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I N T I M E

The Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), at the University of Helsinki and UPM Biochemicals have started a joint research project with the purpose of investigating the applicability of UPM's new cellulose-based gel material for cancer research. The project focuses on growing cancer cells on a three-dimensional culture using UPM's new biomaterial and studying the drug responses of the cancer cells. This exciting research project brings together two growth areas: bioeconomy and personalised medicine. "One of the key challenges in experimental drug testing is being able to grow cells in a laboratory in an environment that resembles the human body," says Senior Researcher Vilja Pietiäinen , who is responsible for coordinating the project at FIMM. "We need better three-dimensional models for cell culture so that cells from cancer tissue would retain their distinctive characteristics also outside the body. Creating an environment that resembles tissue requires new types of materials." FIMM, the academic partner in the research project, specialises in research into personalised medicine. The institute's high throughput screening unit allows researchers to determine the response of different types of cancer cells to hundreds of drugs in only a few days. The constantly increasing amount of data enables researchers to identify cancer cell characteristics that help predict the most efficient drug for each type of cancer. In time, this information will also help patients. Joint project between UPM and FIMM

Innovation unit at the Biomedicum research and educational centre

UPM Biochemicals is establishing an innovation unit at the Biomedicum research and educational centre in Meilahti, Helsinki, Finland. The unit will focus on biomedical applications for the cellulose nanofibril technology developed by UPM. At Biomedicum Helsinki, the UPM team will be working more closely with medical researchers and other operators in the field. GrowDex ® , UPM's first commercial product developed for biomedical purposes, is a cellulose nanofibril hydrogel for 3D cell culture applications, such as pharmaceutical research and development. GrowDex ® is highly biocompatible with human cells and tissues.

Schwedt mill to be sold to LEIPA Georg Leinfelder GmbH UPM has signed an agreement to sell its Schwedt newsprint mill site and relevant assets to LEIPA Georg Leinfelder GmbH. All employees at the Schwedt mill will be transferred to LEIPA. The transaction price is EUR 70 million. The transaction is subject to customary third- party approvals. As part of the transaction, the parties have agreed to enter into a contract manufacturing agreement for newsprint for a transition period which would conclude at the end of 2017 at the latest. The capacity of the mill is 280,000 tonnes of newsprint annually. LEIPA will convert the mill for liner production. The planned production capacity would be approximately 450,000 tonnes of liner annually.

ISCC PLUS certification for bio-based applications UPM Biofuels has extended its sustainability certification to cover all of its output streams from the Lappeenranta Biorefinery in Finland under the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification Scheme ISCC PLUS. UPM Biofuels produces renewable diesel and naphtha at the Lappeenranta site. Wood-based renewable diesel UPM BioVerno for transportation is the main product. However, the process also generates a smaller amount of renewable naphtha, which can be used as a biocomponent for petrol.

UPM PELLOS REACHES ITS 10 MILLION MILESTONE

In Pellosniemi in south-eastern Finland, plywood has been produced for supply to the world's markets for almost half a century. The first plywood mill started its operations back in 1968, with the other two mills following in 1994 and 2002. Some 1.6 million cubic metres of particleboard was produced between 1964 and 1994. In April, UPM Pellos reached the milestone of 10 million cubic metres. UPM's WISA-Spruce plywood is a familiar sight at construction sites, in particular in the Central European region where it is used as floor, wall and ceiling material. Additionally processed special plywood panels are also used in concrete-forming applications and in the transportation industry. Today, the mills employ some 600 people. The annual production capacity of all three mills combined is around 480,000 m³, with two plants operating in three shifts every day of the week. At the oldest mill, Sundays are considered a day off, with no operation taking place. Maintaining a production level such as this requires over a million cubic metres of wood each year; a figure that corresponds to 70 to 80 truckloads of large- diameter spruce logs per day, or one truckload every twenty minutes. The raw material is sourced from sustainably managed forests located nearby.

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