Karen McIntyre, Editor11.08.21
Compared to competing technologies, airlaid continues to represent a small share of nonwovens capacity globally as manufacturers continue to recover from a period of excessive overcapacity in the early 2000s.
“Turkey puts in more spunlace capacity in a year than all airlaid globally,” says industry expert Phil Mango. “It’s just been a very small, slow expansion lately because of all the problems companies had since 2001…a lot of companies have gotten burnt.”
After a period of little or no expansion starting in 2001—when the industry over invested in new lines—investment has been moderate in recent years including a new line from Glatfelter in Arkansas that came onstream in 2018, Magic’s new Italian investment and a new line currently under construction at Domtar’s site in Jesup, GA.
Despite these investments, thanks to its ambitious acquisition efforts, Glatfelter will remain the clear market leader in airlaid with a reported 30% marketshare. The second largest producer, McAirlaid’s, has a 9% marketshare.
“Glatfelter is really dominating the market right now,” Mango says. “I don’t see a lot of competition coming down the road.”
Capacity Update
In May, Domtar said it would expand its Jesup, GA-based Engineered Absorbent Materials (EAM) facility in an effort to grow its position as a leading global absorbent materials and technology business offering fluff pulp and airlaid nonwoven materials.
“This expansion is a strategic step toward strengthening our value proposition as an essential partner to absorbent hygiene customers around the world,” says Lewis Fix, Domtar vice president, commercial pulp and airlaid.
Domtar’s EAM facility has been developing and manufacturing innovative, high-quality absorbent core solutions since 1998. The new large-scale Dan-Web airlaid production line will be fully operational in 2022, enhancing Domtar’s ability to supply both domestic and global customers with unique absorbent materials solutions.
The combination of Domtar’s fluff pulp supply combined with EAM’s custom solutions in absorbent technology will boost its position in both markets.
“The expansion project includes the addition of a large-scale Dan-Web airlaid production line that will help the company strengthen its position as a leading global absorbent materials and technology business,” says Lori Venn, vice president of sales and marketing for EAM. “EAM/Domtar will be in the unique position of offering a complete portfolio of products including airlaid, absorbent laminated products and pulp to our hygiene customers.”
Meanwhile, in Italy Magic Srl has invested in a Campen-supplied airlaid line capable of making several types of thermal bonded airlaid products with or without tissue and nonwovens as carrier sheet. Magic chose Campen for its ability to process their patented Spongel product, know-how about product development and technical experience of airlaid production and design.
Before investing in the new machinery, Magic acquired airlaid from external suppliers and was highly specialized in converting airlaid for the food, medical, personal care and safety and cleaning industries.
A few years ago, Magic developed Spongel, a superabsorbent biodegradable powder, and from there the need to develop and produce its own airlaid arose. Mauro Giani, owner and CEO of Magic Srl, states: “Our need was to produce a new kind of high-absorbing and sustainable airlaid containing Spongel. After Spongel development, we focused our efforts on the application of the powder in the airlaid material, and we realized that we needed to be able to control the whole production process.”
Together with Campen, Magic carried out product testing in an airlaid testing facility with Campen’s equipment and was convinced by the results and competencies of Campen. “The airlaid material that was developed after the test surpassed the expectations we had for the material,” says Giani.
The Campen airlaid line was first delivered in late 2019 but Covid-related issues delayed the line’s completion to June 2021. The line consists of hammer mill lines, fiber opener, drum forming heads, SAP dispenser, compactor, thermal bonding oven, a calender unit with cooling zone, process air filter and humidification system. An unwinder for tissue and winder for final winding of the product as well as a metal detector and in-line scanner system for measuring g/m2 are also part of the line.
“The high-tech airlaid machine from Campen transformed us from a converting company into a production company, as well as making it possible for us to create Airgel, a very exclusive and innovative product with Spongel,” says Giani.
According to Richard Knowlson, principal of RPK Consulting, machinery supplier Dan-Web believes the airlaid market is poised for significant growth. The balance of supply and demand before Covid had gotten tight and airlaid capacity was very stretched due to elevated wipes demand. As restaurants and offices reopen, demand for airlaid tabletop applications will grow tightening the market beyond pre-Covid levels.
“During Covid other nonwoven technologies were in very tight supply, this caused airlaid to be evaluated and even commercialized for some applications that were otherwise using spunlace nonwovens. Some of these will remain or even grow in the airlaid sector,” he adds. “Meanwhile, major developments in traditional plastic applications like packaging materials and tableware materials—disposable trays, lids, plates and even spoons (replacing plastics) are on the verge of massive expansion. This will dramatically expand the markets for airlaid in the next three years.”
Dan-Web has been working with PulPac to develop standardized machinery for Dry Molded Fiber to replace these types of single-use plastics with affordable fiber-based alternatives. The partnership will combine Dan-Web’s extensive know-how, engineering capabilities and technologies in airlaid with the Dry Molded Fiber process. The Dry Molded Fiber standardized defibration unit, called “Mill-to-Web,” will be optimized for packaging and ready for food-grade production.
PulPac’s “Dry Molded Fiber” is a patented manufacturing technology for the circular economy – using renewable pulp and cellulose resources to produce low cost, high performance, fiber-based packaging and single-use products. Dry Molded Fiber gives up to 80-90% lower CO2 footprint at the same or lower cost as plastic.
Dan-Web has extensive capabilities in engineering, designing and building standardized components for defibration as well as customized machines and production lines. Like PulPac, Dan-Web is committed to bring sustainable solutions to the market and the parties will work together to develop machinery, technologies and solutions for the Dry Molded Fiber community.
“With close to 50 years’ experience in airlaid and fiber production methods we are proud to be on the frontline in Dry Molded Fiber, a cutting edge production process developed by PulPac, which we believe could be instrumental in fiber’s ability to replace single-use plastics at scale,” says Kurt Sørensen, owner and CEO at Dan-Web.
Compared to traditional bespoke airlaid machinery, Dan-Web’s newly developed standardized Mill-to-Web offers a compact and modular defibration unit suitable for many applications and scalable within Dry Molded Fiber.
“We are truly impressed with Dan-Web’s immense know-how and expertise in airlaid and fiber production lines and are proud of the empowerment brought to the Dry Molded Fiber community with the introduction of efficient and scalable defibration units, optimized to work with modular production platforms,” says Ove Larsson, founder and chief technology officer at PulPac.
Meanwhile, airlaid machines manufactured by Anpap Oy can process pulp as well as manmade fibers, allowing its customers to make a wide range of products. Anpap machines offer benefits like flexibility in design and raw material usage but also are available in a smaller size, meaning investment costs are lower.
“Our lines offer flexibility and some of our customers also prefer smaller footprint production lines because they can make high capacity compared to competing production lines in the market,”says Tuukka Vihtakari, project manager at machinery supplier Anpap Oy.
This allows the company to truly cater to the needs of its customers offering customized parts throughout the processing unit. While executives could not go into detail, the company did report it is currently building two new airlaid production lines for customers in Europe.
“We make what the customer needs,” Vihtakari adds. “When the customer says we want a certain kind of product then we check what kind of machinery is needed. The volume then correlates to the size of the machine.”
Glatfelter’s Growth
Glatfelter ascent to the leading position in the airlaid market has been a decade in the making. The company, which has its roots in the paper industry, purchased Concert Industries’ airlaid business—including sites in Quebec and Germany—in 2010 for a reported $235 million. Since then the company acquired Georgia-Pacific’s European operation in 2018 and its North American airlaid business in 2020, and added a 20,000-ton line in Fort Smith, AR, in 2018.
In North America, the G-P acquisition includes a large-scale production line in Mount Holly, NC, that was considered the world’s largest airlaid machine when it was installed in 2001, as well as a research and development center in Memphis, TN.
“We are excited to welcome Mount Holly and Memphis employees to Glatfelter, and we look forward to combining forces with our Glatfelter team to achieve even greater levels of operational excellence, innovation, and world-class customer service. By leveraging these assets and employee talents, we are confident the synergies from this acquisition will attractively position us to capture and service long-term demand for health and hygiene products. We believe today’s announcement further reinforces our ongoing commitment to make meaningful investments that add scale to the business and enhance Glatfelter’s value in the markets we serve,” says chairman and CEO Dante C. Parrini.
Meanwhile in Europe, Glatfelter operates a Steinfurt site once owned by G-P and a Falkenhagen facility started by Concert.
In 2020, Glatfelter’s sales achieved record sales of $392 million despite a slowdown in the tabletop business brought on by restaurant closures during Covid. Feminine hygiene comprised the bulk of its airlaid sales, representing 52% of output. This market saw heightened demand as consumers stockpiled necessity items.
While feminine hygiene continues to dominate, wipes growth continues to be a priority, particularly at its Fort Smith site, which has been engineered for wipes applications and primarily supplies material to the specialty wipes market which has helped Glatfelter meet the growing needs for light-weight substrates among customers in the North American market.
Meanwhile, Glatfelter continues to expand the use of its airlaid material beyond core applications in the hygiene market. Its cellulose-based GlatPure backsheet has been developed for absorbent hygiene products. It is the first breathable, functional, non-leak barrier sheet available on the market that uses cellulose-based fibers and is compliant with the European Union Single Use Plastic Directive.
“We are committed to offering our customers materials that are unique in terms of performance, comfort and raw material composition and can be responsibly disposed at end-of-life,” says Chris Astley, senior vice president and chief commercial officer..
Looking ahead, Glatfelter will continue to expand its role in wipes and hygiene markets with the upcoming acquisition of Jacob Holm Industries. While not in the airlaid market, Holm’s wipes substrate technologies will help Glatfelter continue to meet customer demands for innovative products. The deal includes four manufacturing sites in France, Germany and the U.S. and will expand the company’s technology scope into spunlace and flushable wipes materials.
“(The acquisition) represents another significant step forward in Glatfelter’s transformation. The combination of Jacob Holm’s quality spunlace and advanced fiber products along with Glatfelter’s industry-leading airlaid and composite fibers products will provide a best-in-class suite of nonwovens technologies, applications and expertise to serve customers’ growing global demand. By acquiring Jacob Holm, we will further diversify our nonwovens and substrate offerings and enhance our overall innovation capabilities,” says Parrini.
Food Packaging
In food pads, airlaid, which utilizes a very high percentage of natural fibers, is the primary nonwoven used, to absorb liquid from perishables like meat and fruit to keep them fresh and extend shelf life, while also reducing food waste.
Mango projects that the total percentage of airlaid that goes into food pads is around 7% on a global basis. “The European food pad business is much larger from a nonwovens point of view than in North America,” he says. “Novipax is by far the largest producer of food pads in North America and they still use mostly non-airlaid or other nonwovens; they use some nonwovens, but it’s a very small percentage.”
There are a few conflicting problems that are limiting airlaid’s growth in North America, he explains. First, most of the existing equipment converts non-nonwoven type food pads. “There’s some inertia there where it’s always worked, why are they going to change it? It would mean capital investments in some cases.”
Secondly, in North America airlaid capacity has been limited. Mango estimates the current airlaid utilization rate is at 95%. Europe, on the other hand, has a number of small and medium size food pad producers—not one large food pad producer like in North America. There’s also more airlaid on a supply basis.
“Europe probably has the most excess supply of airlaid, even if they are older lines, they’re probably in the low to mid 80s in airlaid utilization rate,” he adds.
According to INDA, airlaid is ideal for food pads because it has some of the same requirements as a hygiene absorbent core: quick acquisition rates, no/low rewet, and absorbency capacity. “Controlling moisture within food packs aids shelf life and reduces waste,” says Brad Kalil, director of Market Intelligence & Economic Insights, INDA.
“Packaging that incorporates nonwovens as components to aid pack breathability can manage the respiration and the shelf life of certain products, such as fruit.”
McAirlaid’s, Glatfelter and EAM Corporation are a few of the main airlaid manufacturers that currently produce materials for this market.
“Turkey puts in more spunlace capacity in a year than all airlaid globally,” says industry expert Phil Mango. “It’s just been a very small, slow expansion lately because of all the problems companies had since 2001…a lot of companies have gotten burnt.”
After a period of little or no expansion starting in 2001—when the industry over invested in new lines—investment has been moderate in recent years including a new line from Glatfelter in Arkansas that came onstream in 2018, Magic’s new Italian investment and a new line currently under construction at Domtar’s site in Jesup, GA.
Despite these investments, thanks to its ambitious acquisition efforts, Glatfelter will remain the clear market leader in airlaid with a reported 30% marketshare. The second largest producer, McAirlaid’s, has a 9% marketshare.
“Glatfelter is really dominating the market right now,” Mango says. “I don’t see a lot of competition coming down the road.”
Capacity Update
In May, Domtar said it would expand its Jesup, GA-based Engineered Absorbent Materials (EAM) facility in an effort to grow its position as a leading global absorbent materials and technology business offering fluff pulp and airlaid nonwoven materials.
“This expansion is a strategic step toward strengthening our value proposition as an essential partner to absorbent hygiene customers around the world,” says Lewis Fix, Domtar vice president, commercial pulp and airlaid.
Domtar’s EAM facility has been developing and manufacturing innovative, high-quality absorbent core solutions since 1998. The new large-scale Dan-Web airlaid production line will be fully operational in 2022, enhancing Domtar’s ability to supply both domestic and global customers with unique absorbent materials solutions.
The combination of Domtar’s fluff pulp supply combined with EAM’s custom solutions in absorbent technology will boost its position in both markets.
“The expansion project includes the addition of a large-scale Dan-Web airlaid production line that will help the company strengthen its position as a leading global absorbent materials and technology business,” says Lori Venn, vice president of sales and marketing for EAM. “EAM/Domtar will be in the unique position of offering a complete portfolio of products including airlaid, absorbent laminated products and pulp to our hygiene customers.”
Meanwhile, in Italy Magic Srl has invested in a Campen-supplied airlaid line capable of making several types of thermal bonded airlaid products with or without tissue and nonwovens as carrier sheet. Magic chose Campen for its ability to process their patented Spongel product, know-how about product development and technical experience of airlaid production and design.
Before investing in the new machinery, Magic acquired airlaid from external suppliers and was highly specialized in converting airlaid for the food, medical, personal care and safety and cleaning industries.
A few years ago, Magic developed Spongel, a superabsorbent biodegradable powder, and from there the need to develop and produce its own airlaid arose. Mauro Giani, owner and CEO of Magic Srl, states: “Our need was to produce a new kind of high-absorbing and sustainable airlaid containing Spongel. After Spongel development, we focused our efforts on the application of the powder in the airlaid material, and we realized that we needed to be able to control the whole production process.”
Together with Campen, Magic carried out product testing in an airlaid testing facility with Campen’s equipment and was convinced by the results and competencies of Campen. “The airlaid material that was developed after the test surpassed the expectations we had for the material,” says Giani.
The Campen airlaid line was first delivered in late 2019 but Covid-related issues delayed the line’s completion to June 2021. The line consists of hammer mill lines, fiber opener, drum forming heads, SAP dispenser, compactor, thermal bonding oven, a calender unit with cooling zone, process air filter and humidification system. An unwinder for tissue and winder for final winding of the product as well as a metal detector and in-line scanner system for measuring g/m2 are also part of the line.
“The high-tech airlaid machine from Campen transformed us from a converting company into a production company, as well as making it possible for us to create Airgel, a very exclusive and innovative product with Spongel,” says Giani.
According to Richard Knowlson, principal of RPK Consulting, machinery supplier Dan-Web believes the airlaid market is poised for significant growth. The balance of supply and demand before Covid had gotten tight and airlaid capacity was very stretched due to elevated wipes demand. As restaurants and offices reopen, demand for airlaid tabletop applications will grow tightening the market beyond pre-Covid levels.
“During Covid other nonwoven technologies were in very tight supply, this caused airlaid to be evaluated and even commercialized for some applications that were otherwise using spunlace nonwovens. Some of these will remain or even grow in the airlaid sector,” he adds. “Meanwhile, major developments in traditional plastic applications like packaging materials and tableware materials—disposable trays, lids, plates and even spoons (replacing plastics) are on the verge of massive expansion. This will dramatically expand the markets for airlaid in the next three years.”
Dan-Web has been working with PulPac to develop standardized machinery for Dry Molded Fiber to replace these types of single-use plastics with affordable fiber-based alternatives. The partnership will combine Dan-Web’s extensive know-how, engineering capabilities and technologies in airlaid with the Dry Molded Fiber process. The Dry Molded Fiber standardized defibration unit, called “Mill-to-Web,” will be optimized for packaging and ready for food-grade production.
PulPac’s “Dry Molded Fiber” is a patented manufacturing technology for the circular economy – using renewable pulp and cellulose resources to produce low cost, high performance, fiber-based packaging and single-use products. Dry Molded Fiber gives up to 80-90% lower CO2 footprint at the same or lower cost as plastic.
Dan-Web has extensive capabilities in engineering, designing and building standardized components for defibration as well as customized machines and production lines. Like PulPac, Dan-Web is committed to bring sustainable solutions to the market and the parties will work together to develop machinery, technologies and solutions for the Dry Molded Fiber community.
“With close to 50 years’ experience in airlaid and fiber production methods we are proud to be on the frontline in Dry Molded Fiber, a cutting edge production process developed by PulPac, which we believe could be instrumental in fiber’s ability to replace single-use plastics at scale,” says Kurt Sørensen, owner and CEO at Dan-Web.
Compared to traditional bespoke airlaid machinery, Dan-Web’s newly developed standardized Mill-to-Web offers a compact and modular defibration unit suitable for many applications and scalable within Dry Molded Fiber.
“We are truly impressed with Dan-Web’s immense know-how and expertise in airlaid and fiber production lines and are proud of the empowerment brought to the Dry Molded Fiber community with the introduction of efficient and scalable defibration units, optimized to work with modular production platforms,” says Ove Larsson, founder and chief technology officer at PulPac.
Meanwhile, airlaid machines manufactured by Anpap Oy can process pulp as well as manmade fibers, allowing its customers to make a wide range of products. Anpap machines offer benefits like flexibility in design and raw material usage but also are available in a smaller size, meaning investment costs are lower.
“Our lines offer flexibility and some of our customers also prefer smaller footprint production lines because they can make high capacity compared to competing production lines in the market,”says Tuukka Vihtakari, project manager at machinery supplier Anpap Oy.
This allows the company to truly cater to the needs of its customers offering customized parts throughout the processing unit. While executives could not go into detail, the company did report it is currently building two new airlaid production lines for customers in Europe.
“We make what the customer needs,” Vihtakari adds. “When the customer says we want a certain kind of product then we check what kind of machinery is needed. The volume then correlates to the size of the machine.”
Glatfelter’s Growth
Glatfelter ascent to the leading position in the airlaid market has been a decade in the making. The company, which has its roots in the paper industry, purchased Concert Industries’ airlaid business—including sites in Quebec and Germany—in 2010 for a reported $235 million. Since then the company acquired Georgia-Pacific’s European operation in 2018 and its North American airlaid business in 2020, and added a 20,000-ton line in Fort Smith, AR, in 2018.
In North America, the G-P acquisition includes a large-scale production line in Mount Holly, NC, that was considered the world’s largest airlaid machine when it was installed in 2001, as well as a research and development center in Memphis, TN.
“We are excited to welcome Mount Holly and Memphis employees to Glatfelter, and we look forward to combining forces with our Glatfelter team to achieve even greater levels of operational excellence, innovation, and world-class customer service. By leveraging these assets and employee talents, we are confident the synergies from this acquisition will attractively position us to capture and service long-term demand for health and hygiene products. We believe today’s announcement further reinforces our ongoing commitment to make meaningful investments that add scale to the business and enhance Glatfelter’s value in the markets we serve,” says chairman and CEO Dante C. Parrini.
Meanwhile in Europe, Glatfelter operates a Steinfurt site once owned by G-P and a Falkenhagen facility started by Concert.
In 2020, Glatfelter’s sales achieved record sales of $392 million despite a slowdown in the tabletop business brought on by restaurant closures during Covid. Feminine hygiene comprised the bulk of its airlaid sales, representing 52% of output. This market saw heightened demand as consumers stockpiled necessity items.
While feminine hygiene continues to dominate, wipes growth continues to be a priority, particularly at its Fort Smith site, which has been engineered for wipes applications and primarily supplies material to the specialty wipes market which has helped Glatfelter meet the growing needs for light-weight substrates among customers in the North American market.
Meanwhile, Glatfelter continues to expand the use of its airlaid material beyond core applications in the hygiene market. Its cellulose-based GlatPure backsheet has been developed for absorbent hygiene products. It is the first breathable, functional, non-leak barrier sheet available on the market that uses cellulose-based fibers and is compliant with the European Union Single Use Plastic Directive.
“We are committed to offering our customers materials that are unique in terms of performance, comfort and raw material composition and can be responsibly disposed at end-of-life,” says Chris Astley, senior vice president and chief commercial officer..
Looking ahead, Glatfelter will continue to expand its role in wipes and hygiene markets with the upcoming acquisition of Jacob Holm Industries. While not in the airlaid market, Holm’s wipes substrate technologies will help Glatfelter continue to meet customer demands for innovative products. The deal includes four manufacturing sites in France, Germany and the U.S. and will expand the company’s technology scope into spunlace and flushable wipes materials.
“(The acquisition) represents another significant step forward in Glatfelter’s transformation. The combination of Jacob Holm’s quality spunlace and advanced fiber products along with Glatfelter’s industry-leading airlaid and composite fibers products will provide a best-in-class suite of nonwovens technologies, applications and expertise to serve customers’ growing global demand. By acquiring Jacob Holm, we will further diversify our nonwovens and substrate offerings and enhance our overall innovation capabilities,” says Parrini.
Food Packaging
In food pads, airlaid, which utilizes a very high percentage of natural fibers, is the primary nonwoven used, to absorb liquid from perishables like meat and fruit to keep them fresh and extend shelf life, while also reducing food waste.
Mango projects that the total percentage of airlaid that goes into food pads is around 7% on a global basis. “The European food pad business is much larger from a nonwovens point of view than in North America,” he says. “Novipax is by far the largest producer of food pads in North America and they still use mostly non-airlaid or other nonwovens; they use some nonwovens, but it’s a very small percentage.”
There are a few conflicting problems that are limiting airlaid’s growth in North America, he explains. First, most of the existing equipment converts non-nonwoven type food pads. “There’s some inertia there where it’s always worked, why are they going to change it? It would mean capital investments in some cases.”
Secondly, in North America airlaid capacity has been limited. Mango estimates the current airlaid utilization rate is at 95%. Europe, on the other hand, has a number of small and medium size food pad producers—not one large food pad producer like in North America. There’s also more airlaid on a supply basis.
“Europe probably has the most excess supply of airlaid, even if they are older lines, they’re probably in the low to mid 80s in airlaid utilization rate,” he adds.
According to INDA, airlaid is ideal for food pads because it has some of the same requirements as a hygiene absorbent core: quick acquisition rates, no/low rewet, and absorbency capacity. “Controlling moisture within food packs aids shelf life and reduces waste,” says Brad Kalil, director of Market Intelligence & Economic Insights, INDA.
“Packaging that incorporates nonwovens as components to aid pack breathability can manage the respiration and the shelf life of certain products, such as fruit.”
McAirlaid’s, Glatfelter and EAM Corporation are a few of the main airlaid manufacturers that currently produce materials for this market.
