Sappi Europe

Join us in congratulating Sappi Europe CEO Marco Eikelenboom on being appointed Chairperson of the Confederation of European Paper Industries (Cepi)!

He takes over from IIkka Hämälä, CEO of Metsä Group, at a time when EU Institutions are preparing for an election period, the start of a new mandate for Members of the European Parliament and a new College of EU Commissioners. In these next five years, the European Union needs to transform the elements of the Green Deal legislative package into concrete actions and deliver on its emission reduction and removal targets.

Marco looks forward to representing the pulp and paper industry with EU institutions and policy makers at this critical point in time. ‘I am assuming the role of Cepi Chair at a time of great transformation and promise for our industry,’ he says. ‘The legislation we are facing in Europe is more complex and ambitious than in any other region – but it also gives us an opportunity to take the lead in decarbonisation and renewable energy supply.’

We look forward to a productive two-year tenureship!

As we start 2024, we’re taking a celebratory look back at some of Sappi Europe’s standout moments of the last year. First up, Gratkorn’s R&D workshop for kids…

The Gratkorn Mill R&D team hosted a fun and educational workshop in July for the pupils of Gratwein’s music middle school.

The first in what is planned to be a series of student visits, the session called ‘From tree to paper’ saw the children to take part in a series of experiments that taught them about the properties of our paper as well as the technology used in its production, measurement, and use.

‘This first workshop has exceeded all my expectations,’ says Elena Pietrich, Gratkorn’s Laboratory Specialist. ‘It was fantastic to see the amazement, fun and energy of the students.’

At Sappi, we’re committed to investing in the education of young people. It’s by firing up the imaginations of our future innovators that we can inspire them to join us in making great strides in our sustainability journey. That’s why we offer exciting opportunities across our sites for those people who are keen to develop new skills in a progressive, global company.

To see our apprentice opportunities at Gratkorn Mill, click 👉https://ow.ly/TWax50Qpqfi

Huge congratulations to our team at Sappi Europe’s Ehingen Mill, who celebrated the plant’s 85th anniversary at Lindenhalle on 24 November.

Managing Director Maik Willig and Works Council Chairman Christian Leckebusch welcomed around 300 of our colleagues to an unforgettable anniversary event. And one of the highlights was a quiz organised by the mill’s trainees, who were supported by CEO Marco Eikelenboom and VP Manufacturing and Technology Steffen Wurdinger.

We’re so proud of Ehingen’s many achievements. Not only does the mill support the local community through educational partnerships and internships, it runs a range of innovative initiatives to support Sappi’s sustainability goals and this year, achieved two million hours worked without a lost time injury.

Thank you for your dedication in helping Sappi achieve such amazing results. Here’s to many more successful years!

🌿Decarbonisation in action – when people, nature and technology come together.

Ambitious decarbonisation plans require ambitious actions. That’s why at Sappi we have identified nearly 80 projects to complete by 2025 to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 25% and increase our share of renewable energy use to 50% (compared to 2019). The latest of these is our switch from fossil fuels to renewable, biomass energy at our Kirkniemi mill in Finland – resulting in a 90% reduction in direct greenhouse gas emissions.

What ambitious decarbonisation actions have you seen businesses undertake recently? And what should we be aiming for next?

Learn more about Sappi Europe's decarbonisation projects: https://tinyurl.com/ysmsvv7s

We couldn’t be prouder of our team at Sappi Europe’s Alfeld Mill, who have achieved one million hours worked without a lost time injury!

Sappi strives for zero accidents through an impeccable safety awareness culture and robust health and safety planning. This impressive achievement is testament to each and every team member’s dedication and vigilance in implementing our procedures and practice. Congratulations to all involved for adding to an already improved safety period for Sappi Europe!

In the picture: Thomas Rajcsanyi, Sappi Alfeld Mill Director, and Steffen Wurdinger, VP Manufacturing and Technology at Sappi Europe.

Sappi people are powering our sustainability journey forward. 🌱 ♻️ Read what Strategic Sourcing Manager, Comande has to say about it. ⬇️

My career journey began at Sappi in manufacturing where I spent nearly a decade identifying solutions to improve our operational efficiency and environmental impact. I basically completed a European tour, rising from a trainee in Germany and the Netherlands to project management roles in Austria and later in Italy.

Now I’m in our European HQ in Brussels, leading strategic sourcing which is a new and exciting area for me. My role involves assessing our energy portfolio, including the green energy needed to power Sappi’s energy transition in Europe. Since we made the switch from coal at our Gratkorn and Kirkniemi Mills, we need to ensure a reliable supply of biomass. My role, among many other things, is to help secure this supply with the procurement team.

From Brussels we’re also working on an energy study to expand our use of renewables by integrating more biomass, solar, hydro and even hydrogen. Instead of evaluating a single mill, we’re focused on the broader picture for our European operations. The potential to make some big leaps forward as a company with this study is incredibly exciting.

To read more on about how Sappi work in alliance with Nature, Technology and People visit: https://ow.ly/Jf2T50QhNPn.

Together with our employees, business partners and communities, Sappi is growing a culture where differences are celebrated, where people feel valued and engaged, and where every member of staff thrives. We’re committed to building a workforce that is genuinely diverse, equitable and inclusive.

To read more about diversity and Inclusion at Sappi, visit 👉 https://ow.ly/B0wN50QfVwU

Celebrating our differences in Europe on our DEI journey | Sappi Global At Sappi, we’re unlocking the power of trees to make every day more sustainable. We are committed to do this through the creation of a workforce that is genuinely diverse, equitable and inclusive. We're making steady progress on this journey in Europe and around the world.

Will you be joining the second day of Cepi’s PAPER & BEYOND today? Don’t miss Sappi Europe’s Director Sustainability and Chair of 4evergreen alliance Sarah Price discussing ‘Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation – what comes next’, where she’ll stress that the alliance outputs should be considered in the implementation of the PPWR.

‘The 4evergreen alliance can support secondary legislation through deliverables like their Design for Recycling guidelines for perfecting the circularity and raising the recycling rates of fibre-based packaging,’ she says. Join the discussion between 09.00 and 09.45.

Get the full ‘Circular Choices’ programme 👉 https://ow.ly/uCr250Qck0U

We’re excited to hear Sappi Europe’s CEO Marco Eikelenboom speak at Cepi’s PAPER & BEYOND in Brussels!

Under the theme of ‘Circular Choices’, this insightful two-day event brings together industry leaders, EU policy makers, researchers and scientists to help shape the trajectory of energy efficiency and climate action in our sector. And today, Marco joins a panel of key speakers to discuss the ‘Launch of the Energy Efficiency Checklist.’ This ground-breaking initiative will revolutionise the 2040 climate and energy policy framework and unleash the potential of technologies in our sector to accelerate decarbonisation efforts.

Tomorrow, Chair of 4evergreen Alliance and Sappi Europe’s Director Sustainability Sarah Price will join a panel discussing ‘Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation – what comes next.’

Get the full programme 👉 https://ow.ly/GKF850QbRos

Sappi people are powering our sustainability journey forward. 🌱 ♻️ Read what our Project Manager, Energy & Utilities Technology Siekkinen has to say about it. ⬇️

I joined Sappi to contribute to the energy transition, and that’s exactly what I get to do every day here. In my role, I’m leading an energy study to identify decarbonisation opportunities in several of Sappi’s European mills.

While we have some ambitious projects in the works, I’ve been so impressed by the significant moves already made. Gratkorn Mill in Austria where I’m based, and Kirkniemi Mill in Finland have switched from coal to biomass. This is a huge change with a big impact.

Beyond decarbonisation, we’re also innovating with our products. I’m especially excited about our packaging solutions that offer a natural alternative to plastic. This shift could make everyday life so much more sustainable.

Being part of a team that’s reimagining Sappi’s operations and turning ideas into climate solutions is really motivating. It gives me real hope for the future.

To read more about Sappi Europe’s road to decarbonisation visit: https://ow.ly/aPp250QaYp6

The launch of our annual Sappi Europe Roadshows was a huge success this week, with an inspiring and highly productive stop in both our Carmignano and Condino sites in Italy. As well as listening to a presentation about Sappi’s roadmap for the future by the European Leadership Team, all colleagues were invited to pose questions directly to the panel to help them get a deeper understanding of our business blueprint.

From Sappi’s mill teams to management, people are at the heart of our success, and these tours are a crucial and transparent way of keeping every member of staff invested in our future strategy and informed about what it means for them.

We are looking forward to hosting these sessions across the business in the weeks ahead.

Sappi people are powering our sustainability journey forward. 🌱 ♻️ Read what Stewardship & Sustainability Specialist, Sandrina Machado has to say about it. ⬇️

The way Sappi is cutting carbon emissions, realising energy efficiencies and reducing waste exemplifies how we’re prioritising and taking .

Even more, Sappi has made public its aligned targets and shares about the ups and the downs along the way to meet them. Not every company in our industry is willing to brave this spotlight, especially given that pulp and paper industry is so resource intensive.

But we’re doing it and I think it says a lot about Sappi’s character as a company.

When I manage customer requests related to Sappi’s environmental performance, I’ve been so encouraged to see customers championing our progress. Customers really want us to be ambitious in our goal setting and see measurable results.

To read more on Sappi Europe’s Sustainability Journey visit: https://www.sappi.com/sustainability-and-impact

The persistent global economic downturn, depressed markets, geopolitical instability and weak economic growth have all put significant pressure on Sappi, particularly within Europe. In response today we have announced the commencement of a consultation process for the potential closure of the Lanaken Mill and continue to review how best to reduce overall fixed and other overhead costs.

Read more on our focus to build a sustainably resilient company👇
https://www.sappi.com/sappi-concludes-consultation-process-at-stockstadt-mill-and-commences-consultation-process-on-future

Have you seen the latest edition of New Scientist yet?

Sappi is sponsoring the magazine’s Sustainable Packaging X World Food Day campaign. Discover the solution providers paving the way to a more positive climate future in the run up to COP 28 – hear from our own Flavio Froehli about how the flexible packaging of the future can leave plastic and its problems behind.

👉Read all about it online at https://bitly.ws/UYps and in this week’s New Scientist.

At Sappi, we’re committed to developing future-oriented solutions together. That means continued and considerable investment in digital technology, innovation and sustainability.

Our latest investment in cutting-edge AI research is set to pay dividends for Sappi sales and customer service. Following our partnership with Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in the US to research the potential of using AI to enable better customer insights, the Sappi-RIT Digital Innovation Lab’s Dr. Javed Khan and his team were invited to present a research paper at the ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems last spring.

The paper outlined how a machine-learning algorithm might provide a data-driven approach to customer segmentation and detailed how this information could be used by our sales people to deliver better customer service and optimise resource allocation.

Dr. Khan would like to expand the scope of the research: ‘The focus for now is around sales,’ he says. ‘But it could extend to other areas, such as supporting Sappi’s sustainability team.’

Read more about the research here 👉 https://tinyurl.com/2z8xmejp

Well done to our team of 75 keen riders at Sappi’s Ehingen Mill, who joined 22 other teams who were cycling for the city of Ehingen/Donau, to take part in City Cycling’s three-week challenge to swap their cars for two wheels.

In a win for the environment, the Sappi team rode an impressive 24,603 km, avoiding around 3,986 kg of CO2 emissions. This contributed to Ehingen/Donau’s overall total of 120,561 km – a saving of around 20 tons in CO2 emissions.

For each kilometre completed, Sappi Ehingen donated 10 cents to the Radio 7 Drachenkinder campaign to support sick, disabled and traumatised young people in the community.

The health and wellbeing of our employees is a priority for Sappi. Thank you all for shining a light on healthier mobility and for contributing to Sappi’s drive towards greater sustainability!

To read more 👉 www.sappi.com/ehingen-city-cycling 🚴‍♂️

Our colleagues got together for fun, fitness, food and friendship at the second annual Sappi Ehingen Summer Party, held at the sports field in Kirchen on 14 July.

Around 300 employees and their families gathered under sunny skies to enjoy some downtime and take part in a friendly goal wall shooting competition. Congratulations go to the winning technical department, who showcased their excellent ball skills! After an energetic day, competitors enjoyed a great range of food and drinks provided by Kirchen sports club.

Our summer party gave employees the opportunity to get to know each other better outside of the work environment. Sappi is a great proponent of a healthy work-life balance, and it was great to see this put so successfully in action. Thank you to our colleagues for being such great sports. Here’s to next year!

Thank you to our colleagues at Alfeld Mill, who hosted four of Sappi’s management trainees on a recent three-day visit to our production site.

The visit gave the trainees - Arnaldo Fenelli, Hosung Suh, Sebastiaan van Kooten and Tanguy Vieillescazes - invaluable, first-hand experience of the paper production process. As well as touring the plant and production at nearby MM Packaging Behrens which turns Alfeld Mill’s paper into packaging for the food industry, they met with the management team to discuss projects, successes and challenges, and enjoyed an excursion into the forest to see wood harvesting in action.

It’s through visits like this one and investment in training that we can enrich the vocational development of colleagues at every stage of their career. By empowering our future leaders with the skills they need to progress with us, they can contribute to Sappi’s future success.

To find out more information on career opportunities at Sappi Europe, please visit us here 👉 https://ow.ly/WJAU50PeSP8

Safety is at the heart of everything we do, so our colleagues and teams marked Sappi’s Global Safety Awareness Month across Europe with a series of special events.

Central to this year’s theme of ‘Safety starts with me’ is a plea for all employees to call attention to unsafe procedures or potential hazards, as well as to positively encourage safe behaviours.

These annual events are also a chance to observe the safety milestones and occupational safety standards achieved by our incredible mill teams over the last year. Thank you for your continued vigilance!