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P3 5-6/2023 en
Ludo Fact Counts on Koehler Paper
The Final Puzzle Piece for More Sustainable Packaging
Packaging
Since the middle of the year, the puzzle pieces produced by Ludo Fact can be packaged in paper instead of in plastic bags. With the flexible packaging paper Koehler NexPlus® Seal Pure 40 g/m2 from Koehler Paper, the games manufacturer is consistently taking the final step to offer its customers 100% recyclable and sustainable products, completely without plastic - whether in the games or puzzle sector. As early as 2022, the originally cellophane-covered card decks for the board games “Catan” and “Halli Galli” were converted to flexible packaging paper from Koehler Paper.
With the Koehler NexPlus® Seal Pure packaging paper, puzzle pieces can be packaged safely and sustainably.
Like all other Koehler NexPlus® papers, Koehler NexPlus® Seal Pure is heat-sealable and, due to its strength properties, is very suitable for further processing on all standard packaging systems. “We can produce around 120,000 puzzles per week - from small children's puzzles to adult puzzles with 6,000 pieces. The stability of the packaging paper from Koehler Paper allows us to pack the products at the same speed as with plastic film, for example,” explains Marcel Riehle, Director of Operations at Ludo Fact, about the switch to paper. Ludo Fact produces up to 17 million units a year - for around 200 game publishers worldwide. He is the first manufacturer on the market to be able to implement sustainable paper packaging for his products in large series and at optimal costs.
Koehler NexPlus® Seal Pure can be used as secondary packaging and primary packaging when no additional barriers are required. “Our packaging paper is designed in such a way that it can be technically recycled very well and is suitable for material recycling and recycled paper production. It significantly reduces the carbon footprint compared to conventional plastic packaging. Since there is a very good recycling stream for paper, it also contributes to a sustainable circular economy,” adds Jürgen Leber, sales manager and technical customer service for flexible packaging papers at Koehler Paper, about the advantages of packaging paper.
Sustainable packaging: Innovative paper solutions with NexFlex® from Koehler Paper
With the NexFlex® product range, the research and development team at Koehler Innovation & Technology, together with the experts at Koehler Paper, developed a 100 percent recyclable generation of flexible packaging paper. The aim is to replace plastic in packaging – where possible – by using so-called barrier papers. The range covers a wide spectrum: This includes standard products in the area of coated and uncoated papers, such as those used in composite materials for bags, sachets and other applications and are therefore suitable for a wide range of packaging for food and non-food products. The next generation of papers for flexible packaging are sustainable barrier papers with their functional surfaces for product-specific protection (Koehler NexPlus®). The NexFlex® product family also includes single-sided coated papers with good dimensional stability and high smoothness (Koehler NexCoat®) as well as uncoated papers with a natural appearance (Koehler Nex-Pure®). Various flexible packaging papers from Koehler Paper were awarded the “Made for Recycling” seal by the environmental service provider Interseroh with 19 out of 20 possible points.
The Ludo Fact group of companies is a constantly growing medium-sized company with its headquarters in Jettingen-Scheppach. The group has eleven locations worldwide with over 900 employees. At the largest location in Jettingen, more than 70,000 board games are produced every day. Ludo Fact measures its own CO2 footprint annually, determines reduction potential and has also been compensating for CO2 emissions since 2020. In addition to Ludo Fact in Jettingen-Scheppach, the “Games & Puzzles” division also includes the logistics company Ludo Packt GmbH & Co. KG, Höhn Display + Verpackung GmbH in Ulm, the digital printing company Friedmann Print Data Solutions, Ludo Fact USA LLC, and Holzfiguren -Manufacturer Ludo Ligna SRL in Romania and the joint venture O.K. Oriens cardboard in the Czech Republic.
The Koehler Group was founded in 1807 and has been family-run from the beginning until today. The group's core business lies in the development and production of high-quality specialty papers. These include thermal paper, playing card board, drink coasters, fine paper, carbonless paper, recycled paper, decorative paper, groundwood cardboard, sublimation paper and, since 2019, innovative special papers for the packaging industry. The Koehler Group, with around 2,500 employees, has five production sites in Germany and three more are in the USA. The group operates internationally, the export share was around 75% in 2022, with annual sales of 1.3 billion euros.
As an energy-intensive company, Koehler invests in renewable energy projects such as wind energy, hydropower, photovoltaics and biomass through its Koehler Renewable Energy division. The Koehler Group has set itself the goal of producing more energy from renewable sources than is needed for paper production by 2030.
With the Koehler Innovative Solutions division, Koehler collaborates with start-ups to promote innovations in the core business areas of paper and renewable energy.
