Energy efficient innovation and diversification
Everyone looks for the answer to structural difficulties in a different way, but it could be a good direction to prioritize industry innovations based on sustainable technology and circular economic model, including virtual technologies. At least this is shown by the example of Dunapack, whose new factory in Dunavarsány, which opened in September, responds to the difficult economic conditions with innovative technology and a sustainable production model.
“The high energy prices are of course affecting Dunapack's operations, but we have ensured to some extent that production costs are kept low by contracting with several energy suppliers for several years. We are also helped by our business policy, which focuses on energy efficiency and allows us to operate in a more sustainable way, using less energy, thanks to modern production technology and business models. We have made very significant investments in the past period, I would say that we believe in the model of moving forward, in continuous improvement,” said Anastassios Panayotopoulos, Managing Director of Dunapack Ltd., who added that their new factory in Dunavarsány is also the most modern packaging plant in the region, where more sustainable, energy-efficient production is in the focus. “Modern technology helps us to produce more volume per unit time than before, but with lower energy consumption,” he concluded.
Dunapack's new plant, the group's most modern corrugated packaging plant, was built in Dunavarsány During the green field investment, a factory of more than 33,000 square meters was established on the nearly 14-hectare floor area. The capacity of the corrugator is 250 million m2 per year, with a converting capacity of 140 million m2 in the first phase, but this can be increased up to 230 million m2 with future investments. The Dunavarsány plant is also the most technologically advanced plant within the group, in line with the requirements of Industry 4.0, which also means less waste. The vast majority – roughly 90% – of the so-called corrugated base paper raw material for production is recycled paper.
If they could, they would recycle all the waste paper in the country
Although the regional and global paper market is experiencing raw material supply problems, this affects Dunapack very little, as the company produces a high quality and very environmentally friendly packaging material almost exclusively from recycled paper raw material. The sustainable production model is not the result of recent times, but of the decades-long business policy of the Prinzhorn Group. “For decades, the group's production has been based on a circular economy model. This sustainable production model has been the basic philosophy of our company even before very few people focused on this area. In fact, if we could, we would recycle all the waste paper generated in the country, but there are still limitations, especially in terms of collection,” the Managing Director of Dunapack Kft stressed.
The group's 3 companies in Hungary form a sustainable business cycle:
1. The first link in this cycle is Hamburger Recycling Hungary, which collects paper and other secondary raw materials that can be recycled in production.
2. Hamburger Hungária then produces high quality corrugated base paper from the recyclable paper collected at its site in Dunaújváros.
3. Finally, the recycled paper raw material is sent to Dunapack, where it is used to produce first-class and customised packaging, thus completing the final link in the recycling loop, after which the cycle starts all over again.
Eco-friendly packaging: the only way forward
Dunapack's entire operation is based on environmentally friendly solutions, raw materials and auxiliary materials. The company uses water-based inks and produces from 90% recycled paper. “Sustainable packaging solutions and energy efficient production are increasingly important to our customers. Not only because of the more competitive price that can be achieved in this way, and not only because with our packaging materials made of recycled paper, which can be found in almost every business segment, our partners’ environmental footprint also decreases. It is also important because our partners' customers, the everyday consumers, who also expect the packaging of the products they buy – be it a television, other electronics, food, hygiene products or even furniture – to be environmentally friendly. Our experience shows that more and more companies are replacing their old, environmentally unfriendly packaging with sustainable alternatives, and there is a clear need to minimise the use of materials in packaging solutions. This can only be achieved with the most modern and sustainable production background,” concludes Anastassios Panayotopoulos.
The age of „smart boxes” has arrived
Packaging is no longer just about protecting the product, it also serves marketing purposes and can make logistics and product handling processes more efficient, in a sustainable and cost-effective way. „Shelf-ready" cartons can be placed on store shelves immediately, halving the time it takes to replenish goods in stores and reducing waste. The efficiency is already evident in the field of transport, which in practice is manifested in the way that the product can be placed on a pallet and transported in the largest possible quantity, in the smallest possible space and using the least possible amount of paper material. Thanks to Dunapack's developments, space utilisation can be improved by up to 40 per cent, meaning that more goods can be packed into trucks in a given space, transport is more efficient, less fuel is used, emissions are reduced and costs are cut.
