Cenpa is a French paper mill specialising in cardboard. It is known for providing customers with quality products according to bespoke specifications. As an independent operation, the company is flexible with designs and can offer objective advice and expertise. Hannah Barnett spoke to Commercial Director Ludovic Suss to learn more.
The Cenpa HQ is steeped in history. It was built in 1793 for dyeing purposes but in 1893, the site was transformed into a paper mill. When the factory was merged with two other paper mills in 1929 the name Cenpa was coined as an acronym for centrale des usines à papier – central paper mills.
Having been destroyed during fighting in 1945, the site was rebuilt after the war and integrated into the La Rochette group in 1960, then into the SONOCO group in 1998.
However, since 2016, Cenpa has been an independent paper mill. This has marked the latest crucial milestone in the company’s long history.
“It has been challenging jumping into the free market as an independent,” said Ludovic Suss, Commercial Director. “It means learning how to survive and function as a middle-sized company. We had to
get through the Covid crisis, the raw material crisis and the energy crisis. All have had a significant impact in the paper and packaging industry. To be able to overcome these obstacles, adapt and continue to grow without help from a larger group has been very significant for us.”
The new upper management team was boosted by the arrival of a second General Manager, Mr Mager, alongside Mr Suss as the head of sales and marketing. Success since then is reflected in the growth figures; the company moved from a turnover of €24 million in 2020 to €38 million in 2021. It is still organically growing, with €53 million in gross sales accounted for in 2022.
Additionally, Cenpa now has an annual production capacity of 72,000 tonnes of paper. The company delivers its products throughout Europe, and overseas as well.
“It’s circular because we are producing recycled paper...Our product comes back to us, so we put it in our paper and process it again”
Commercial Director LudovicSuss
Transportation by road and sea using shipping containers, Cenpa ship anywhere in the world on request. Over the last few years, the company has increased the countries it does business in from five to ten.
Sustainable offerings
Cenpa manufactures grey, brown or white cardboard (whiteness >60%) mainly for spiral or straight wound tubes and cores. The vast majority of its cardboard is made from recycled wastepaper and all products are FSC-certified.
“It’s circular because we are producing recycled paper,” Mr Suss explained. “Our product comes back to us, so we put it in
our paper and process it again. We are, of course, still consuming electricity. This is unavoidable so far. But we also have a partnership with the other industries in our area and they provide us with steam so that we need less gas or electricity.”
The company also has an advantageous geographical situation on the River Rhine, close to the German border. “We are not far from a lot of European industry,” said Mr Suss. “As well as our activity in France, we can easily reach the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. We are central. That means we can also offer a short logistical supply chain, which is not always the case with some competitors . As a result, our freight delivery is a more sustainable option.”
The company is also working on plans to install an extensive PV system across its facility. With a site spanning 24,00sqm, this is something of a challenge. But Mr Suss is confident that these will be outweighed by the benefits when the company begins to produce its own
energy. Cenpa also has a goal to replace all its plastic packaging with wood in the next two years.
Making connections
In September, Cenpa’s representatives will attend FACHPACK, the European trade fair for packaging, technology and processing in Nuremberg. The show serves as a useful way for the company to demonstrate its latest developments and to interact with its regular customers.
“FACHPACK is a big exhibition,” Mr Suss added. “And nowadays, we are looking to develop into more market segments. So, we are moving into the tissue sector and the paper can sector. At the moment, our cardboard is just used for core industry manufacturing, but we are working on
developing the agility of our machines to be able to reach other applications, for example consumer product packaging like recyclable paperboard items.”
As a company with an extensive history, Cenpa also maintains strong long-term relationships with its suppliers. These robust, collaborative, often locally based
partnerships enable the sheer scope of what Cenpa is capable of to be realised. And it this breadth that truly makes the company stand out.
“We cover a wide range,” said Mr Suss, “and we have extensive technical capabilities. We have competitors that might pretend make money from producing a small range of items with fewer settings –whereas we calibrate our portfolio closely to the technical needs of customers.
“We offer flexibility because of our two machines and their large reach of different specifications. We can create a technical specification for each customer, so we can move in different segments. We have no fixed portfolio. This is custommade paper.”
Packaging the future
The company’s independent status contributes to its strength, ability to be flexible and to make decisions quickly. “We are on
a short list of mills that are independent,” explained Mr Suss. “Also, because we are not part of a big group, there are no conflicts of interest with the jobs we take on.”
Mr Suss was confident that this flexibility will stand the company in good stead as it confronts and adapts to a rapidly changing packaging industry.
It is clear that Cenpa is a creative business and one that takes inspiration from the diversity of its customer base.
“We have customers all over Europe,” Mr Suss concluded. “We have customers from Poland to Spain and from the UK to Turkey. This multicultural environment is so interesting, and it fuels creativity. What is exciting for me within that is the joy of selling, because every sale is the oxygen for our company, ensuring the living of over a hundred committed people around me.
“Also, I am motivated by the fact that we produce something from waste which can be used again. We know that it’s the future to reduce our carbon footprint and to operate the most circular economy possible. Such things push me forward.” n
