Kotkamills consumer board machine starts production

Kotkamills’ new consumer board machine, BM2 has started production in Kotka, Finland. A range of folding boxboards for confectionery and other food products will be produced under the brand name AEGLE and a range of boards for food service products like plates and cups, under the brand name ISLA.

The BM2, the first-ever consumer board machine that can produce dispersion barrier coatings directly on the machine to yield barrier boards that are recyclable with normal paper waste because they have no plastic content. Production is done from its facility in Kotka, Finland.

Features: 

Production capacity 400,000 t/a

Primary products: high-quality Nordic folding boxboard and recyclable barrier board for the packaging industry and food service sector

Total investment 170 MEUR

More than 5 MEUR has been invested in the effluent treatment plant, improving the cleanliness of the waste water

Main machinery suppliers: Bellmer Vaahto Paper Machinery Oy (from the wet end to drying section of the machine) and Valmet (online coating section, reeler, winder and CTMP plant)

Further, the machine will provide an increase to the environmental performance of the site by significantly decreasing the consumption of electricity and water compared to the former paper production process. The consumption of water per tonne of CTMP will be almost halved compared to earlier.

“The interest in our new sustainable products has been massive. The new machine offers a wide range of interesting possibilities for converters, brand owners and designers alike. Another of the machine’s unique features is the ability to produce board with a silk matte surface, providing brand owners the possibility to make their product really stand out,” says Markku Hämäläinen, CEO of Kotkamills.

Products are based on Nordic fresh forest fibers and come with the unique possibility of the addition of on-machine dispersion coated barriers to replace the non-renewable plastics traditionally used.