“Paper, in its countless forms, touches our lives every day and it’s a relationship that often goes unnoticed. We use it without a second thought – from our first cup of coffee and morning ablutions, to eating yoghurt, popping our vitamins or putting on lipstick.”

So says Jane Molony, executive director of the Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa (PAMSA) in the association’s inaugural progress report. “Paper products are an enabler. Without them many industries would not be able to convey their messages, ship their products and deliver their goods. As the basis for tissue, paper is a bathroom essential and helps to improve lives through personal hygiene. As a medium through which learning is facilitated, paper educates and informs,” she adds.

Telling the fibre story

PAMSA’s industry report, Paper in Perspective 2016, tells a number of stories – the economic story, the sustainability story and the recycling story. It also delves into PAMSA’s efforts in the education, training and research space, and entrepreneurship training for recycling collectors.

Presented in an easy-to-read format, facts are abundant. Did you know that South African paper makers’ forests are home to 600 million carbon-absorbing, oxygen-giving trees? Or that only 9% of a plantation is harvested a year and that on average 260,000 new saplings are planted every day to replace what has been harvested?

Paper in Perspective 2016 clearly highlights how wood, pulp and paper – collectively fibre-based materials – are not only renewable but that their cellulosic foundations are taking the industry into new frontiers.

Cellulose used as a fibre additive in food and as a preservative in processed foods. It can be applied in the manufacture of cellphone and laptop screens, as well as through nanotechnology in automobiles, aerospace, defence and medical science.

Sustainability at the centre

The foreword – penned by PAMSA chairman and CEO of Mondi South Africa Ron Traill – sets out in no uncertain terms the value of the industry to the South African economy. In 2015 alone, paper, pulp and other associated products contributed R28 billion to the local fiscus and a significant R4.5 billion to the country’s balance of trade.

Crucially, more than 150,000 people are currently employed in the value chain from tree planting to paper making and recycling. Encouragingly, an estimated 38,000 work formally or informally in the recycling sector.

Valuable reference document – available on paper and online

Paper in Perspective 2016 is a one-stop guide to the South African pulp and paper making industry, its members and the vast scope of their activities. As a reference document, it will be of great value to industry commentators, journalists, economists, educators, students of all ages and people considering making a career in a vibrant and technologically advanced industry with an exciting future.

Naturally the publication has been printed on certified, sustainably produced paper, but is also available for download – and desktop printing.

The post Sustainability at the centre of paper manufacturers’ inaugural report first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

Sappi Limited (JSE),

Feature-rich

The new www.sappi.com features full descriptions of products and services offered; comprehensive award-winning educational materials for customers; in-depth sustainability reporting; easy access to corporate social responsibility efforts like Ideas That Matter; dynamic portals for customers and investors and a prominent social media presence. The site will also feature user personalisation, ensuring that the most relevant information is provided first to frequent visitors.

“A dedicated team of Sappi employees across the world has been working tirelessly over the last year to create a website that not only encapsulates our global 2020Vision, but that serves each of our key stakeholders in a way that is both informative, actionable and personalised,” said André Oberholzer, Group Head Corporate Affairs of Sappi Limited. “Sappi.com is now an essential source of information for all our stakeholders. We’re proud and excited by this launch, but our work is far from done. We’ve laid a solid foundation and will remain dedicated to quality. The team at Sappi will be making continuous improvements for each of our unique stakeholders.”

Two new features: Sappi&You and Investor hub

While the entire website was redesigned, there are two features with increased functionality that offer additional benefits to users. First, the Sappi&You Online portal for European customers offers a personalised online experience for printers, publishers and brand owners. Supported by eCommerce, it provides increased functionality to support our customers. Information is tailored to the customers’ specific needs allowing fast access to transactional information, local specialists, detailed product information, sample ordering or benefit from Sappi’s in depth technical knowledge and support areas. It is not only customers who benefit from Sappi&You Online, companies who would like to learn more about how Sappi&You can support their businesses will find useful information about our co-development approach as well as putting them in touch with our local specialists.

Second, a new hub dedicated to investors will provide background information on Sappi and the industry, as well as regularly updated share pricing, financial results, upcoming financial events, financial presentations and information on the 2020Vision.

Resourceful investment

“We see this investment as a key resource that helps drive our company toward our goal of ‘One Sappi’ – a single global brand,” continued Oberholzer. “With more resources immediately available to our audiences than ever before, and our resulting increased transparency, we will continue our position as a thought leader in the industry. We are excited to enter the next phase of our business strategy, where we will continue to innovate and offer products and services that are of the highest quality to our customers.”

The post Sappi Limited launches new website highlighting global presence, increased functionality and robust educational resources    first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

The video is part of Sappi’s “The Thing About” series narrated by environmental journalist Johan Botha, that shares information about the company’s commitment to People, Planet and Prosperity through conservation and biodiversity management, community initiatives and partnership programmes as well as land and forest stewardship projects.

Dr Dave Everard, Sappi Environmental Manager explains how the company strives for a balance of these “3Ps” to manage the business in such a way that it is financially viable, environmentally sound and socially responsible. Dr Everard says he believes that, “timber, or vegetation biomass is one of the saviours to future sustainable issues of the planet,” and “creating more markets to use timber is a good thing as long as the timber is produced in a responsible way.” As Sappi grows, it continues to find innovative ways to improve yield, and minimise and reuse waste without negatively impacting the people and natural environment through plantation farming.

Sappi’s Ngodwana Energy Biomass Project was recently named a preferred bidder in the South African Department of Energy’s 4th window Renewable Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme. Through this project, Sappi will use locally-supplied biomass to produce energy for the national grid.

For more information on Sappi’s sustainability initiatives, please see the company’s Group Sustainability Report.

Stay tuned to Sappi’s YouTube channel. We’ll let you know about future videos in this series released in the next few months.

The post The Thing About…Earth Day first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

Sappi Southern Africa has re-launched the well-known Typek brand. A popular and trusted brand in offices, schools and homes, readily available through most retailers and stationers, the distinctive red and white packaging has been updated and refreshed to more visibly reflect Sappi’s commitment to sustainability. In a market confused by imported products that either do not meet credible environmental standards or serve to export jobs from South Africa to other countries, Sappi wants to make sure that consumers know that they can continue to trust the Typek brand, first launched in 1991, to provide them with a sustainable, responsible and reliable range of locally produced products.

“Market research highlighted the fact that consumers increasingly identify with environmental endorsements used on packaging when making their paper purchases” says Alex Thiel, Chief Executive Officer, and Sappi Southern Africa. “By incorporating a value statement on the reams in ‘customer friendly’ visual language, consumers can be assured of Sappi’s commitment to minimise our impact on the environment. Our trees are grown to be harvested so that we can create value-adding products from them. Paper remains a versatile product and offers us a sensory experience matched by no other medium.”

The new identity gives Typek a vibrant personality and consumers can create positive associations beyond the product features and functions. The use of the green colour and the descriptive environmental icons make it easier for consumers to visibly identify the Typek product with being a responsible and sustainable paper product. The new wrapper material is not only designed with visual appeal and to protect the integrity of the product, but is also recyclable and biodegradable.

Typek is a multi-purpose product suitable for use in inkjet and laser printers, photocopiers and fax machines. The Typek range consists of Typek White, Typek 50% Recycled, Typek Tints, Typek White Board and Typek pastel rainbow packs and is sold at retailers, stationers, paper merchants and convenience stores.

Typek is produced locally at Enstra Mill in Springs and is ISO accredited and FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified, meaning that the woodfibre used is sourced from well managed and responsible sources. “By buying a locally manufactured paper, consumers can reduce their carbon footprint and help to sustain local job opportunities” says Thiel.

Sappi’s Earth Kind mark is a fresh visible, simple and relevant icon that captures the essence of Sappi’s (and Typek brand’s) approach to sustainability and corporate citizenship. The Earth Kind symbol is a heart symbolising humanity, placed inside an orb shape that depicts the earth, encompassing nature and the people who inhabit it. It represents Sappi’s journey as a profitable company delivering value to its stakeholders and communities while minimising its impacts on the environment.

“Sappi, established in South Africa some 75 years ago, is proud of the contribution it has made and will continue to make to South Africa,“ concluded Thiel.

ENDS

More about Sappi
Sappi Southern Africa, an integrated forest products company, meets the needs of local and international customers through a wide range of products from three divisions:

– Dissolving wood pulp, is sold to converters for use in such products as fashion clothing, mobile phone screens, cellophane wrap, pharmaceutical, beauty and household products. To enjoy life to the fullest it is great to be healthy https://aca-demic.com/. Sappi is the world’s largest manufacturer of chemical cellulose.
– The Paper and Paper Packaging division provides products including, paper pulp, newsprint, coated and uncoated fine papers, office and business papers, security and speciality papers, containerboard (used to manufacture cardboard boxes) and packaging papers (for the cement, pet food, agriculture and FMCG industries). Leading local brands includes Typek, Triple Green, Masuga,

The post Sappi Paper and Paper Packaging launches new-look Typek first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

“The pulp, paper and packaging industry is brimming with opportunity, especially in the areas of research into green and sustainable energy technologies, innovative processes and how we can explore the potential of one of our world’s most natural and renewable resources – the tree,” says Mike Nash, head of PAMSA’s Process Research Unit.

Successful candidates will gain advanced skills during their post-graduate training in fields such as wood science, chemical analysis, separation techniques and material and energy balances. Not only will they have access to an industrial mentor during their studies, but they will be placed in an engineer-in-training programme at one of PAMSA’s member companies.

Dirk Postma completed his MSc at the University of Stellenbosch’s Department of Process Engineering, focusing on the modification of hemicelluloses using chemical and physical methods for use in the pulp and paper industry.

“PAMSA and SAPPI opened my eyes to the interesting world of the pulp and paper and offered me a great opportunity to learn from people who have had decades of experience in the industry,” he says.

Stephen Swart, who completed his MSc in chemical engineering through the University of Pretoria, obtained valuable experience in both the research and industrial environment as his MSc project involved the design, construction and commissioning of a novel system for the production of a renewable liquid fuel at the University of Pretoria. This project is a collaborative effort between the university and the United States Department of Agriculture which has the potential of becoming a commercial operation.

“I was given the opportunity to attend and present my work at several conferences in South Africa and around the world,” says Swart.

Applications are welcome from post-graduate chemical engineering students who meet the following requirements:

• BScEng (chemical engineering) candidates interested in enrolling for MScEng studies in fields that satisfy the aims of the pulp, paper and packaging industry.
• A good academic record with a minimum 60% average in the final year of study.
• Applicants must have completed their studies in five years or less.
• Candidates should indicate their areas of interest. For example, energy efficiency, renewable energy and biopolymers.

“The unit, which has formed partnerships with the universities of Stellenbosch, Pretoria and KwaZulu-Natal, is focused on developing some fundamental research thrusts to further unlock the potential of paper in all its forms,” adds Nash.

These will most likely be in areas that will ‘unlock’ the potential of the biomass used as a feedstock as well as developing new and innovative final products to the consumer. These relate particlularly to the development of cellulose into new disciplines or products, including bio-plastics, nano products and smart packaging.

PAMSA’s Process Research Unit was formed to develop, manage and expand a regional research initiative and further support, promote and improve the sustainability of the local pulp, paper and packaging industry.

Apart from its bursary programme, the unit coordinates research for the development of processes to efficiently utilise biomass feedstock (trees) for conversion to bio-products (paper and chemicals) and energy with minimal environmental impact and seeks to develop academic/research centres of excellence, both locally and abroad. It also engages in collaborative partnerships with industry and government agencies.

“We plan to expand our reach to other South African institutions, depending on the field of study being followed and the institution’s expertise in that field. We also plan to include overseas institutions into the mix,” explains Nash.

Applications – which should include a full CV and a motivation letter – can be directed to:

Patti Webster

patti.webster[@]pamsa.co.za

Tel: +27 (0) 11 803 5063

Fax: +27 (0) 11 803 6708

The post Exciting research and bursary opportunities for postgraduate chemical engineers first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).