Iggesund focuses on Japan

/INS. Iggesund Paperboard is expanding in the Asia Pacific region and will open a sales office in Japan from 1 September. Over the past year Iggesund has established a service centre with sheeting and warehousing in Taiwan to cut lead times in the region.

“Traditionally Iggesund has focused very much on Europe but we are now prioritising work to increase our global sales,” explains Arvid Sundblad, Vice President Sales and Marketing for Iggesund. “For more than a decade we have seen the conversion of packaging for consumer goods move from western Europe to other parts of the world, mostly in the east,” he says. “Brand owners with headquarters in one part of the world can have the manufacturing of both their goods and packaging in another. This is globalisation in a nutshell and we must adapt to it.”

The Japanese paper and paperboard market is known for its high demands on quality. Iggesund’s flagship product, Invercote, will be the cornerstone of the new venture. The paperboard is well established in the highest quality segments in the more than 100 national markets where it is sold. It is made of virgin fibre and meets exacting standards of purity, so it should do well in Japan.

“When we decided to focus more on global sales, one of the first steps was to develop our delivery service outside Europe,” explains Ivan Chong, President of Iggesund’s Asia Pacific operations. “Since then we’ve built up new inventory and sheeting facilities on the US West Coast and in Taiwan. The result is radical reductions in lead times to Asia.”

Iggesund has been represented in both Singapore and Hong Kong for almost two decades now and has been successful in building sales over that period. The improved availability means there are good prospects for the company to reach a wider market not only in Japan but also in the Asia Pacific region generally.

“The improved inventory and service are a game changer for us,” Chong says. “Now we can be competitive in contexts where before we weren’t even an option due to the lead times. We’ve already gained a number of new orders due to our new delivery capacity.”

“We have great respect for Japanese business culture and are therefore only recruiting Japanese staff,” Chong explains. “We believe that this factor, together with our long-term commitment, will be decisive to succeeding in Japan.

“Quality is extremely important in Japan,” he continues. “Hygiene, purity, and taste and odour neutrality are just some of the aspects that are emphasised more in this market than in many others. That’s why we believe Invercote has terrific opportunities to do well here.”

Invercote has long been represented by the esteemed Japanese paper merchants Takeo with a focus on the graphics market and this arrangement will continue. The new sales office will further develop new business opportunities in the premium packaging and graphical segments, where the qualities of Invercote are especially preferred.

“We believe it is a clear advantage to have two channels into this demanding market,” Arvid Sundblad concludes.

Caption: “We have great respect for Japanese business culture and are therefore only recruiting Japanese staff. We believe that this factor, together with our long-term commitment, will be decisive to succeeding in Japan,” says Ivan Chong, President of Iggesund’s Asia Pacific operations. © Iggesund

Iggesund

Iggesund Paperboard is part of the Swedish forest industry group Holmen, one of the world’s 100 most sustainable companies listed on the United Nations Global Compact Index. Iggesund’s turnover is just over €500 million and its flagship product Invercote is sold in more than 100 countries. The company has two brand families, Invercote and Incada, both positioned at the high end of their respective segments. Since 2010 Iggesund has invested more than €380 million to increase its energy efficiency and reduce the fossil emissions from its production.

Iggesund and the Holmen Group report all their fossil carbon emissions to the Carbon Disclosure Project. The environmental data form an integral part of an annual report that complies with the Global Reporting Initiative’s highest level of sustainability reporting. Iggesund was founded as an iron mill in 1685, but has been making paperboard for more than 50 years. The two mills, in northern Sweden and northern England employ 1500 people.

Further information:

Staffan Sjöberg
Public Relations Manager
staffan.sjoberg@iggesund.com

Iggesund Paperboard
SE-825 80 Sweden
Tel: +4665028256
Mobile: +46703064800
www.iggesund.com

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Company Information

Iggesund Logo


Iggesund Paperboard Head Office

Iggesund Paperboard AB
SE-825 80 Iggesund
Sweden / Sverige

Phone: +46 650 280 00
Fax: +46 650 288 00

info@iggesund.com

www.iggesund.com

Press contact

Therese Rahm
Communication Manager

Phone: +46 70 595 56 10

therese.rahm@holmen.com

     Via social media

Company Information

Iggesund Logo


Iggesund Paperboard Head Office

Iggesund Paperboard AB
SE-825 80 Iggesund
Sweden / Sverige

Phone: +46 650 280 00
Fax: +46 650 288 00

info@iggesund.com

www.iggesund.com

Press contact

Therese Rahm
Communication Manager

Phone: +46 70 595 56 10

therese.rahm@holmen.com

     Via social media

About Iggesund Paperboard AB

 

Iggesund Paperboard is part of the Swedish forest industry group Holmen, one of the world’s 100 most sustainable companies listed on the United Nations Global Compact Index. Iggesund’s turnover is just over €500 million and its flagship product Invercote is sold in more than 100 countries. The company has two brand families, Invercote and Incada, both positioned at the high end of their respective segments. Since 2010 Iggesund has invested more than €380 million to increase its energy efficiency and reduce the fossil emissions from its production.

Iggesund and the Holmen Group report all their fossil carbon emissions to the Carbon Disclosure Project. The environmental data form an integral part of an annual report that complies with the Global Reporting Initiative’s highest level of sustainability reporting. Iggesund was founded as an iron mill in 1685, but has been making paperboard for more than 50 years. The two mills, in northern Sweden and northern England employ 1500 people.




The Iggesund Mill


Making the world’s best paperboard is easy. You need water, carbon dioxide and sunlight to grow a seedling into a tree. Then you need sustainable forest management that can deliver first-class timber. There must be a pulp mill and a paperboard mill, and then distribution channels to get the paperboard to everyone who wants to use it. Most important of all, though, to the manufacture of Invercote are the skilled professionals who do their best – people who are proud of what they achieve and do not compromise on the quality of their work. Iggesunds Mill has traditions stretching back to 1685. Throughout that time dedicated individuals have done their utmost to use the renewable forest to benefit other people.

A world-class mill


Iggesund Mill (including Strömsbruk Mill) in Sweden is one of the most advanced, fully integrated pulp and paperboard mills in the world. Not least thanks to our long term majority owner, we have very well invested mills. There are many benefits having an integrated saw mill – we manage raw material together and we can use all the waste from their production to either make pulp or energy. In return we feed the saw mill with steam used to dry the timber. At Iggesund Mill, 100% of the pulp used to make Invercote is produced on location and pumped wet to the board machine. This means that we use no market pulp. Not drying the pulp preserves some mechanical properties of the fibres.

This advanced technology – hundreds of metres of paperboard machines – is controlled by employees with various forms of special expertise. The machines work around the clock and year round to produce tonne after tonne of dazzling white paperboard. Technical perfection and numerical control processes are all well and good but for excellent results you also need team spirit and a good working atmosphere. Invercote’s unique properties are the result of the interplay between expertise, a positive spirit and cutting-edge technology.

Actively investing in bioenergy


In 2012 the new recovery boiler was inaugurated at Iggesund Mill, an investment made possible by the long term perspective of our majority owner. With it in operation, the mill produces all the heat it needs, and can also provide district heating to the nearby community. It also produces nearly all the electricity needed for the mill, and is connected to the grid to be able to output excess electricity if needed. As the new boiler was trimmed into operation, it drastically reduced a lot of emissions between 2013 and 2014: fossil CO2 by >85%, particles by ~45% and sulphur by ~35%

With the installation and trimming of the new recovery boiler, emissions to air have reduced drastically from already low levels – graph being updated shortly. Measurements have shown that only 1% of particles in the air of Iggesund village comes from the mill. The majority of particles comes from domestic fire places and cars.

Care for our customers and their businesses


Paperboard must be there when the customer needs it. All the quality features in the world are meaningless if the deliveries don’t arrive in time. Delivery precision is a high priority. A maritime transport system guarantees overseas customers receive shipments with the lowest possible environmental impact. The service doesn’t stop there. Every tonne of Invercote comes with access to documentation and knowledge about how to make best use of the paperboard. The knowledge and market-based technical support provided by Iggesund, help customers to achieve dazzling end results and optimal production economics.

 

 

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