Containerboard (CONT’D FROM PAGE 7)
Board Converting NEWS INTERNET DIRECTORY
crease in large chunks, because a single new machine can add a few hundred thousand tons in capacity,” said Pow- ers. “Because demand is more linear, typically increasing a ton at a time, it can take time to catch up. As a result, supply and demand can become temporarily unbalanced.” Declining Demand A second major factor affecting containerboard prices is an easing in demand, thanks largely to a global eco- nomic deceleration. “While containerboard consumption in both the North American and European market has grown 1.8 percent to 2.0 percent recently, the rest of the world has seen slower growth,” said Staphos. “In particu- lar, consumption in China declined some four and a half percent in 2022.” Overall, he added, the industry went from 183.2 million metric tons of consumption in 2021 to what appears to be 183.8 million tons in 2022. “That was relatively slow growth.” Different national consumption levels have contributed to variances in plant utilization. “North American operat- ing rates for containerboard facilities have been running around 94 percent,” said Staphos. “In contrast, global op- erating rates declined from 85 percent in 2021 to about 82.7 percent in 2022, and we anticipate another decline to 81.8 percent in 2023.” The current global economic slowdown’s effect on corporate confidence will also exert downward pricing costs are going up. Now there is talk of recession. As a re- sult, our customers just seem to be backing off a little bit.” The economic deceleration, inflation’s effect on con- sumer shopping and a post-pandemic shift toward ser- vices should put downward pressure on box demand. “I don’t know what the magnitude of declines will be, but I’m confident that box demand will be down this year and next,” Josephson said. He noted that U.S. box shipments declined for the last three quarters on a year-on-year ba- sis and were down one percent in the first half of 2022. “I don’t expect trends to improve anytime soon.” The Ecommerce Puzzle Observers tend to credit ecommerce with a lot of the in- dustry’s recent vigor. “For some time, demand for contain- erboard generated from durable and non-durable goods consumption has been relatively flat,” said Powers. “Most of the growth has come from an increase in ecommerce.” And that growth has been fairly recent. “The fourth quarter of 2016 was the first in our view that we really CONTINUED ON PAGE 102 pressure. “We began to see a little softness in the market this sum- mer,” said Kevin Ausburn, CEO of the SMC Packaging Group, and Chairman of AICC’s Container- board, Regulations and Sheet Sup- ply Committee. “It happened fairly quickly. Inflation has been increas- ing and interest rates and energy Kevin Ausburn
OHIO BLOW PIPE/ADVANCED AIRSYSTEMS www.obpairsystems.com For 85 years the Ohio Blow Pipe company and its whol- ly owned subsidiary, Advanced Airsystems, have provided the corrugated and folding carton industries with systems and products to process scrap. We engineer, fabricate, in- stall, service, provide system audits, and offer a wide range of scrap systems, dust collection systems and products to include cyclones, under roof AIR-SCREEN™ systems, pit belt systems, CLEANAIR dust collectors, Mist-Clone™ dust control systems for vacuum feeds, material handling fans, ductwork, switch valves, airveyors, balers, shredders and dust briquetters. OMP www.omp.com OMP helps companies facing complex planning challenges to excel, grow and thrive by offering the best digitized sup- ply chain planning solution on the market. Its Unison Plan- ning concept has a unique approach. It handles all supply chain planning challenges in a unified way, synchronizing all planning stages, horizons, functions and roles. Hundreds of customers run OMP’s cloud-based solution to generate more value by making informed decisions. OMP invests one out of every three dollars earned into innovation.
PAPER AND DUST PROS, INC. www.paperanddustpros.com
We custom design, install and service air conveyed scrap and dust collection systems. Our unique APS® is smaller, lighter, and more reliable than current cyclones. Contact us to learn how the APS® System can enhance your operation.
PROFERO SYSTEMS, INC. www.ProferoSystems.com
Profero Systems the leader in double facer heating and traction section conversions along with other performance enhancing products. Featuring products from Contact Bars and Compensating Rolls to New Glue Machines and Double Facers.
GF PUHL www.gfpuhl.com
GF PUHL designs, manufactures and installs air conveyed scrap & dust collection systems for the packaging and cor- rugated industries. With 39 years of experience, USA and International. We offer below or above roof systems featur- ing cyclones OR screen separators with real time pressure balancing for optimal dust control. High efficiency cyclones for sheet transfer exhaust systems eliminate water con- sumption and deliver dust directly to compactor or briquet- ter for low maintenance, long term sustainability and reli- ability. System audits, dust explosivity tests and dust hazard analysis (DHA’s) available. Re-manufactured balers, filters, blowers and shredders available at significant savings.
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September 19, 2022
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