papel y celuGlatfelter plans to reduce cost of speciality papers business unit

Glatfelter will shutdown the paper machine 24 at Chillicothe facility in Ohio, USA, by September 30. In addition, the company will also reduce 70 salaried employees across the business unit.

“Our continuous improvement initiatives in recent years have improved paper machine productivity and efficiencies across Specialty Papers’ asset base. These improvements, combined with the market weakness, have eliminated the need for the capacity from the PM24 machine,” said Tim Hess, Senior Vice President and President, Specialty Papers Business Unit.

The shutdown of PM24 will reduce the production capacity of the specialty papers business unit by 80,000 tons. The existing production is being planned to be absorbed by the remaining seven paper machines in the business unit.

Dante C. Parrini, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Glatfelter, said, “The supply-demand imbalance in the printing and writing markets continues to put pressure on industry operating rates and selling prices. In light of the challenging market conditions, we must aggressively manage costs by eliminating capacity without impacting our ability to service our customers. While these are difficult decisions, we must take the actions necessary to strengthen our Specialty Papers business and position Glatfelter for long-term success.”

Glatfelter expects its net profitability to improve by USD 9 million as a result of cost reduction measures.

PULPAPERnews - SUECIA - 8 agosto 2017