Over the Wire

Closing of significant newsprint operations no longer just about individual company plans and the impact on their employees... in the past few years this now also affects the region's entire paper market sector as it has significantly contracted in North America over the past decade and a half. This is one of the first major reconsiderations in paper mill operation based on expectation that the China-U.S. trade issues are now wrapping up before Bear Island would be needing to supply newsprint at an increased price for another two years based on tariffs. Instead of staying open during the next couple years, the mill will now proceed directly into containerboard conversion prep for a 2021 opening.

 

Buzzfeed has become a popular light-news / human interest website that seems like the quissesential definition of "new media" that is pumping up paperless digital media that grabs people's attention in a way that arguably cuts into the "classic" arena of certain tabloid newsprint publications. So it may come as a surprise that on March 6 they decided to print a special edition 12-page newspaper - 20,000 in number. "We printed out the internet..." said their chief marketing officer.

 

The Formid Seat — a custom-built active seat with haptic feedback — is using sustainably produced paper and reclaimed mining waste to create an ergonomic, eco-conscious seat that encourages its users to keep moving. "It’s a lot like tailoring a suit," said the designer. "We built an algorithm for the chair that uses seven measurements to customize the design to the user and the setting in which they will use the chair. But like with tailoring, we needed a flat material that could be cut, creased and folded to the correct shape. We also wanted the material to be sustainable. We considered metal, but in the end, paper was the only real option."