Packaging

HEAVY-WEIGHT SPONSORS SIGN UP TO PACKAGING SUMMIT EUROPE 2008

Monday 28. January 2008 - This year's Packaging Summit Europe will have the support of the industry's leading players Micro-Pact, UPM Kymmene and Smurfit Kappa Group as its gold and silver sponsors. The event, which will take place on 1-2 July 2008 in Okura, Amsterdam, is gearing up to host many influential exhibitors and delegates of the packaging industry.

Packaging Summit Europe is considered a key event for brand owners, packaging services, manufacturing and design professionals who attend the event with the aim to network, learn about new ideas and address issues of most concern to the international packaging community. Due to its conference format, the summit provides a content focused alternative to the world’s largest packaging related events such as Interpack and DRUPA. In an environment that facilitates social networking the summit’s attendees participate in round-table discussions, debate about best practices in packaging technology and services and ask for business advice from a diversity of international experts.
This year’s gold sponsors of the summit – Micro-Pact – are a conglomerate of three leading European packaging companies, LGR Emballages (France), STI Group (Germany) and Grupo Miralles (Spain). Micro-Pact was formed in 2006 with the objective to serve major brand owners across Europe consolidating each company’s ideas and values and offering to clients the knowledge of the local markets.
As the silver sponsors Smurfit and UPM are the world’s leaders in their market sectors.
Smurfit Kappa Group is the world’s largest maker of solid board packaging. With sales in excess of €7 billion and over 40,000 employees, the company operates in over 30 countries (22 in Europe) covering major markets with its solutions for containerboard, solid board, corrugated and solid board packaging and other packaging materials, including graphic board and sack paper.
UPM Kymmene is the world’s top magazine paper maker and is regarded the global leading manufacturer within the printed communications market.
Recently UPM was reported to have signed a deal with Chempolis Oy for the use of a novel biorefining technology for the production of papermaking fibre and biochemicals.
Aiming to become the world’s first company to make pulp from straw, wheat and reed feedstock UPM opened a research center in China last April to explore the use of fibers not made from wood (source: Reuters, 9Jan 2008). Paper has been made in China for close to two millennia from substances such as straw and bark, and wood-based production has relied on imported and recycled fiber, so by developing this revolutionary technology at a biorefinery, UPM has secured to grab the attention of world leading packaging technologies and manufacturers.
Commenting on their sponsorship Sören Slotte, Vice President, Sales, Packaging Papers of UPM Kymmene said, ‘This is our first appearance at Packaging Summit Europe and we look forward to it with great interest. Our aim is to present our paper materials as sustainable and highly versatile for packaging and labelling applications. By participating in the summit we want to explore new ways of approaching the packaging industry throughout the whole value chain and we think the event will give us a good networking opportunity.’