The forest industry is taking steps towards new dimensions and business expansion. Innovation and product development projects are underway, and results will come in due course.
Customer-oriented product development
Metsä Group invests approximately 20 million euros annually in research and product development. Even with money, you can't buy everything.
“We want to strengthen the innovative operating culture,” says Metsä Fibre’s Business Development Director Kaija Pehu-Lehtonen.
"Metsä Group has held, among other things, CEO productivity and innovation competitions. In social media, we utilize an innovation tool that extends development work throughout the organization."
Innovation is always driven by customer focus.
“For example, the properties of Metsä Board's folding boxboard have been developed according to customer needs. The pulp quality index, with which we won the quality innovation competition organized by the Quality Centre last year, is a metric that can be utilized in the customer's process.”
Next summer, Metsä Fibre will launch polysulfide pulp. In its cooking process, some of the sulfide sulfur is oxidized to polysulfide, which prevents hemicellulose from breaking down. This not only improves the technical properties of the pulp but also reduces energy consumption and costs for paper manufacturers.
Strong networks
Stora Enso's corporate research creates new business opportunities and high-risk research. In addition, the business areas conduct a lot of research and development work in their own product areas.
Utilizing incubators and venturing tools, as well as acquiring external research results and start-ups, are also part of Stora Enso's toolbox.
“Our research work is strongly networked. Networking is successful if you have the ability to plan and direct network research and know where the best expertise can be found in the world,” says Stora Enso’s R&D and Technology Director Jukka Kilpelainen.
He considers the duration of the innovation process in the forest industry to be normal.
“The path from idea to full-scale commercialization takes 7–10 years. Shortening it requires taking risks and implementing different phases in parallel.”
Stora Enso's annual investment in research and development is over EUR 80 million. The company focuses on businesses based on biomaterials and bio-based expertise.
"We have done a lot of work to develop new packaging, micro- and nanomaterials, biorefinery products, and wood construction systems."
The company's Hartola unit in Finland manufactures large elements and prefabricated modules for apartment and townhouses based on cross-laminated solid wood and other company wood products. Wooden apartment buildings built using the new technology can already be found in London, and in Finland, the Haltia nature center, which will open in May, is an example – Finland's first public building built from solid wood elements.
Partners in value chains
“We are talking about innovation capability, which consists of leadership and strategy, process, culture and networks,” says UPM’s Technology Strategy Director. Pekka Hurskainen.
The most important tool for collecting innovations is online. Employees are challenged to come up with ideas for an innovation platform that operates on the intranet and, where possible, is also opened to partners.
“The best results are achieved when we seek ideas in a focused manner, for example for specific business or research program development issues.”
In new areas of the forest industry, UPM, like its competitors, will have to acquire basic skills and knowledge from outside, at least initially. This requires networking both at the EU level and with universities, research institutes and other companies.
“Innovation pipelines that last for years require more and more external connections. For example, we need new types of partners in the value chains of biofibrils and biochemicals.”
UPM invests approximately 50 million euros in research and development annually.
The company's flagship innovation is biofuel. A refinery is being built in Lappeenranta, Finland, to produce UPM BioVerno, a renewable diesel from crude tall oil. The plant, which will start operations in the summer of 2014, is the world's first industrial-scale investment of its kind.
Text: Vesa Ville Mattila
You can read the full article in the 1/2013 issue of the Paperi ja Puu print magazine.
