Paper, Financial - Recycling Today.

Sonoco has announced the launch of its new uncoated recycled paperboard (URB) No. 10 machine at its Hartsville, South Carolina mill complex. The machine, which was converted from a corrugated medium machine, is part of Sonoco's Project Horizon initiative. The investment to update the machine was $125 million and it is designed to be one of the largest and lowest-cost producers of URB in the world. The launch of URB No. 10 also marks Sonoco's move to 100% recycled fibers in Hartsville, eliminating the virgin pulp processing and chemical recovery operation at that facility. The company expects this move to reduce electricity consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and total water use. Sonoco projects that the new operation will drive $30 million in annual cost savings by 2024 and the less efficient Nos. 1 and 9 cylinder machines will be permanently shut down by the end of October. The No. 10 machine will have a range of grade and caliper sizes and will offer improved ribbon quality and precise, narrow-width slitting. The Project Horizon initiative also includes updates to the Hartsville complex such as a new sitewide control system, a state-of-the-art cleaning system, and modernized warehousing. Sonoco operates 23 paper mills globally with an annual capacity of 2.1 million tons, and the new URB machine will be the world's largest with a daily production capacity of 500 tons. [Extracted from the article]