Appvion wins sustainable product of the year award

MaryBeth Matzek

Contributor

December 27, 2023

APPLETON – Appvion, a coated paper manufacturer in Appleton, continues its legacy of innovation with the creation of a recycled content direct-thermal product – that recently received statewide recognition.

The Wisconsin Sustainable Business Council named Appvion’s Résiste 15% PCW as the sustainable product of the year.

The product is the first to use Next Generation Technology, an innovative chemistry Appvion developed to be free of phenolic developers, making it both less resource-intensive to produce, and safer for people and aquatic environments over its lifetime. 

“We thank the Wisconsin Sustainable Business Council for honoring us, as well as thank you to the Appvion team for the hard work in the development of this product,” Appvion leadership said in a statement. 

According to Jessy Servi Ortiz, the organization’s managing director, the Wisconsin Sustainable Business Awards celebrate recipients for showing cutting-edge environmental, social and governance leadership.

“Businesses play a crucial role in delivering solutions to customers and markets,” she said. “These awards recognize Wisconsin businesses for delivering value through sustainable integration and driving sustainable adoption and innovation in the market.” 

More about the product
According to Appvion, Résiste 15% PCW has two significant design innovations that allow it to have comparable performance to other products, while being better for people and the environment.  

The first is it uses a post-consumer pulp fiber base for the paper.

Appvion said for every 500 tons of Résiste 15% PCW produced, the equivalent of 12,000 trees are saved. 

A chemical coating applied to the base paper is the second innovation setting the product apart.

Appvion leadership said its Next Generation Technology has been reimagined to be completely phenol free.
Historically, direct thermal paper in the industry has used some phenolic compounds in the developers.

Next Generation Technology, according to Appvion, eliminates all phenolic compounds, regardless of whether they are named in emerging legislation, and approaches the formulation of the direct thermal coating from a different starting point, one that prioritizes bio-based and nature-first solutions.  

Appivon said for every 500 tons of Résiste 15% PCW manufactured, seven tons of phenols are removed from use.

The result, the company said, is a high-performance direct thermal paper that is:

RecycledRecyclableExceeds emerging consumer safety standardsBetter for people and the environment
A bit of history on Appvion
Appvion was founded in 1907 by Charles Boyd, originally known as the Appleton Coated Paper Company.

At the time, paper machines could not make and coat paper in a single operation, creating what Boyd said as a market niche.

Choosing to locate the company in Appleton was done intentionally – not because he was from there, but because of the many paper mills operating along the Fox River.

The company officially changed its name to Appvion in 2013 to reflect its heritage of innovation in applying chemistry to paper and microencapsulation to create value for its customers.

Today, the company is led by Chief Executive Officer Paul Charapata.

Over the years, Appvion continued to introduce innovative advances, including: 

Microencapsulation – which as referred to as “carbonless paper”Thermal paper manufacturingBPA-free era thermal paperFragrance capsulesThe first direct thermal material formulated with vitamin C instead of phenols or urea-based compounds – which offered customers a natural point-of-sale receipt paperCleanSlate™ – a new direct thermal technology that is free of chemical developers, phenols and leuco dye
To learn more about Appvion and its Résiste 15% PCW, visit appvion.com.