Treofan moves forward with business transformation - online exclusive

Sports metaphors can be used to adequately describe Treofan’s start to 2015. With its first quarter results showing strong turnover and that the company is ‘on the right track’, you could say that Treofan, a heavy hitter in the packaging films market, has come flying out of the starting blocks and got the ball rolling on its transformation into a customer-orientated, innovation-driven premium producer.

Last spring, Treofan announced a major reorganization of its sales efforts, with the creation of distinct business units intended to bring it more closely in line with its customers’ needs. These business units, including Packaging, Labels, Tobacco and Electronics, are each aligned to a specific customer segment and intended to help it keep its eye on the ball as the markets it serves, and the company itself, evolve and new opportunities arise.

This was followed by Dr Walter Bickel being named as Treofan’s new chief executive officer at the start of this year. And it is Bickel that likens Treofan’s start to 2015 to sporting endeavors. ‘In sports, you would say we underwent intensive endurance and fitness training in order to hit the ground running in 2015. The strong first quarter proves that we are on the right track. I am proud of the global team’s hard work and its continued dedication to building a positive long-term future for Treofan Group.’

The focus in 2015 is on process efficiencies, continued transformation of its product mix towards premium options, even stronger customer orientation and the successful commissioning of a new line in Neunkirchen.

This new line represents a multi-million EUR investment for Treofan and has been specially designed by Andritz for production of a highly differentiated portfolio of packaging and label films. It will allow the company to manufacture films with a wide range of thicknesses and densities.

‘Construction of the new line is progressing well,’ says Carolyn Wagner, who joined Treofan as head of the Packaging business unit in February this year. ‘We have had a very good first quarter so it is all going in the right direction. The strategic work commenced in 2013 as we looked at our market position and where we wanted to grow, and then went through the reorganization process last year.

‘Now we are making it happen. We are through the thinking and into the doing, and it is all starting to come together and bear fruit. We have the right foundations and the right strategy.’

This is playing out in Europe and North America, which have seen strong performance so far this year, and also in South America, especially Brazil, where demand has also been strong says Wagner.

In North America this has centered around Treofan’s strength in wraparound labels and products suited for confectionery applications, with opportunities in the salty snack market opening up as well as those in the health and beauty segment.

‘There are even industrial applications we are working on, such as the development of a film for spray cans,’ says Wagner. ‘In-mold labeling (IML) is also an area of great interest for us.

‘IML is a growing market that we see as a visible trend. IML is traditionally strong in the food segment, with dairy catching on and using increasingly turning to IML. Last year was a big year for ice cream with consumers seeing that all major brands are using IML somewhere in their family of ice cream products.

‘At the same time we are seeing a growing trend in industrial applications, such as with inks and plastic containers for DIY applications, and this will continue to increase.’

The rise in IML requires sophisticated work behind the scenes to develop the technology in line with brand and consumer expectations for a clean, sleek finish similar to self-adhesive labels.

IML is just one area in which Treofan is making advances. HybraPack, developed in collaboration Feldmühle Uetersen, formerly part of Stora Enso, is another product development it has high hopes for.

HybraPack is a laminate of paper and film that offers the benefits of both by combining flexibility, rigidity, barrier properties and processing capabilities in one product. Read more about HybraPack, and other developments in packaging films, here and in Labels & Labeling, issue 1, 2015.

‘Due to the cleverness of the combination of materials, it has the look and feel, and can be used just like paper, but has the properties of plastic,’ says Wagner. ‘We can formulate and design it as required with different properties, depending on the film used in creating the laminated structure, meaning it has the potential to be applicable to a range of markets.’

An early target market is dry foods, such as cereal, whereby the traditional bag-in-box packaging format that is used can be replaced with a single product. Other opportunities are now presenting themselves, such as HybraPack’s possible use for liquid products, including smoothies and body care products.

‘These new applications are extremely interesting and highlight how application innovation is shaping the future,’ she adds, as brand owners look to make their products unique and stand out on the shelf.

‘We need to understand the whole supply chain and its needs, and so we cooperate with brands and end users. Here, the added value lies in making customers more successful in their processes, so making the packaging process faster, more efficient and more secure. The product must also work on the shelf and in the hands of the customer.

‘In the same breath, converters need a film that makes their life easier, and works in combination with other materials and consumables.

‘We see value wherever the film has to work,’ concludes Wagner.