In my experience, the correct paperboard with the most suitable properties makes all the difference. Our priority is always to match the most suitable paperboard for the product it will transport and protect. Whether a brand owner is seeking something that conveys premium quality—like a smooth, coated board for luxury items—or a functional high-quality solution that ensures a food product is well-preserved, we have different options in our product offering that cater to different needs.
Once a paperboard from our existing portfolio is selected, we produce it at one of our mills. It’s then delivered to printers and converters who are responsible for printing and die-cutting it into shape. The result of this process is what we call in the industry a “blank.” The blanks are sent to the brand owner’s packing line, where they are assembled, filled with the product, and sealed, ready for transport. Each step must be executed with precision to ensure the packaging serves its dual purpose—protecting the product inside and promoting it to potential buyers.
Two critical technical factors for successful packaging
From our technical team’s perspective, we focus on two critical factors. The printability of the board is essential for producing high-quality visuals. For that, paperboard with high brightness and surface smoothness is generally better. Equally important is how well the board will perform during the converting processes, such as die-cutting, folding, and gluing. This is what we call “converting efficiency”, and throughout my career, I’ve seen firsthand how it plays a critical role in the entire process.
We’ve designed our paperboards for both printability and converting efficiency, ensuring consistent results with minimal downtime. For example, our paperboards maintain a consistent quality, which enables good runnability and reduces the risk of converting and packing line stoppages when machine speeds are high.
Paperboard containing bleached chemi-thermomechanical pulp (BCTMP) also offers a distinct light-weighting advantage for our customers because it achieves the necessary strength with less raw material. As my colleague Kaisa explained in her recent blog, this has a considerable impact on carbon footprint, especially when combined with fossil free energy.
Ensuring a smooth process with the help of our technical services
But our role doesn’t end with simply producing and delivering the paperboard to our customers—we also provide ongoing technical support to ensure that converters and brand owners can achieve the best printability and converting efficiency once they receive our products. As part of our Metsä Board 360 services, our technical services team helps optimise the printing and converting processes for clients, for example, adjusting machine settings to match the specific properties of our boards. Whether troubleshooting different issues or fine-tuning operations, our technical team can assist at every step.
Another way I feel we can provide meaningful value for customers is through our Excellence Centre in Äänekoski, Finland. We regularly invite converters and brand owners for workshops where potential technical challenges can be addressed and solved during the design phase. It’s always exciting to experience the cooperation between our teams and customers as we tackle challenges together. By involving all stakeholders early, everyone can be aligned on the requirements and needed specifications so that our paperboards can go through the converting process from start to finish in the most efficient way possible.
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