Abu Dhabi National Paper Mill’s ongoing success is proof that the tissue paper business is not to be sneezed at. Boasting one of the most advanced production facilities for tissue paper in the GCC, the company serves customers around the Gulf and abroad. General Manager Michael Shamma spoke with Richard Hagan about paper, pulp, sustainability and the company’s strategies for success in a challenging environment.
Based in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi National Paper Mill is one of the largest tissue producers in the Middle East. It manufactures jumbo ‘mother’ reels of tissue paper for converters both in the Middle East and internationally. Customers convert the reels into a variety of tissue paper products, including facial tissue, toilet tissue, paper towels and napkins which are then sold on to end users in formats that most of us would recognise.
Rolling up production
Abu Dhabi National Paper Mill (ADNPM) boasts three machines that are responsible for the majority of its output. Two of those are Crescent Former machines manufactured by OverMeccanica SpA in Italy. Both have a similar basis weight range of between 13.5 and 42gsm, with trim width ranging from 277cm on one machine and 362cm on the other.
The two machines are able to output one, two or three-ply products.
The third machine is a New Textured Tissue Machine manufactured by Valmet AB in Sweden. With a machine trim width of 280cm and capable of handling rolls between 80 and 240cm, this machine is also able to output one, two or threeply products.
This New Textured Tissue (NTT) Machine was installed in 2015 and is the only one of its kind in the region, giving ADNPM a substantial competitive advantage not only regionally but globally. “It produces tissue that has higher water absorbency,
bulkiness and softness than regular or plain tissue,” explained General Manager, Michael Shamma.
The NTT machine and the two Crescent Former machines output a combined annual production of approximately 95,000 tonnes, served by 200 employees to customers in local, regional and international markets.
Sustainable water and wood Sustainability is a major theme and concern for ADNPM, and the company’s efforts begin with an intense focus on its raw material, according to Mr Shamma: “As tissue producers, we’re part of the circular economy and that starts with ensuring that our raw material comes from responsible resources. 95% of our raw material needs are pulp, and all of it
is purchased from pulp producers who are FSC certified.”
FSC ® is the Forest Stewardship Council: an international non-profit organisation whose certification seeks to ensure that products come from responsibly managed f orests that provide environmental, social and economic benefits. It verifies sustainable sourcing of forest products and ecosystem services at every step of the value chain, from forest to consumer.
“By ensuring that our pulp producers are operating sustainably,” said Mr Shamma, “we are able to meet customer expectations: we, as a tissue producer, are taking responsibility for the wellbeing of the environment.
“There’s a misconception that people have regarding paper products in general, but especially regarding tissue paper,”
he continued. “People believe that tissue paper usage is unsustainable; that it’s harmful to the environment. But they need to know that the tissue paper industry is not here to harm the environment.
“We rely completely on the environment, and therefore we actively preserve it. If consumers really want to make a difference to the environment, then they need to replace their belongings and consumer electronics less frequently. Production of a mobile phone, for example, is much more environmentally harmful than the production of tissue paper.”
ADNPM’s sustainability programme extends to water usage as well. Given the company’s location in a desert environment, the conservation of water is particularly important to ADNPM, as Mr Shamma highlighted: “It goes without saying that we consume water very carefully. To help us become even more sustainable in terms of our water usage, we’ve recently
invested in a water treatment facility that will recycle our water consumption per metric tonne of paper by 50 to 70 per cent, without compromising the quality of our products.
“Water is an essential source for our production and there’s nothing we can do to avoid that. We need water, but considering our location we have an obligation to reduce our facility’s water consumption. So our new water treatment facility is an essential investment in the improvement of our mill, and one that will reduce our water consumption considerably.”
Recycling and the future
In addition to its primary fleet of production machinery, ADNPM has an in-house de-inking plant. This unique facility is able to produce recycled jumbo rolls made from recycled paper which the company is able
to offer to its customers as an option for its product range. In anticipation of increased future demand for recycled material in the GCC region, the company will be perfectly positioned to provide that material to the marketplace.
Meanwhile, ADNPM expects to see sustained growth in demand, particularly from Saudi Arabia. “Demand across the GCC is growing, but especially in Saudi Arabia,” said Mr Shamma. “The new tourism and infrastructural projects such as NEOM will drive further demand. We’re already seeing tissue production capacity increasing in the region in anticipation of this growth. Also, we are keeping a close eye on the developments in Saudi Arabia.”
Outside of that expected regional growth, Mr Shamma was optimistic that the industry would continue to enjoy its historic levels of growth now that the
worst of Covid is behind us. “Tissue paper is one of the few market segments that has grown continuously over the last decades, and which is expected to continue growing as well,” he explained. “Other paper segments see volatile demand, but the one category that has seen stable growth of between two to three percent globally over the last several decades is tissue.”
Concluding, Mr Shamma expressed confidence in his own and his team’s ability to produce the best results: “We have great, competent, dedicated and committed people spanning 18 different nationalities. It is thanks to them that there are no limitations on where we can sell, and no limitations on the people or nationalities with whom we can interact. I’m happy to be part of such an amazing team.”
