BRUSSELS, Belgium--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 14, 2009--Sonoco Alcore S.a.r.l., a wholly owned subsidiary of Sonoco (NYSE: SON),
one of the largest diversified global packaging companies, announced
that the Opposition Division of the European Patent Office again upheld
the European patent EP 1 071 556 on the use of wide-ply board technology
in the production of cores for the paper industry M-Series Cores. The
decision can be appealed.
The combination of the wide-ply in-house manufactured coreboard and
Sonoco Alcore's proprietary manufacturing technique give the M-Series
Cores increased performance characteristics to meet the higher demands
of today's paper industry.
"The wide-ply board and our unique M-Line technology give us the ability
to manufacture a core that has superior dynamic strength capabilities.
Additionally, this also provides a higher critical speed than any other
core in the market. Combined, this means the M-Core is not just a high
performer but also has a higher safety margin for machine operators,"
said Adam Wood, Sonoco Alcore's sales and marketing director, Europe.
"New generation presses in the printing industry are faster and wider
than the old machines. The increases in reel weight, width and printing
speed mean there are additional factors to consider for core design.
When a machine is running faster there is a risk of increased vibration
for the core. When a machine is made wider it means the weight of paper
on a core increases. The industry needs cores that run safely on these
faster, wider and more demanding machines and the M-Series Cores meets
those requirements," said Matti Mykkanen, Sonoco Alcore's technology
director, Europe.
The M-Series Cores are now available throughout Europe and can bring
benefits to other industries as well as the paper industry. For more
information please contact Gary Morgan at +32 2 711 0906 or gary.morgan@sonoco.com.
About Sonoco-Alcore S.a.r.l.
Sonoco-Alcore S.a.r.l. operates 30 tube and core plants and six paper
mills on the European continent and in the United Kingdom. Founded in
1899, Sonoco is a $4.0 billion global manufacturer of industrial and
consumer products and provider of packaging services, with more than 300
operations in 35 countries, serving customers in some 85 nations. For
more information on the Company, visit our Web site at http://www.sonoco.com/.
CONTACT: Sonoco
Roger Schrum, 843-339-6018
roger.schrum@sonoco.com
Source: Sonoco