November 1, 2018 – Archroma, a colour and specialty chemicals company, has announced its new Cartastrength product for stronger packaging and tissue papers and improved stickies management during the production process.

October 29, 2018 – Torrey Pines Scientific has announced its new line of multi-position analog stirring hot plates and stirrers featuring five or nine stirring positions.

October 25, 2018 – Bosch Rexroth has announced the Sytronix DFEn 5000, a new variable-speed pump drive in the Sytronix family, which is a modular system of pumps, controllers, motors and software.

October 11, 2018 - The newest flow switches from Balluff's line of process-oriented sensor products alert users to potential failures due to a reduction in necessary fluid flow.

October 2, 2018 – SDT, an ultrasound solutions provider, has released the SDT340 data collector and UAS4.0., a cloud-connected condition-monitoring solution that combines ultrasound, vibration, temperature and RPM in one diagnostic package.

September 28, 2018 – Seeq Corporation's advanced analytics solutions for process manufacturers are now available to be delivered via software as a service (SaaS) on Microsoft Azure. Seeq enables engineers and scientists in process manufacturing organizations to rapidly analyze, predict, collaborate, and share insights to improve production outcomes. Customers include companies in the oil and gas, pharmaceutical, chemical, energy, mining, food and beverage, and other process industries.

September 10, 2018 - Valmet has released its DNA Dashboard concept, a web application that provides pre-analyzed, essential production process information as an easy-to-understand visualization.

September 5, 2018 - Feltest has introduced its AirSpeed/2 meter, which monitors the permeability of the press felts over the Uhle boxes in paper machines.

August 27, 2018 - For paper machine operators, whether in production or maintenance, Feltest's BodyCooling vests can help reduce overheating when working near hot equipment.

July 17, 2018 – Cole-Parmer's new Masterflex peristaltic pumps advanced networking drives provide options for popular networking protocols without the need to install gateways or adapters.

July 16, 2018 – Voith's new SmoothRun hydropneumatic damping bearing system for winders increases capacity by 15 per cent, reducing vibrations occurring during the winding process.

November 14, 2018 – A lignin-based product launched by renewable materials company Stora Enso earlier this year has received the Innovative Product Award 2018 by the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE).

November 13, 2018 – Cascades Packaging recently started up PM1 at its Kingsey Falls mill in Quebec following a major rebuild of the dryer section supplied by Italian tissue, paper and board systems manufacturer Toscotec.

November 12, 2018 – Packaging and biomaterials provider Stora Enso has launched a new sustainable RFID tag technology called ECO by Stora Enso, designed for intelligent packaging functionalities in supply chain, retail and e-commerce applications.

November 9, 2018 – Vancouver process measurement supplier FITNIR Analyzers has announced it will provide its online liquor analyzer and MC chip moisture analyzer to the Fibria Celulose S/A Aracruz pulp mill in Espírito Santo state, Brazil.

November 7, 2018 – Ahlstrom-Munksjö, the global fibre-based materials provider, has partnered with five companies to develop a new flexible paper-based packaging solution.

November 5, 2018 – Attis Industries has launched a video series that will give interested parties additional information on the technologies and bio-based products offered under the company's innovations division.

October 30, 2018 – Regal Beloit Corporation, a manufacturer of electric motors, electrical motion controls, power generation and power transmission components, has been awarded a 2018 Bearing Specialists Association Bearing Manufacturer Excellence of Innovation in Product Design Award for its Sealmaster time-saving axial groove mounted ball bearing.

October 29, 2018 – When it comes to making pulp, paper and wood products, bark is an unwanted byproduct. But Finnish research firm VTT has developed a way to extract pure tannins from bark for use as a raw material for resins used in wood products. 

October 25, 2018 – VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, the Finnish Forest Centre and MHG Systems Oy have developed a mobile application to efficiently use forest data. 

October 22, 2018 – The Power Workers’ Union (PWU) has released a statement saying that the recent decision by Ontario Power Generation (OPG) to close the world’s largest generating station converted from coal to advanced biomass in Thunder Bay is short-sighted.

October 17, 2018 – For 25 years, Theodore Radiotis, lead scientist for fibre production and smart manufacturing, has been working with FPInnovations’ Chemical Pulping Group. Throughout that time, he has been a part of the organization’s close collaboration with the pulp and paper industry, cultivating innovative advantages for the sector.

October 11, 2018 – Efficient use of raw materials in papermaking means literally keeping them from going down the drain, and thus any recovery and reuse of fibre, chemicals or hot water is an easy way to reduce production costs. This can be a technical challenge, however. Two presentations during the Papermaking sessions at PaperWeek Canada in Montreal this past February discussed how to help close the loop and recover these raw materials. A third presentation brought news about an innovation in the dryer section.

November 14, 2018 – A new study by the University of Waterloo indicates that companies that fail to curb their carbon output may eventually face the consequences of asset devaluation and stock price depreciation.

November 13, 2018 – The government of Canada has invested $15 million to help build the first fully integrated industrial wood pellet and sawmill complex in Canada.

Novemebr 8, 2018 – TimberWest and the University of British Columbia (UBC) have announced a first-of-its-kind $100,000 endowment program for Indigenous students pursuing a graduate degree in forestry.

November 6, 2018 – Resolute Forest Products has earned an award for its sustainability achievements at its Calhoun, Tennessee paper, pulp and tissue mill.

October 19, 2018 – The government of Canada has announced over $669,000 in funding for two forestry projects for B.C.'s Kitselas First Nation to position the community to pursue new business opportunities, provide training to workers and plan for future economic development.

October 18, 2018 – Folding boxboard (FBB) technology is changing the global standard. Although mostly prevalent in the European and Asian markets, this multi-layer paperboard product has been on the rise in North America, where solid bleached substrate (SBS) has traditionally dominated the North American market. However, demand for SBS continues to decrease. Now is the time for the pulp and paper industry to be mindful of the growing FBB market and to begin thinking about how they can best adapt to this technology to give their customers the end-results they desire.

October 12, 2018 – Canada has 397 million hectares (ha) of forested land. Approximately 190 million (48 per cent) is considered to be suitable for long-term sustainable management for the production of timber, while 165 million ha (87 per cent) of that forest is publicly owned and managed under the authority of the provincial governments. Another 20 million ha (10 per cent) are private woodlots owned by some 450,000 rural families across Canada, with the average size 40 ha. The balance, five million ha (three per cent), is in large blocks of private forestland owned by a mix of private investors, forest products companies and pension funds.

October 10, 2018 – Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) has partnered with Martha Tilaar Group (MTG), a cosmetics and hermal medicine manufacturer, and the Indonesian Network of the United Nations Global Compact (UN Global Compact) to train 1,000 women from forest communities by 2020 to help them become entrepreneurs and to preserve herbal plants. 

September 27, 2018 - Over the next seven months, the Ontario government will hold roundtables and gather online feedback to help develop a strategy for promoting economic growth within the forestry sector.

September 26, 2018 - National Forest Week is on now and is a great time to recognize the role forests play in our lives, whether directly to the pulp and paper industry or on a broader scale.

September 17, 2018 – TimberWest has entered into a partnership with K’ómoks First Nation, Qualicum First Nation, the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) to pilot a management certification for small-scale forests.

September 18, 2018 – The Montreal Economic Institute (MEI), an independent public policy think tank, has released a report stating that forest harvesting is not synonymous with deforestation and doesn’t threaten the sustainability of our forests – and, in fact, Canadian forests are under-harvested.

November 8, 2018 – The Ontario government is investing $13.2 million into its pre-apprenticeship training program for future skilled trades workers.

October 26, 2018 – WorkSafeBC, British Columbia's workplace safety board, has launched a new process safety initiative geared toward a number of process industries including the pulp and paper sector. 

October 25, 2018 – Domtar, Resolute Forest Products, Wellington Produce Packaging and Brinkman and Associates Reforestation are among the Northern Ontario businesses that recently won Workplace Excellence Awards from Workplace Safety North (WSN).

October 22, 2018 – It is official: recreational marijuana is legal in Canada with effect from October 17. With that comes a patchwork of jurisdictional laws establishing where and how marijuana products will be sold and used by consumers.

October 11, 2018 – Members of Unifor, the union representing workers at the three B.C. paper mills involved in the recent sale of Catalyst Paper to Paper Excellence, have released a statement regarding the acquisition. 

October 9, 2018 – Cannabis is set to be legalized for recreational use as of October 17, 2018. For many employers still struggling with how to accommodate employees who have been prescribed cannabis for medicinal purposes, this will create new challenges and questions. How do you define impairment and fitness for work? What types of tasks are safety sensitive?

September 26, 2018 - Conifex, the forestry company headquartered in British Columbia, has been fined over $191,000 for a worker injury and safety violation at its Fort St. James sawmill site. 

September 21, 2018 - Amcor, provider of flexible packaging solutions, has announced plans to invest more than US$25 million to upgrade its facilities in Madison, Wisconsin over the next year to increase capacity, improve quality and reduce waste while updating technology.

August 28, 2018 - Domtar is working on optimizing operations at its Plymouth mill, starting with increasing energy and resource efficiency. 

July 31, 2018 - The British Columbia government has taken action to protect the pension benefits and jobs of almost 1,000 retirees and 1,500 workers of Catalyst Paper.

July 30, 2018 - Kruger Inc. has allocated $20 million to its LaSalle and Place Turcot facilities for modernization projects that are set to be completed later this year.

July 27, 2018 - A new three-year collective agreement has been reached between Unifor Local 1403 and Canadian Kraft Paper (CKP).

November 8, 2018 – KP Tissue Inc. (KPT) has announced the third-quarter financial and operational results for KPT and Kruger Products L.P. (KPLP). KPT currently holds a 15.8 per cent interest in KPLP.

November 8, 2018 – Cascades Inc. has reported its unaudited third-quarter financial results for the period ended September 30, 2018.

November 7, 2018 – Fortress Global Enterprises has reported its third-quarter results for 2018, with operating EBITDA from continuing operations of $7.5 million compared to operating EBITDA from continuing operations of $2.7 million in the previous quarter and operating EBITDA loss from continuing operations of $1.6 million in the prior-year comparative period.

November 6, 2018 – Rayonier Advanced Materials has announced its third-quarter results, citing a 2018 net income of $38 million, or $0.60 per diluted common share, compared to $16 million, or $0.28 per diluted common share in the third quarter of 2017.

November 1, 2018 – Domtar Corporation has reported its preliminary third-quarter results and simultaneously announced plans to cut back staff and close its Waco, Texas personal care plant by the end of 2019.

November 1, 2018 – Resolute Forest Products has reported record preliminary third-quarter results, declaring a special dividend of $1.50 per share. All figures below are reported in US dollars.

October 31, 2018 – Weyerhaeuser Company has reported its third-quarter net earnings of $255 million, or 34 cents per diluted share, on net sales of $1.9 billion. This compares with earnings of $130 million, or 17 cents per diluted share, on net sales of $1.9 billion for the same period last year.

October 25, 2018 – Canfor Corporation has released its third-quarter 2018 results, reporting pulp shipments and production are down over the previous quarter as a result of scheduled downtime and weather-related transportation issues.

October 23, 2018 – Kimberly-Clark has announced its third-quarter financial results, reporting a reduction in net sales compared to Q3 2017. 

October 23, 2018 – Sonoco has reported its third-quarter sales are up three per cent from 2017 in the financial results for its third quarter, ending September 30, 2018.

October 5, 2018 – I’m pleased to introduce myself as the new editor of Pulp & Paper Canada. I’m joining the magazine at what seems like a pivotal time, with plant optimization – whether via openings, closures or new technology – at the forefront of an industry that is adapting to fit a changing consumer landscape.