Metsä Board launches new Excellence Centre

Metsä Board, one of Europe’s leading producers of premium fresh fibre paperboards, has started up operations at its new Excellence Centre in Äänekoski, Finland with the aim of accelerating the development of new environmentally sustainable packaging materials.

The new 1,500 square metre research centre will be equipped with the latest technology and will have departments devoted to packaging design along with a state-of-the-art laboratory. The centre also has a virtual store and a computer-aided engineering (CAE) tool for performing sophisticated simulation and analysis of packaging performance.

“The aim of the Centre is to develop sustainable solutions to replace fossil-based materials while looking at the entire value chain,” says Mika Joukio, CEO of Metsä Board. “With the material knowhow, competence and tools now available, we can optimise performance throughout the packaging lifecycle and ensure circularity.”

Metsä Board combines its own competence and expertise with that of its global customers and partners (material suppliers, technology providers, start-ups, universities and research companies), who will collaborate on new developments through virtual workshops.