Appleton, Wisconsin, USA/Anáhuac, México 26 July 2018 -- Voith Paper North America recently reached a deal with Copamex of Monterrey, México, for the installation of a BlueLine stock preparation system at their mill in Anáhuac, which is being converted to drive Copamex's growth into the containerboard and packaging markets in México.

Previously, Copamex focused on printing and writing grade paper, but the new BlueLine stock preparation system from Voith is a key step in their expansion plans. The system will utilize a variety of raw material including Old Corrugated Containers (OCC) and mixed waste.

"By partnering with Voith, we're working with the company that has the most knowledge in processing highly contaminated furnish, and this will assist us with successfully launching our growth in the containerboard and packaging markets in México," said Alonso González, CEO, Copamex. "The Voith team consistently understands the needs of our projects and customizes our stock preparation systems accordingly."

As the a full-line supplier, Voith and MERI Environmental Solutions (a Voith company) will be providing Copamex with all of the elements of the stock preparation system, including reliable material handling with automatic wire cutting, reject compactors, sludge handling, water clarification and effluent treatment. The project is also environmentally friendly as steps have been taken to limit energy and water consumption, as well as making waste management improvements.

When the new stock preparation system starts up in early 2019, the mill will output 260,000 metric tons of testliner and corrugated medium per year for use in containerboard production.

"Copamex is known for their quality, innovation and versatility. Earning their continued business speaks volumes about our relationship and our experience with this type of raw material," said Michael Hmielewski, Vice President of Project Sales, Stock Preparation, Voith Paper North America. "When we worked together on other projects, we worked beside Copamex throughout every step of the process and we look forward to supporting them again as we all bring our expertise to this new facility in Anáhuac."

About Voith Paper

Voith Paper is a Group Division of Voith and the leading partner and pioneer in the paper industry. Through constant innovations, the technology group is continually optimizing the paper manufacturing process and paving the way for resource-saving production. Thanks to Papermaking 4.0, paper manufacturers can interconnect their equipment in an optimum way and increase their competitiveness through the effective and secure use of generated data. With Servolution, Voith Paper offers its customers tailored service solutions for all sections of the production process.

About Voith

Voith is a global technology group. With its broad portfolio of systems, products, services and digital applications, Voith sets standards in the markets of energy, oil & gas, paper, raw materials and transport & automotive. Founded in 1867, today Voith has more than 19,000 employees, sales of $4.7 billion and locations in over 60 countries worldwide, and is one of the largest family-owned companies in Europe. For more information, visit www.voith.com.

About Copamex

Copamex, headquartered in Monterrey, is a leading paper manufacturer in México with 90 years of experience. The company sells over 500,000 tons of paper and corrugating products per year in three paper mills (7 PMs), and another 200,000 tons of containerboard products are manufactured per year at two corrugating plants. Copamex's ventures also include a chemical products plant, a flexible packaging plant and an Innovation Center for Paper Research and Development. Copamex is vertically integrated for the production of recycled fiber, containerboard and corrugated boxes.

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