer	Cincinnati, Ohio
Glatfelter	Enterprise Mfg. Applications Mgr.	Spring Grove, Pa./Chillicothe, Oh.
Cognex	Paper Industry Sales Engineer	Near Major U.S. Airport
Confidential	Chemical Sales & Support, SE U.S.	Southeasern U.S.
Confidential	Specialty Chemical Sales Agent	Western Canada
Burrows Paper Corp.	Operations Specialist III	Mississippi
Burrows Paper Corp.	Quality Manager	Lyonsdale and Pickens, Miss.
BASF, The Chemical Co.	Tech. Specialist (Paper-Wet End)	Appleton, Wisc.
NCR Corp.	Creative Chemist	Atlanta, Ga.
BASF, The Chemical Co.	Technical Sales Rep Senior II	Washington State

More information about these jobs is available online.

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At TAPPI's PaperCon 2012 event, April 22 - 25, in New Orleans, La., USA, papermaking technologies are covered from two key perspectives—new and emerging developments in the packaging arena and advances in paper machine design and operations to maintain quality and achieve flexibility. Separate packaging (PB) and paper quality (PQ) program tracks provide attendees extensive pick-and-choose options based on their specific job functions and professional interests. Together, the two tracks include 18 information-packed sessions spread over three days, along with three paper and paperboard committee meetings.

Led by Containerboard Team Leader Brian Peterson and Mill Manager Paul Duncan, Monday's (April 23) PB1 track session explores the dramatic company-wide turnaround at Longview Fibre Paper and Packaging, Longview, Wash., that is transforming the company into a high performance operation and an attractive investment for its owners. The PB2 session is a special "Keys to Success" paperboard papermakers panel discussion, led by Jeff Reese of international Paper. On the paper quality side, Monday's PQ1 and PQ2 sessions look at continuously evolving advancements in stock system additives.

Tuesday's lineup features three sessions from each perspective, a joint roundtable on papermaking additives, and a concluding Fluid Mechanics Committee meeting that is open to all PaperCon attendees. Packaging topics begin with a panel discussion (PB3) on "Optimizing Containerboard Pressing," followed by a session on "lighter-stronger-faster" strength additives (PB4), and a panel discussion of mineral oil migration for food packaging grades (PB5). Tuesday's paper quality sessions focus on fluid mechanics of fibrous and nano-fibrous suspensions (PQ3) and fluid mechanics for forming (PQ4). A session on effective refiner control for fiber optimization (PQ5) is followed by the common papermaking additives session (P6) and Fluid Mechanics Committee meeting.

Wednesday includes three packaging and three paper quality sessions. PB7 reviews the latest forming innovations, while PB8 reports on several major papermaking success stories and PB9 examines new and emerging packaging paper machine innovations. The PQ7 session on Wednesday looks at new methods for enhancing fiber quality, PQ8 covers new developments in deposit control, and (PQ9) explores advances in microbial control. A joint water removal committee meeting (also open to all attendees) and a joint summary and wrap-up session (P10) complete the PaperCon Papermaking track on Wednesday afternoon.

More details about the PaperCon 2012 program, exhibition, workshops and seminars, special events, and registration are available online, along with information about travel and accommodations.

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Total U.S. printing and writing (P&W) paper shipments decreased 3% in January compared with January 2011, according to the AF&PA's (Washington, D.C., USA) January 2012 Printing-Writing Paper Report released this week. All four major P&W paper grades posted decreases compared with last January. U.S. purchases (shipments + imports – exports) of P&W papers decreased 8% in January. Total P&W paper inventory levels increased 1% compared with December 2011.

According to AF&PA, the pace of growth of the U.S. economy accelerated as we progressed through 2011, with each quarter posting ever higher growth rates (0.4%, 1.3%, 1.8%, and 3.3%, respectively) – and GDP is forecast to be 1.7% for the year. While the unemployment rate did not follow this exact pattern, the end result was the same, beginning at 8.9% for Q1, rising to 9.1% for Q2 and Q3, but then decreasing to 8.7% for Q4. The overall effect on total non-farm employment was positive for the four quarters of 2011, increasing 1.3%, 1.4%, 0.9%, and 1.3%, respectively. In spite of these positive developments, P&W paper shipments decreased in all four quarters for the year and, except for a slightly less negative quarter to end the year, slowed at a progressively declining rate—down 1.6%, 6.4%, 7.0%, and 4.9%, respectively.

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January shipments of U.S. uncoated free sheet (UFS) decreased year-over-year 1%, to 780,400 tons, but posted a 5% increase month-over-month, AF&PA reports. U.S. purchases of UFS were down 2% compared with January 2011, at 766,300 tons. UFS inventories increased 1% compared with December, an increase of 11,600 tons. Exports of UFS increased 22% year-over-year in December, the largest increase in 2011, and exports ended the year up 4% over 2010.

The past year included one paper machine shutdown at Domtar's Ashdown, Ark., mill during the summer, followed by the recent closure of Mohawk's Hamilton, Ohio, mill. Despite these reductions in U.S. capacity, Europe saw the addition of 500,000 metric tpy of UFS capacity in Portugal. In spite of the new mill reaching full capacity by the end of the year, imports of UFS finished 2011 lower than 2010, down by 3%, though the import of UFS from Portugal increased 10%.

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January 2012 Shipments of U.S. coated free sheet (CFS) decreased year-over-year 2%, to 317,200 tons, while purchases decreased by 11%, according to AF&PA. The reason for the disparity between shipments and purchases is attributable to CFS imports in December 2011 dropping by 35% year-over-year, AF&PA explains. The decrease in imports was consistent across countries, led in tonnage declines by South Korea, which saw a decrease of 13,500 tons year-over-year, a decline of 41%. CFS inventories increased 2% compared with December, up 9,600 tons.

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U.S. Coated mechanical (CM) shipments last month decreased 5%, to 281,800 tons, which is the lowest year-over-year decrease since March 2011 when it increased, AF&PA says. Developments over the past year include the shutdown of the NewPage mill in Whiting, Wis., in February 2011, and the permanent shutdown of one paper machine at the Verso Paper mill in Bucksport, Maine. U.S. purchases of CM decreased 5% compared with January 2011.

CM imports officially outperformed CM exports (-9% and -12%, respectively), but the volume of imports is significantly higher, resulting in a decline in U.S. purchases, AF&PA notes. Meanwhile, CM inventories remained essentially flat, increasing less than 1%, up just 600 tons from the prior month.

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Uncoated mechanical (UM) shipments decreased by double-digit percentages for the eighth consecutive month, yet it is the lowest decrease in the stretch, only hitting 10% by rounding, according to AF&PA. UM shipments decreased 10% compared with January 2011, to 141,300 tons. U.S. purchases of UM were down 21% compared with January 2011, the largest year-over-year decline in purchases since July 2009.

The cause of this drop, AF&PA notes, is a decrease of UM imports by 9%, led by a 24% decline in imports from Canada in December 2011. UM inventories were the only ones to decrease, down 2%, or 1,800 tons, from December.

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As Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ), Seattle, Wash., USA, explains, global pulp prices fell by about 20% from July to December of last year. Weakening demand for pulp and lower product prices squeezed pulp company profit margins such that many companies tried to reduce their costs for wood fiber, which represents the largest cost component when manufacturing pulp.

There has been a long-term trend in the pulp industry of wood costs increasing as a percentage of the total production costs, WRQ notes. In the third quarter of 2011, this share had reached 63.5% on a worldwide basis, up from only 53% in 2005, according to Fisher International. However, this share can vary substantially, from a current low of 52% in Eastern Canada to as high as 73% in China, WRQ adds. For this reason, tracking wood fiber prices over time has become more important when comparing competitiveness of different regions worldwide.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, the U.S. dollar continued to strengthen against local currencies of all of the countries covered by WRQ, except Japan. This development, together with the downward price pressure on pulp log and wood chips in local currencies in practically all of the 18 regions in the world covered by WRQ, resulted in a decline of both global wood fiber indices.

The Softwood Wood Fiber Price Index fell for the second straight quarter to $105.30 per oven-dry tons (odmt) in the fourth quarter of 2011. This was down 3.3% from the previous quarter, but 1.6% higher than the fourth quarter of 2010. The biggest price declines took place in Western Canada, Brazil, Spain, Germany, and Finland, WRQ said. .

The Hardwood Wood Fiber Price Index fell by 3.6% from the third quarter of 2011 to $113.69/odmt. Despite this drop, this was still 5.0% higher than during the fourth quarter of 2010 and the third highest level ever recorded. The biggest third and fourth quarter price reductions occurred in Spain, Finland, Brazil, and Chile.

Wood fiber costs are likely to continue downward in a number of markets in the first quarter of this year, particularly in the Nordic countries, Western Canada, and the U.S., as pulp prices continue to be substantially below the record-high levels from last summer, according to WRQ.

More information is available online.

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ÅF AB, Solna, Sweden, reports that it has contracted with Stora Enso, Finland, to conduct a pre-project prior to construction of a new bleach plant at that company's Skutskär pulp mill in Sweden, and other reconstruction work in connection with related aspects of the process. The initial order value for ÅF totals approximately SEK 6 million.

ÅF notes that most of the work will be carried out by consultants from the company's office in nearby Gävle, Sweden, but additional specialist resources and competence will be called in from other ÅF offices. The work will be integrated with that undertaken by Stora Enso Skutskär's own project organization.

The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of this June, after which a formal decision will be made about future implementations.

The Skutskär pulp mill produces bleached kraft pulp used for paper production and fluff pulp, on three production lines. The mill currently has a production capacity of 530,000 metric tpy of paper and fluff pulps, with a workforce of about 385 people

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Buckeye Technologies Inc., Memphis, Tenn., USA, on Tuesday (February 21) reported that its Foley Plant in Perry, Fla., which manufactures specialty wood cellulose and fluff pulp, is returning to normal operation following a power failure and electrical surge that occurred last Friday, February 17. The power failure was triggered by a malfunction in a high voltage electrical line and subsequent transformer failure in its power house. This resulted in the unplanned, complete shutdown of the facility.

Power has now been fully restored to the facility, and one of the plant's two production lines resumed operation at normal rates on Sunday (February 19). The second line resumed normal operation yesterday, February 22.

Buckeye Chairman and CEO John B. Crowe said that ‘while this is an unfortunate event, I appreciate the efforts of our employees and contractors with a rapid and around-the-clock effort to return the plant to normal operations. Resources have performed in a safe manner to identify the damaged equipment and make the necessary repairs. We are working with all of our customers and anticipate no major customer issues from this event. The Foley Plant remains in a sold out position and we believe current inventory levels are adequate to cover the production losses for the near term. Our highest priority is to safely return the plant to full operation."

The company indicated that it currently is unable to fully quantify the financial impact of the event. However, depending on the timing of returning to full production, it estimates that the financial impact of the outage, excluding the effect of any insurance proceeds, could be in the range of a $5 to $6 million reduction in pretax operating income, most of which would impact the quarter ending March 31.The company reported that it has property loss and business interruption insurance with a single $2 million deductible and believes, based on discussions with its insurance broker, that this event is a covered loss.

Buckeye operates facilities in the U.S., Germany, and Canada.

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SCA, Philadelphia, Pa., USA, a producer of away-from-home (AFH) tissue and towel products, reports that all of its paper towel and napkin products have been deemed "accepted" for commercial composting using Cedar Grove Composting (CGC) standards. SCA obtained acceptance of its paper towels and napkins from CGC, a commercial composter and pioneer of compostable testing and product review, to ensure the product lifecycle from development, production, use, and disposal remains environmentally responsible.

SCA notes that this documentation continues to strengthen its position in compostable AFH products following the certification of its Tork Universal and Advanced napkins by the Biodegradable Products Institute in August 2011.

"Verifying that our paper towels are compostable is the latest step in SCA's ongoing commitment to sustainability," said Mike Kapalko, sustainability marketing manager, SCA AFH Professional Hygiene. "As our customers across North America continue to incorporate sustainability into their operations, we want to ensure our products anticipate their needs and give them the ability to safely compost our paper towels and napkins in large scale facilities, ultimately helping to lessen landfill waste."

Cedar Grove reviews the materials to ensure they will properly break down in their commercial composting process. Its review verifies that all Tork paper towels and napkins are compostable. Tork's paper towels and napkins also have received manufacturing related certification from EcoLogo and Green Seal. These certifications in conjunction with compostable capabilities provide even greater focus on the transparency of the products' lifecycle.

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SCA Hygiene Products GmbH, Heidenheim, Germany, has ordered from Voith, Germany, a complete tissue paper plant. The new TM 5 production line will be installed at the SCA mill at Kostheim near Mainz, Germany. The order volume for Voith is in the triple-digit million range, the company notes.

At 5.5 meters, the new TM 5 will have double the wire-width of a standard tissue paper machine. At a surface weight of 20.5 gsm, it will produce nearly 60,000 metric tons of high-quality towel papers per year. Commissioning of the new TM 5 is scheduled for spring 2013.

The Voith delivery also includes the stock preparation plant, the drying technology, and the entire electrification and automation system. Additionally, Voith will be providing a full service package, the complete engineering, and the paper machine clothing.

A decisive factor in selecting the Baden-Württemberg family-owned Voith as supplier of the new plant reportedly was its premium tissue technology that features very low energy consumption.

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U.S. containerboard production was flat, losing less than 1% over the same month last year, according to the AF&PA's (Washington, D.C., USA) January 2012 U. S. Containerboard Statistics Report released this week. Production was up, gaining 1.5% compared with December 2011.

Since both December and January have 31 days, the month-over-month average daily production had a similar increase of 1.5%. The containerboard operating rate for January 2012 also gained 1.5 points over December 2011, increasing from 93.6% to 95.1%.

Additional key findings from the report include:

• Linerboard production fell slightly 0.9%
• Medium production was flat (0.5%) over January 2011.

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Total U.S. boxboard production decreased by 4.3% compared with January 2011, but increased 8.5% over last month, according to AF&PA's (Washington, D.C., USA) January 2012 U.S. Paperboard Report published this week. Highlights of the report include:

• Unbleached kraft folding production increased over the same month last year, and increased compared with last month
• Total solid bleached boxboard and liner production decreased compared with January 2011, but increased compared with last month
• The production of recycled folding decreased compared with January 2011, but increased compared with last month
• The inventory of solid bleached kraft paperboard decreased from a year ago.

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Metso, Finland, will supply Kipaş Kağıt Sanayi İşletmeleri A.Ş with a containerboard machine for its new mill site in Kahramanmaraş in southeastern Turkey. Startup of the new machine is scheduled for 2013. The value of the order is approximately EUR 80 million.

Metso's delivery includes a complete high-technology board machine. "The new machine will utilize gap forming technology that enables a higher production speed and production efficiency ratio for board machines," said Area President Hannu T Pietilä from Metso. In addition, Metso's extensive automation package will include process, machine and quality controls.

The 8.6-m-wide (wire) high-technology board machine includes an approach flow system, air systems, machine pulpers, a broke collecting system, chemical systems, a steam and condensate system, a ropeless tail threading system, machine clothing, and mill engineering.

The new PM 1 will be equipped with an OptiFormer roll and blade gap former as well as a WinDrum Pro high-capacity belt-bed winder. The production speed will be 1,500 m/min. PM 1 will produce fluting and testliner grades from 100% recycled fiber. The annual production capacity will be approximately 400,000 metric tons.

Family-owned Kipaş Kağıt Sanayi İşletmeleri A.Ş is a subsidiary of Kipas Holding A.S. of Kahramanmaraş, Turkey. Through the reorganization of the group's companies in 2005, Kipas Holding is formed of numerous subsidiary companies with 27 mills and more than 6,000 employees.

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Sonoco, Hartsville, S.C., USA, reports that it has been named SAM Gold Class for a second consecutive year by SAM (Sustainable Asset Management), Zurich, Switzerland, in its Sustainability Yearbook 2012. The company was also named SAM 2012 Sector Leader and SAM 2012 Sector Mover in the Containers and Packaging sector.

This is the first time Sonoco has been named a Sector Leader, a distinction awarded to the company with its sector's highest sustainability score. SAM is an investment boutique focused exclusively on sustainability investing that annually invites the world's largest 2,500 companies, as reflected in the Dow Jones Global Total Stock Market Index, to participate in its Corporate Sustainability Assessment.

"We are extremely pleased to be named the packaging industry's sustainability leader because it recognizes our commitment to setting the standard for sustainability in our industry and to providing recycling services and innovative waste reduction programs to many of the largest consumer brands in the world," said Harris E. DeLoach Jr., Sonoco's chairman and CEO.

SAM assessed 10 packaging and container companies using economic, environmental, and social criteria. The economic criteria included corporate governance, customer relationship management, risk and crisis management, and codes of conduct. SAM's environmental assessment examined the companies' product stewardship, environmental reporting, environment policy/management system, and climate strategy. Social dimension criteria focused on talent attraction and retention, human capital development, stakeholder engagement, and standards for suppliers.

The company with the highest score in each sector is named the SAM Sector Leader. SAM considers a Sector Leader the company in its industry that is best prepared to seize the opportunities and effectively manage the risks associated with economic, environmental and social developments. SAM Sector Leaders also receive SAM Gold Class status for that year.

The SAM Sector Mover award is given to the company in a sector that has achieved the largest proportional improvement in its sustainability performance compared with the previous year. Sonoco was named a SAM Sector Mover in 2010 and again in 2012.

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MeadWestvaco Corp., Richmond, Va., USA, reports that it received Robinson EN 1230-2 sensory analysis approval for its Crescendo® paperboard for chocolate and confectionery packaging. This analysis, required for all confectionery packaging and paperboard, tests the paperboard's ability to maintain product quality without a trace of taint or odor from the packaging. Crescendo's approval on the Robinson test confirms its ability to maintain product integrity and value, and provides brand owners with confidence in packaging solutions for their luxury confectionery products.

Crescendo, available with one-sided coating (Crescendo C1S) or two-sided coating (Crescendo C2S), meets the high standards of packaging seen in the European chocolate and confectionery market and is safe for direct food contact. The product's fiber-mix material and finishing process result in high stiffness and durability, the company notes.

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Twin Rivers Paper Co., South Portland, Main, USA, a producer of lightweight specialty packaging, label, and publishing papers, has released a packaging swatchbook. The new swatchbook features a broad range of coated and uncoated papers designed for packaging applications that require PFOA-free grease-resistance, wet-strength, FDA compliance, printability, strength properties, and recycled content. Common applications for these packaging papers include sandwich wraps, basket liners, sugar packets, print-ply for multi-wall bags, theater popcorn bags, microwave popcorn bags, and much more.

The packaging swatchbook focuses on two primary brands—Acadia and Bladepak®. Acadia, an uncoated machine-finish paper, is available in 15 lb - 75 lb (24 x 36/500) basis weights and is known for its flexibility and functionality. Acadia offers grease-resistant properties and other options ideal for waxing, extruding, and laminating applications.

Bladepak, a coated, one-side (C1S) paper, is available in basis weights of 35 lb - 69 lb (24 x 36/500) and is also offered in standard and grease-resistant designs. It has printability, strength, and flex crack-resistant properties that are ideal for offset, flexography, and rotogravure printing processes.

Twin Rivers has operations in New Brunswick, Maine and Quebec. More information about the company and its new swatchbook is available online.

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UPM Raflatac, Finland, has launched a new addition to its durables labeling range. The new top-coated polyester face PET Matt White TC 50 offers a more fit-for-purpose solution in many applications compared with the highly heat-resistant PET Matt White 60, the company notes.

UPM Raflatac explains that matt films provide excellent bar code readability due to the absence of reflection. The top-coat assures excellent thermal transfer print results and high scratch resistance with compatible TTR ribbons. ET Matt White TC 50 is available with both general purpose adhesives and special adhesives for applications where higher levels of adhesion and chemical and heat resistance are needed.

PET Matt White TC 50 and other products for durables labeling are available through UPM Raflatac's Small Roll Service. The option for single rolls in a choice of widths offers a reduced outlay for smaller label orders, or a sensibly small start to bigger business, the company points out.

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Arctic Paper, Poland, has announced a price increase for all of its uncoated woodfree (UWF) and coated woodfree (CWF) paper grades, in sheets and reels. Effective beginning March 15, the increase will be 5% - 6% and will differ from the current price levels per country and paper grade.

The company notes that during the past year it has implemented several measures to further reduce costs and increase efficiency. However, current manufacturing cost levels and cost increases for transportation and raw material, it adds, have made a paper price increase unavoidable.

Arctic Paper is the second-largest European producer of bulky book paper in terms of production volume, and one of Europe's leading producers of high-quality graphic paper.

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Klara Helstad has been named the new sustainability director at Södra, Sweden, and a member of the company's group executive team, effective March 1. Helstad has been with Södra since 2005, and her last position was environmental and quality manager within the Södra Skog business area.

Södra notes that its business operations are run on the basis of a long-term strategy to use renewable raw materials, and make biodegradable products and products that can be recycled. The appointment of a sustainability director is part of the group's priority focus on sustainability and climate issues.

"My field of operation covers the entire chain, from responsible forest management and efficient manufacturing processes to work on the development of renewable products," Helstad noted.

Helstad is a Doctor of Forestry and has previously acted as a project manager for Södra's introduction of dual certification to FSC and PEFC standards. Prior to this, she was a navigator for productivity work at Södra Timber, Södra Cell, and Södra Skog. She will report to Leif Brodén, group chief executive at Södra.

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Reeta Kaukiainen has been appointed SVP, Communications at Metsä Group, Finland, effective March 12. She currently is VP, Communications and Investor Relations at Tieto Corp., Finland. In her new position, Kaukiainen will report to Metsä Group President and CEO Kari Jordan.

The current SVP, Communications of Metsä Group, Anne-Mari Achrén, has decided to leave the Group for family reasons.

Metsä Group is a producer and marketer of tissue and cooking papers, board and paper, pulp, wood products, and wood supply.

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Catalyst Paper Corp., Richmond, B.C., Canada, has elected Jeffrey Marshall as chair of the board, to replace Benjamin Duster. Marshall is also the chair of Ormet Corp. and serves on the boards of Lakefield College School Foundation and Brand Energy and Infrastructure Services Inc. He has been a director of Catalyst since 2006.

Duster will continue to serve as a member of the board of directors of Catalyst Paper.

Catalyst also announced that Denis Jean resigned from its board, effective February 2, for personal reasons.

The company additionally announced that Third Avenue Management LLC has filed an early warning report and press release announcing that it has sold 105,105,509 common shares of Catalyst, which represents approximately 27.52% of the issued and outstanding shares of the company. Third Avenue Management reported that following the sale it no longer has ownership of, or control or direction over, any shares of Catalyst.

Catalyst produces specialty printing papers, newsprint, and pulp, with four mills in British Columbia and Arizona. It has a combined annual production capacity of 1.9 million metric tons.

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With the industry's largest technical program, PaperCon is where CEOs, mill managers, superintendents, scientists, process engineers and suppliers gather to learn and network. PaperCon 2012 is about "Growing the Future": leveraging resources and people to ensure value for your customers, long-term success. Located in the heart of the Southern USA pulp and papermaking region, PaperCon sessions will highlight today's dynamic packaging sector.

Program tracks include Papermakers, Coating and Graphic Arts and PIMA Management. The PaperCon program also features: Inside and outside the box: Optimizing paperboard grades , the Sustainability Forum , an Executive Panel Discussion , a Young Professional Program , Coating 101 Course and other practical workshops and seminars and features the largest PaperCon exhibit ever. Bonus Sessions (open to all PaperCon registrants) Control Systems 2012: The first USA appearance for this highly-rated biannual conference. RPTA Production-Technical Seminar , the OpEx Reliability Seminar .

Take a moment to register and reserve your hotel room for this year's "must attend" event.

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Leading up to the Sustainability Forum at PaperCon in April, a series of webinars are planned to help manufacturers and customers better understand key issues around sustainability. Participate in these seminars, and attend PaperCon's Sustainability Forum to assure you have the most up-to-date knowledge of this dynamic and important topic.

How to Deal with Misleading Environmental Claims Related to Print and Paper
February 27, 11:00 am

Facilitated by: Phil Riebel, President and COO, Two Sides U.S., Inc.

Cost: There is no cost to participate, but you must register to attend.

Register for this webinar

Many corporations are promoting electronic communications (ex: e-billing) as a more environmentally-friendly method of communication, and in doing such they are spreading erroneous facts and messages about print and paper. As a result, the public is being flooded with messages that portray print and paper as a "bad" product with "destructive" environmental impacts relative to other communication methods.

This presentation will outline some of the unique environmental and social features of print and paper products which make it a sustainable way of communicating. The (often ignored) environmental and social impacts of electronic communications will also be reviewed, as well as environmental marketing rules and guidelines that companies should respect when making environmental claims (ex: US Federal Trade Commission Green Guides). Print and electronic media will co-exist for many decades and we need to reduce the environmental impacts of both. It's not a question of one versus the other, but rather which combination is the most sustainable. The initiatives taken by Two Sides to challenge misleading claims will also be presented.

Learn more and make plans to participate.

Additional webinar in the series:

A Global Sustainability Perspective

March 12, 2012 at 11:00am EST - Facilitated by: Avrim Lazar, FPAC

Register in advance for this webinar

A Comparison of the FSC and SFI Forest Certification Standards

Took place on January 30. Listen to a recording.

PaperCon 2012 will take place April 22-25, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana, and will focus on "Growing the Future"; leveraging renewable, recyclable raw materials and developing human capital to ensure value for customers, long-term sustainability for shareholders, and a future for our peers.

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An Invitation to Present has been announced for TAPPI's 2012 International Bioenergy and Bioproducts Conference (IBBC), October 17-19, 2012 in Savannah, Georgia.

IBBC will focus on technical advancements and commercialization of bioconversion technologies that leverage the forest products manufacturing infrastructure and will include technical presentations, expert panels, case studies, and reports from projects that address:

• Feedstock and harvesting improvements to increase yield and quality of biomass
• Bioelectricity using combined heat and power (CHP)
• Bioconversion technologies for wood and biomass
• Production of chemicals and transportation fuels from wood and biomass
• Policies and incentives for bioconversion projects

Presentations are sought in the following areas:

Advances in Technology: strong technical papers with a focus on presenting new findings

• Biomass Supply & Demand
• Advances in Conversion Pathways ·
• Biomass Harvesting & Preparation
• Advances in Bioproducts

Commercialization Activities: case studies and updates from pilot scale, commercial, and pre-commercial operations

• Biorefineries
• Repurposing the Traditional Pulp and Paper Mill
• Harvesting and Preparation · Technical Economic Analyses
• Commercial Collaborations for Enabling Technologies
• Project Deployment Issues

Impacts of Policies and Incentives: analysis of existing or proposed bioconversion policies at State, Provincial or Federal levels

• Public policy proposals
• Pulp/paper incentives that support bioconversion progress
• Assessing common ground between pulp/paper and agricultural bioconversion policies

Limited space is available for poster presentations.

Abstract Submission Information:

Authors interesting in presenting a paper should upload their abstract to the TAPPI's Speaker Management System

Abstract Requirements: Abstracts should be no more than 200 words.

Submission Deadline: March 9, 2012

Presentations Deadline: September 17, 2012 Authors will be notified of acceptance by April 20, 2012.

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Attend the Shipping, Receiving and Warehousing Workshop, in Nashville, April 2-4, 2012, and learn new ways to avoid expensive roll damage and improve your bottom line. Be a part of this dedicated group of mills, carriers, warehouses and printers as they collaborate to reduce in-transit damage to rolls of paper at this premier forum for industry leading paper shippers.

This is truly a practical, interactive and collaborative shipping and receiving workshop put on by industry professionals, for industry professionals - all parties of the supply chain - to address common issues and concerns relating to damage and damage prevention in the paper industry. It's an excellent networking opportunity - paper buyers, paper companies, carriers, securing / damage prevention specialists, block and bracing manufacturers, safety experts all under one roof. Learn more about TAPPI's Shipping, Receiving and Warehousing Workshop.

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The 2012 TAPPI PEERS Conference, October 14-17 in Savannah, Georgia, has announced the Call for Papers. PEERS is the perfect forum for paper industry professionals both to acquire practical operating insights and to network with industry peers in technical sessions, tutorials, round tables, new technology sessions and workshops.

Topics suggested for the 2012 technical program are as follows:

• · Fiber and Pulping
• · Mill Operations and Engineering
• · Steam and Power
• · Recycling
• · Environmental Management and Regulation
• · Sustainability

Abstracts on other topics are welcome.

 Learn more.

Authors interested in presenting a paper should upload their extended abstract to TAPPI's Speaker Management System by March 9, 2012.

Authors will be notified of acceptance by April 20, 2012 and must provide a full text manuscript by July 20, 2012.

For more information please contact Craig McKinney, TAPPI Program Manager at +1.770.209.7294

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Registration Numbers for Attend Renewable Chemicals Live 2012 Continue to Grow with Industry Leading Companies

A veritable 'who's who' of the renewable chemicals industry are registered to attend the Renewable Chemicals Live Conference 2012, which will be held April 2, 2012 at the Capital Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC. See the growing list of registered companies on the event website.

Produced by TAPPI and Biofuels Digest, this conference is co-located with the Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference which spans from April 3 – 5, 2012.

Renewable Chemicals Live features the top leadership in renewable chemicals, plastics and bio-based materials. The conference program features C-level presentations on finance, scale-up, R&D, policy and global trends.

The combination of Renewable Chemicals Live and the Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference will provide four days of "can't miss content" - get the most for your time and money by attending both! - Learn more.

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PaperCon's Procurement and Sourcing Forum taking place Monday, April 23, 2012, is an opportunity for professionals involved in the procurement of materials and services in the manufacturer of paper and packaging materials to identify best-in-class procurement strategies, highlight better ways to manage data, discuss mechanisms and approaches to increase value, learn about relevant industry-wide issues and concerns, and meet and network with industry peers Topics will address best practices and emerging trends in procuring consumables, chemicals, energy, mechanical parts, but not capital equipment.

Designed by industry professionals, PaperCon 2012 will bring together CEOs, mill managers, superintendents, scientists, process engineers and suppliers for the largest pulp and paper technical program in the world, April 22-25 in New Orleans.

Located in the heart of the Southern USA pulp and papermaking region, PaperCon 2012 will focus on "Growing the Future"; leveraging renewable, recyclable raw materials to ensure value for customers and long-term sustainability for shareholders. It's an event you can't afford to miss.

Learn more about the Procurement and Sourcing Forum and PaperCon.

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Eliminating Cost while Enhancing Customer Value Workshop

Taking place at PaperCon, this one-day workshop on Sunday, April 21 will help you learn and identify effective tools and techniques needed to build a customer-centered, fact-based cost reduction strategy

Lead by Christopher W. Miller, PhD, NPDP, President Innovation Focus, Inc., this workshop features a customer-centered and creative approach to value analysis (the Unilever approach). Attend and learn how to unleash the power of your organization; design a customer-centered cost reduction project; facilitate an effective cost reduction effort; and how to select tools and techniques that will help you and your team be more customer-centered.

During this workshop, you'll learn how to design a customer-centered cost reduction project, facilitate an effective cost reduction effort, select tools and techniques that will help their team be more customer centered and build a customer centered, fact based cost reduction strategy

Process engineers and mid-to-upper level manufacturing managers within the paper manufacturing industry with an interest in cost management and reduction will find this course beneficial. Experience in cost reduction and related activities would be helpful.

Learn more about Eliminating Cost while Enhancing Customer Value Workshop and PaperCon.

The cost for this course is only 500 USD, which includes lunch and course materials. This special rate is being offered to TAPPI for this one-time workshop. Register now.

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Training Standard for Paper Machine Tender, Standard Guideline T 1501 sg-11

New training standard for paper machine tenders

A technical committee of TAPPI members working with NPT2, the National Network for Pulp and Paper Technology Training, has developed a training standard for paper machine tenders―T-1501. This new standard provides guidelines for the skills and knowledge needed by a paper machine tender—often referred to as the paper machine first hand. Training standard for paper machine tender, Standard Guideline T 1501 sg-11

This standard will also be useful as a measure of the capabilities and understanding that a person must have to successfully perform the machine tender function. As the first standard of this type based on the information sources referenced, this particular standard may serve as a model to see if similar standards would be useful for other pulp and paper mill job classifications.

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