Segezha Group Opens R&D Centre in Karelia
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Segezha Group opened an R&D Сentre at its timber cluster in the town of Segezha, Republic of Karelia (MOEX: SGZH, a subsidiary of Sistema PJSFC). This is the first corporate R&D centre in the Russian pulp and paper industry. It will specialise in the development of efficient, high-tech types of paper packaging. Its employees will optimise the design of packaging, develop new types of products and test packaging solutions. The main focus will be on thermoformed, food, e-commerce and small-format packaging. Particular attention will be given to advanced solutions, i.e. packaging with biocoating and embossing, packaging for fresh products and packaging made from recycled materials.
Investments amounted to about RUB 90 million. The Centre features more than 30 units of modern testing and measuring equipment designed for testing new materials and coatings, making prototypes and preparing products for mass manufacturing.
Paper packaging is one of the company’s R&D priorities. This field of focus was chosen because of its great innovative potential, raw material synergy and the potentially high speed of the commercialisation of ideas. The new structural unit will carry out joint projects with the holding company’s customers and work with Russia’s leading universities, as well as Russian and foreign start-ups.
By 2022, the share of new packaging products and solutions in Segezha Group’s portfolio should reach at least 10%. The group aims to replace plastic products and meet the needs of sustainability-conscious consumers.
‘Plastic packaging is used in a wide number of industries and products. To offer a replacement, we need to create new products. This is why we have built our R&D Centre. In the new year, we plan to roll out five new types of packaging. I hope that the new line of business will be a success. This year, we produced 1.4 billion packaging units at our factories, and this is far from the maximum, as demand for paper packaging keeps growing. We are the largest manufacturer of paper packaging and the undisputed leader of this segment in Russia, and the second-largest manufacturer of paper packaging in Europe,’ said Mikhail Shamolin, president of Segezha Group, at the opening of the R&D Centre.
