UPM-Biofore-Magazine-3-2016-EN

TEXT MATTI REMES   PHOTOGRAPHY UPM; CIELO E TERRA

The expansion will nearly double the mill's output to 90,000 m 3 per annum. Production of coated plywood will see a particularly healthy boost at the Otepää plywood mill.

S elf-adhesive label manufacturer UPMRaflatac provides labelling solutions for industries such as wine and beverage, food and pharmaceutical industries. Among its many environmentally aware end-users is Cielo e Terra – one of Italy’s largest wine bottlers – who recently collaborated with UPMRaflatac for the lifecycle assessment of their wine brand Freschello. Italian wine bottler Cielo e Terra and UPM Raflatac partner to understand and reduce environmental impacts using lifecycle assessment. What’s behind a wine label? A lifecycle assessment involves the analysis of a product’s environmental impacts throughout its entire lifecycle, from rawmaterial sourcing through to manufacturing and recycling. It provides valuable insight into the product’s value chain, revealing the lifecycle stages with the greatest environmental impact. Tracing impacts This was the first-ever lifecycle assessment completed for any of Cielo e Terra’s products. “The lifecycle assessment helps Cielo e Terra and its subcontractors analyse their processes and identify operations where environmental impact can be reduced,” says Kaisa Vainikka , SustainabilityManager at UPMRaflatac. The analysis revealed that Freschello’s most significant environmental impact is caused by the process of manufacturing the glass bottles in which the wine is sold. Another major impact was related to the winery’s energy consumption and chosen energy sources. Cielo e Terra sees environmental responsibility as a competitive advantage. The company is moving towards

more sustainable production and has switched to using renewable energy at its facility. These changes translate into direct improvements in the wine bottle’s lifecycle assessment. “The lifecycle assessment can also be utilized in consumer communication to describe the product’s environmental impacts in detail,” adds Vainikka. For several years now, Cielo e Terra has been a member of UPMRaflatac’s RafCycle® recycling programme for label stock waste. Release liners can for instance be used in the manufacturing of recycled Recycling through RafCycle

Jukk adds a word of appreciation for the local road and transportation authorities, who contributed to developing the infrastructure leading into the mill. “Road work will be finished soon, which will improve

with a new biomass boiler. “We will produce our heat with a new 18-megawatt biomass boiler that will use byproducts like bark, chips and dust as fuel. Switching from oil to renewable energy reduces CO 2

“For example, we nowneed less wood

Ando Jukk

rawmaterial and glue per cubic metre of veneer produced. We also have a new, fully automated assembly line that will improve work efficiency and ergonomics and reduce the risk of work-related illnesses.” The mill’s personnel grew by one third as a result of the expansion. “We have hired 40 new employees at the mill. Our labour efficiency has improved substantially, as our production efficiency has increased by up to 90%,” he adds. The expansion will nearly double the mill’s output to 90,000m 3 per annum. Production of coated plywood will see a particularly healthy boost at the Otepää plywoodmill. The expansion has been carried out mainly using existing buildings, infrastructure and resources. A new 8,000m 2 production area has been added by interconnecting existing premises. Positive domino effect Jukk reveals that planning of the whole investment project began whenmanagement decided to replace the old oil-burning boiler

traffic safety as well.”

emissions and improves the profitability of the mill thanks to lower heating costs,” says Jukk. Most of the side products will be sold as rawmaterial for pellet plants, wood boilers and the pulp industry, and the rest will be incinerated in the bioboiler. significantly increase the safety of employees. Previously, cargo and personnel traffic came into the mill through the same gate, which increased the risk of accidents. “During the project we have separated cargo transport from personnel traffic. We have built new staffrooms for employees fromwhich they have direct access over the bridge into the mill, while traffic remains at ground level.” Spinoff safety benefits New traffic arrangements will

Timo Salmikuukka

Work for locals “The investment project has provided work for several local companies over the last year and a half,” says Timo Salmikuukka , Director, Maintenance and Sourcing, who has been responsible for implementing the investment project in practice. “We have had over 100 suppliers involved in the project and some 80%of all procurements have been made locally. The main equipment was bought fromFinland and Spain but Estonians did the bulk of the construction work. This investment created a lot of work for locals.” Salmikuukka confirms that the EUR 40million investment has proceeded on schedule, with the Otepää mill expected to reach full operational capacity by the end of the year. 

paper. Other byproducts of the label manufacturing process are used as raw material for UPMProFi wood and plastic composite products, or for energy generation at UPM’s production plants. “Previously, these byproducts were incinerated or taken to landfills, but now they can be reused and recycled efficiently,” Vainikka says. Thanks to RafCycle, Cielo e Terra has also managed to reduce its waste disposal fees. In addition, the efficient recycling programme strengthens the company’s brand image, which is a welcome advantage amid growing environmental awareness on the consumer market. “The Freschello wine label will soon carry the RafCycle logo. This is a clear signal to consumers helping Cielo e Terra to clearly communicate its commitment to sustainability.” 

Kaisa Vainikka

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