Tissue

WARSAW, Poland, Jan. 29, 2020 (Press Release) -We are pleased to announce that Velvet Care represented by CEO Artur Pielak and Vice President/CFO Rafal Curyło, signed a takeover agreement of 100% shares in the Czech company Moracell. The transaction is subject to the standard approval procedure by the antitrust authorities.

MORACELL, is the largest manufacturer of paper hygiene products in the Czech Republic, with a modern machinery park, infrastructure and an established position on the Czech and Slovak market. The company's product portfolio is very broad and includes toilet paper, kitchen towels, napkins and tissues.

The purchase transaction of Moracell is the key element of the Velvet Care Management Board and Abris Capital Partners business strategy having been consistently implemented and focused on the development and building of our company's position as a branch leader in the CEE.

We are looking forward to collaborate with our new colleagues from Moracell.

LECCO, Italy, June 30, 2020 (Press Release) -The new MF LINE is available in single or double lane configuration according to production needs and offers napkin production with different types of fold with quick job changes directly from the operator control panel thanks to the new vacuum/mechanical folding head technology. The in-line Chameleon digital printing configuration allows maximum flexibility in producing customized products with no set up waste.

The new MF Line is the revolutionary OMET machine suited for the production of all types of napkins made of different materials, types of fold, embossing and also flexo and digital printing.

The new folding head is a vacuum/mechanical technology exclusively developed by OMET in order to provide the maximum flexibility in terms of folding options. It allows a quick fold change between any type of fold, from the more traditional ¼ fold, up to the fancier book fold. Actually, an innovative electronic system enables a quick change of napkins size which can go up to 100 mm range.

The flexibility of the new MF combined with OMET digital printing technology satisfies all possible needs of both the ho.re.ca and the retail customer. The new machine can be equipped with different printing units, from the basic version which can have up to 6 printing units, to the XP version prepared for up to 8 printing units. The machine can also be integrated with OMET’s exclusive digital printing unit, the Chameleon.

Digital printing technology allows both an increase in terms of efficiency with cost optimization and innovative services for customers. Having infinite folding products’ customization possibilities becomes a real communication and marketing tool. Also, digital printing ensures more flexibility on orders’ execution: the ease of use of the printing subjects’ software configuration allows a quick changeover which creates a “just-in-time” management of the orders. It allows rapid job changeovers and allows to update over time, the graphic design by printing it when needed, without having to store drafts destined to become obsolete.

The innovative OMET MF Line is double lane version, thus meeting different levels of productivity. It also allows the processing of non-woven materials and all other kinds of special materials used for the production of disposable products such as dust-catching cloths for domestic cleaning, for barbers and beauty salons.

The machine’s modularity allows an ease of change of the embossing cassette thus allowing a very fast change-over and maximum flexibility. At the same time, it is designed to guarantee a high quality of the embossing, both in terms of ply adhesion and pattern definition. The new embossing frames are specially designed with an anti-vibration system in order to ensure a longer life of the rolls. The new lubricating and cleaning system help the operator maintain constant production and high efficiency.

A point to point embossing unit is also available. It comes with a gluing system that creates a lamination effect. If preferred, a version without glue application is also available, thus creating a very soft and ecological product. An easy and effective laminating device allows a perfect plies union thank to the point to point embossing rolls which work at a micrometric controlled distance with precise glue distribution.

The machine allows a quick-change of the parent roll thanks to a new rotary turret system. The new parent roll can be prepared while the machine is running. The new automatic web tension control allows high precision in terms of unwinding also with winded materials at different tensions. MF Line’s unwinder comes with a paper centering system that enables alignment precision on the whole machine. The unwinder can also be equipped with a revolutionary system of paper cleaning. Most of the powder on the tissue rolls is removed thanks to an electrostatic device and vibrating brushes. The system is equipped with an automatic shaker of the filter which ensures efficiency for several hours without stops for cleaning.

At last, the calender station consists of two embossing rolls with a particular anti-abrasion surface treatment which increases the rolls life. The micrometric pressure adjustment allows a perfect control of the paper thickness.

The MF Line is the ideal machine for any converter who wants to have the maximum flexibility in terms of production also for short runs with customized products. However, the double lane version enables to gain the ideal configuration for high napkins production.

About the OMET Group:

OMET Group, with its companies OMET SRL, O-PAC and subsidiaries in China, Spain, United States and Czech Republic, is one of the most important and dynamic industrial organizations in Lombardy, northern Italy. The group employs global wide 600 people.

OMET SRL, founded in Lecco in 1963, is organized in 3 business units: Packaging Printing Machines (narrow and mid web printing machines), Tissue converting (machines for the production of napkins, paper towels and table mats) and Systems in Motion (production of special and standard ball bearings, trolleys, handling systems).

O-Pac, founded in 1989, works in partnership with leading brands in the cosmetic, pharmacy and distribution industries for the design and the production of wet-wipes for any purpose, as well as innovative solutions like gloves, pads and sheet masks. In 2014 O-PAC acquired NCT – New Cosmetic Technology, designing, creating and packaging derma-cosmetic products for OEM. NCT is specialized in the production of tailor-made items for face-body-hair treatment, babies hygiene and daily care, sun protection, oral care, 100% natural and organic lotions, sludge and thermal products. In February 2016 O-PAC signed a joint venture with Wet-Wipes international, located in Prague, Czech Republic, for production and sales of wet wipes with a strong presence in German and Balkan markets.

WASHINGTON, DC, June 24, 2020 (Press Release) -NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) today released an updated analysis of the climate impacts caused by the “tree to toilet” pipeline destroying the climate-critical Canadian boreal forest. The “Issue with Tissue 2.0” report includes a new sustainability ranking for toilet paper brands and other tissue products made by major U.S. producers.

While toilet paper’s emergence as one of the most sought-after products in America was an unexpected side effect of COVID-19, the toilet paper shortage has brought to the forefront the urgency of creating a more sustainable, resilient means of production of tissue products. Currently, the industry clearcuts one million acres of boreal forest each year - leading Canada to rank third globally, behind Russia and Brazil, in terms of global intact forest loss – in part to produce pulp that U.S. tissue makers roll into the ultimate disposable product: toilet paper.

“By making toilet paper from ancient forests essential to the climate fight, tissue companies are flushing away our forests and our planet’s future,” said Shelley Vinyard, NRDC’s Boreal Campaign Manager and report co-author. “Instead of exacerbating the climate crisis, companies like Procter & Gamble must take urgent action to create more sustainable products. Our planet has no time for the largest companies in the world to take half-measures or deflect blame,” said Vinyard.

NRDC’s 2020 scorecard ranks 26 toilet paper brands, giving an A or A+ score to 11 brands, including the new winner “Who Gives A Crap,” which received the top grade for its rolls made of 100 percent recycled materials, including 95 percent postconsumer recycled product. Major brands -- Charmin, Cottonelle, and Quilted Northern -- bring up the rear with F grades, because they are made entirely of virgin forest fiber. NRDC evaluated facial tissue and paper towel brands, as well.

Together with Indigenous leaders and other partners, NRDC is pushing U.S. tissue makers like Procter & Gamble to take steps to minimize their impact on the planet, including sourcing half or more of their pulp from post-consumer recycled content, which would save at least 1.6 million tons of virgin wood from being turned into throwaway tissue products every year. 

Mandy Gull, Deputy Grand Chief of the Cree Nation, said, “The Cree Way of Life is inextricably tied to the boreal forest of our territory of Eeyou Istchee. Unsustainably-sourced tissue products come at the cost of intact forests that are fast disappearing and, once cut down, are never the same. We are already feeling the impacts of climate change on our land, and the loss of our forests will only make this worse. The health of the life-giving forest and its animals is linked to our own, along with the health of our children and our children’s children. We must create a different narrative of how we live with each other on this Earth, starting by protecting the trees, animals, and people who inhabit the forest.”

“The Canadian federal government often touts its ‘green’ tree-planting initiatives, and the logging industry sings a similar tune about its ‘sustainable’ image. But in reality, the Canadian government has failed to protect endangered species habitat and continues to allow logging companies to destroy large swaths of the Canadian boreal, one of the largest intact forests and one of the most carbon-rich forests in the world. It’s ridiculous to claim we’re planting trees while we’re also mowing down old-growth forests for toilet paper,” said Tzeporah Berman, International Program Director for Stand.earth.

Toilet paper releases carbon with every flush, landing major U.S. tissue makers in the hot seat for their role in turning Canada’s boreal forest from a climate asset to a liability.

“With every roll of their unsustainable toilet paper, companies are pushing the world closer to climate catastrophe. That’s because climate change isn’t just about smokestacks and tail pipes, or oil wells and coal mines. It’s also driven by cutting down irreplaceable climate-critical forests like the Canadian boreal for something as short-lived as a flush,” said Jennifer Skene, an attorney with NRDC’s Canada Project and report co-author.

Climate facts about Canada’s boreal forest:

• The forest’s vegetation and slow-decaying soils lock away nearly twice as much carbon as is contained in all the world’s recoverable oil reserves.
• In recent years, Canada has ranked third globally in intact forest loss, behind only Russia and Brazil, largely due to logging.
• One million acres of the Canadian boreal are clearcut each year.
• Each second, industry clearcuts 1,400 square feet of the boreal, an area the size of a small house.
• Every minute, the clearcut area reaches the size of a small city block.

In addition to challenging major tissue brands to add post-consumer recycled pulp to products, NRDC also calls on tissue makers to invest in recycled and alternative fiber research and stop sourcing tissue pulp from critical habitats of threatened species and areas where logging companies have not obtained free, prior and informed consent before operating in the traditional lands of Indigenous Peoples.

NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at NRDC.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.