Metsä Fibre’s fresh fibre pulp is pure and suitable for use in products that come into contact with food.
THE 5S METHOD BRINGS STRUCTURE TO THE PROCESS Sort (seiri in Japanese)
Sort means removing any- thing that is not needed to carry out the work itself. This frees up space for working.
PULP PRODUCT SAFETY STARTS WITH THE BEST RAW MATERIALS IN THE WORLD
Set in order (seiton) This means keeping
everything in the workplace well organised and clarifying production operating mod- els, for example. Shine (seiso) The most important element of Shine is that everyone systematically cleans their own workspace and working area every day, using the right tools and methods.
Premium-quality raw materials play a key role in the pulp manufacturing chain. Metsä Fibre is committed to only using only wood sourced from sustainably managed forests in its products. We make sure we always know where the wood it uses comes from, with the majority originating in Finland. “Wood from Nordic forests is a raw material for sustainable development and an anchor for product safety in its entirety,” explains Thomas Fant. We also maintain a database of key chemicals used in production, which includes environmental, health and safety data, as well as information about registration for substances in accordance with the EU’s REACH regulation on chemical safety. Management systems and testing ensure safety at our mills. We use certified quality (ISO 9001), environmental (ISO 14001) and product safety (ISO 22000) management systems at its mills. “We adopted ISO 22000, which monitors pulp product safety, at our mills twenty years ago. This put us at the forefront of our industry,” says Fant. In addition to having our raw materials approved, we carry out a broad range of tests on our pulp, packaging paperboards and cooking papers. These tests help to ensure that, for example, our cooking papers are suitable for use in microwaves and conventional ovens at high temperatures. The management systems also serve to ensure that products intended for food use are not contaminated or damaged during production or transportation. Our fresh fibre pulp is pure and suitable for use in products that come into contact with food. Nothing harmful to human health may be introduced to food, and any contact with packaging materials made from pulp must not alter the taste, smell or consistency of the food.
Cultural factors also have a role to play. According to Fant, in many countries companies carry out their own testing on the batches of pulp that they receive before using them as raw material. “In the Nordic countries, on the other hand, manufac- turers generally trust that the pulp is pure and safe and do not consider it necessary to carry out their own testing.” A STRONG, DEPENDABLE SAFETY CHAIN Safety aspects are just as important throughout Metsä Group as they are at Metsä Fibre. One of clear strengths is that the entire production process – from raw materials to final products – is in our own hands. “We work in close collaboration throughout the group, which helps us ensure optimal product safety. When the whole chain runs smoothly, we can really focus on ensur- ing that we have consistent quality,” states Fant. And what lies ahead as we march on into the 2020s? In Fant’s view, safety awareness will continue to grow among customers as the regulatory bar rises. The industry will continue to hold its own by promoting a strong safety culture and adopting new technological developments. “For example, a whole range of online analytics tools are being developed all the time. When it comes to process optimisation, there is still plenty to do – including on the product safety front.” At some stage, artificial intelligence might also help to combat the presence of unwanted substances in the pulp mix. “It could be one direction for production in the future.” •
OVERALL BALANCES UNDER SCRUTINY In order to ensure that foreign matter does not accumulate in the pulp, the team performs technical reviews, which involve managing, simulating and estimating the overall balances, helping to guide and optimise the process. “In a modern bioproduct mill, we can have a complete control over the entire process by measuring the right factors and having comprehensive knowledge of our own process,” Fant explains. How much has pulp product safety risen in importance from the customers’ perspective? According to Fant, over the last 10–15 years, awareness of these factors among customers has soared, and the basic pat- tern is quite clear: First, the authorities issue guidance, which makes the existing rules stricter. At this point, concerned industrial manufacturers contact their pulp producer for assurances that the pulp meets all the changed requirements. “The customers’ concern is understandable, because when it comes to food, for example, packaging materials that come into contact with the food must be absolutely clean and safe to use.” CUSTOMER PRIORITIES VARY In recent years, there have also been questions from cus- tomers about allergy potential – whether a material can cause an allergic reaction in some people. “With these issues, it is clear that a lot depends on the customer’s line of business, as businesses in different sec- tors naturally have different focuses.”
Standardise (seiketsu)
This means agreeing key ground rules with employ- ees: for example, creating a list of the tools in each work- space or a cleaning rota. Sustain (shitsuke) Sustain refers to people committing to the new way of working. The agreed new practices must be followed, and everything is monitored to ensure that 5S becomes routine and part of the com- pany’s culture.
Thomas Fant Metsä Fibre’s Technical Customer Service Manager. He works closely with the customers to find the optimal solutions for them for using pulp.
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