From 13th to 15th November, 2002, the 10th edition of China Paper Shanghai was held at the Everbright Exhibition centre in Shanghai. The annual appointment with the international paper industry constituted a showcase for exhibiting companies and a meeting point for all those involved in the pulp 8 paper and converting fields.
Maura Leonardi
The entrance of China in the World Trade Organization marked a turning point for this country which has for many years remained behind an iron curtain. An important event for its political economy that has also involved the paper industry, one of the strongest fields for the national economy. During these last 20 years, in fact, this field has witnessed fast and constant growth both in terms of product quality and quantity as well as in terms of companies' size, type of equipment and technology.
And all this despite the lack of raw materials, a problem of primary importance whose resolution is up to the government. Since forests cover only 16.5% of the entire territory of the country, this lack of raw materials has favoured the development of small paper mills having little equipment; their use of large quantities of water in the production of cellulose has lead to pollution of lakes and rivers. This has made the environmental aspect of paper production the key factor for the efficient development of this industry. The Chinese government is taking some steps in this sense, through a strategy aimed at restructuring the industrial asset and at improving the quality of paper products. An increase in the percentage of cellulose present in production processes, greater sensitivity of companies to paper recycling and the use of non-wood fibres are the fundamental points of this strategy.
Quickening of bureaucratic policies in the presentation of the necessary documents for forest cultivation and for the use of foreign wood and cellulose are positive points for the growth of this field. The Asian giant with a market potential of 1,276 million people, has registered a 7% GNP growth rate. This makes for a positive development in a country where geographical diversity plays an important role when it comes to growth. Facilitation by the government for foreign entrepreneurs has shifted from a fiscal level to an infra-structural one, giving foreign investors the possibility of acquiring markets which were previously blocked due to the lack of road connections, airports, energy and water resources. Important infra-structural projects such as the gas line connecting Western China to the coastal regions, presently more developed, are destined to further enrich the poorer regions of the interior, which up until now had little or no capital. The right mix between foreign investments and the consequent entrance of Western culture have caused structural and cultural changes that have also reflected in the consumption trends of tissue products destined for home use. In 2001, tissue consumption was 2.66 million tons with an average per capita consumption of 2.1kg.
China is an unknown and fascinating country where the internal regions still immersed in a recent past serve as contrast to the modern façade of the coastal areas' futuristic scenarios. Shanghai, Beijing, the southern part of the Jiangsu area and the northern provinces of Zhejiang have more fully absorbed the inputs coming from abroad, with a desire to learn what the old continent (Europe) and the new (America) have to offer. Shanghai in particular is a place where the attraction for progress and the beauty of the past are condensed in a unique city, a place where modern skyscrapers rise near the antique open-air markets, where old and new come together in the temporal space of the present. Here, from 13 to 15 November 2002, at the Everbright Exhibition Centre, the tenth edition of China Paper Shanghai - the annual appointment with the local paper and tissue industry scenario was held, organized by EJ Krause & Associates Inc. This is a scenario in which China is only now taking its first steps. China is the largest market in terms of size, second only to the USA, where the strong economic growth of the last few years represents ample development potential for the tissue field. The new asset of production capacity concerns not only large companies but also small converting realms. The show held at the Everbright Exhibition Centre constituted a showcase for the many exhibiting companies coming the world over and a meeting point for operators in the pulp and paper and converting realms. Technology, innovation and development were the guidelines for the Conference Cycle held during the show itself. Körber Engineering Shanghai, representing Fabio Perini S.p.A and Casmatic S.p.A, participated at the event. The China Paper Show held in Shanghai constituted the perfect occasion for Körber Engineering Shanghai to extend its warm welcome to all at the new company facilities.
Welcome to Körber Engineering Shanghai
An Open House, organized during the three days of the show, constituted the perfect occasion for Fabio Perini China to give a warm welcome to its numerous customers at the new Körber Engineering Shanghai facilities located in the industrial area of Waigaoqiao. For the Open House, doors opened to a 3240-square meter structure where offices, workshop and service areas are located. The new facilities are dedicated to technical consultancy, assistance services, spare parts warehouse, machine assembly, training and special courses. Guests were welcomed the director of Körber Engineering Shanghai Mario Fazzi, who since last year has been at the head of a team of 30 people working at the new facilities. In the 1792 square meters dedicated to machine demonstrations, operators invited to the event were able to witness a complete converting line from the Vantage Division for the production of toilet rolls and kitchen towels, together with a Casmatic packaging section. On demonstration was a Perini model 800 line and a Casmatic modelCMW111 wrapper. The machines worked at full regime during the entire three days of the show. The revisions and updates made to this line, both in the mechanics as well as in the systems, have allowed a technological amelioration and the addition of new components such as an unwinder and an embosser. The maximum speed of 450 meters per minute attained during the demonstration pleasantly surprised the visitors present.
Downstream of the line, a CASMATIC CMW111 wrapper, prearranged for wrapping single toilet rolls in paper and polyethylene packaging, was located. The attention and curiosity of the participants to the Open House contributed to the success of the demonstration, thus gratifying the work carried out by the KES team, now ready for a "new challenge"...
A GALA EVENING FOR THE OFFICIAL INAUGURATION OF KÖRBER ENGINEERING SHANGHAI
Kerstin Meckler
On 29 November 2002, Körber Engineering Shanghai Co. Ltd. (see Perini Journal n.19, September 2002) was officially inaugurated. The company represents the first entity of the Körber Group that unites under one roof the sales structures, training facilities and spare warehouse of the three Körber Divisions: Körber PaperLink - paper and tissue technology - Hauni - tobacco processing technology - and Schleifring- tooling machines. The event was organized at the new company premises which for the occasion were transformed into an elegant and exclusive lieu, appropriate for such an important celebration.
In a pleasant and entertaining atmosphere, the gala evening was conducted by two stars of the entertainment world: Chinese artist Ling Dong Fu and the German TV star Birgit Fehst. Over 200 were the guests welcomed by the President of the Board of Directors of Körber AG, Dr. Werner Redeker, and by Mario Fazzi, General Director of Körber Engineering Shanghai. Among the authorities present at the ceremony were the Italian Consul Leonardo Baroncelli, the German Consul Elke Tiedt, Hong Zhi Hua, President of Waigaoqiao Group Co. Ltd. (the government agency of the Free Trade Zone of Waigaoqiao) Chi Hong, President of the 3U Development Co. Ltd. (one of the agencies responsible for the development of the Free Trade Zone). In the speech held after the inaugural cutting of the ribbon, Dr. Redeker welcomed guests and underscored the importance of the commitment undertaken in China: "The optimal relationship established with local customers during the course of the years by the three Companies and the large potential for development offered by the Chinese market were the main criteria adopted in choosing Shanghai as the general headquarters for the new structure". And many are the services offered by KES to customers: training, spare parts service and the possibility to pay in local currency just to name a few and to testify to the will of Körber Engineering Shanghai Co. Ltd. to satisfy to the fullest the demands of local customers. Shows by the School of Artists of Shanghai, songs by German tenor Karin Ploog accompanied by Chinese pianist Ting Zhou, entertained guests during the dinner and helped to create a very special evening: a warm welcome for this new company in the dynamic and important Chinese market.