Does Fastmarkets provide data for converters/corrugators?

Fastmarkets RISI mainly focuses on paper production, but not so much on paper converting. Fastmarkets does provide a database with corrugated converters of containerboard: Global Corrugated Converter Database, that can be found on Fastmarkets platform under Newsletters & reports, Capacity Reports. This database in Microsoft Excel format shows locations, contact details, capacities and equipment information of containerboard converters (corrugators, sheet plants. However, this database does not reflect any cash/production cost of the corrugated converters/box plants.

The dataset includes five segments of data: asset information, product and manufacturing information, corrugator capacity and equipment information, converting equipment information, and certification and miscellaneous information. All five are in one Excel file. The dataset includes estimations and other uncertainties, which are highlighted in red.

Asset information

Starting from the left, this section contains information regarding each asset’s contact details (street address, postal code, parent company, geographical coordinates, web page, telephone number and key personnel and e-mail address). 

Product and manufacturing information

Fastmarkets RISI divides asset configuration into two separate categories:

• Integrated – produces the raw materials and the finished products. This means that the manufacturer owns its own containerboard mills and uses at least 50% of the output in its corrugated board material.

• Independent – buys more than 50% of its raw materials from other containerboard mills to manufacture its corrugated board. In the dataset, all assets whose parent company can produce more than 50% of the corrugated assets need are considered integrated. However, if the assets purchase more than 50% of their containerboard needs, then they are defined as independent. 

The Asset type is divided into three separate categories defined by Fastmarkets RISI:

• Corrugator plant – has a corrugator and converting equipment and runs both sheets and boxes.

• Sheet feeder – a plant that operates a corrugator to run sheets exclusively for box plants to convert into boxes.

• Sheet plant – does not have a corrugator but does have converting equipment. Sheet plants purchase sheets from a corrugator plants or sheet feeders. The dataset includes some sheet plant information, although the main focus was on corrugator and sheet feeder plants. Type of operation defines the general operations and processes in the plant. Grade/product information gives detailed descriptions of the products.

Corrugator capacity and equipment information

This segment contains information regarding each asset’s corrugator details (capacity, corrugator amount, supplier, install and rebuild years, technical age estimation, trim width and maximum speed estimation). This model takes into consideration the technical age, speed, width, working shifts, time and production loss time. Capacity range estimation is calculated based on maximum speed and width and available production time. However, the average speed, working width and operation time may vary depending on the orders. Therefore, the capacity range as well as the maximum speed is flexible.

The technical age estimation is divided into three separate categories based on the install and rebuild years that are defined by Fastmarkets RISI:

• Modern – the plant has modern machinery, new or rebuilt and less than 10 years old.

• Average – the plant has intermediate machinery, middle-aged or rebuilt and more than 10 years old.

• Old – the plant has ageing machinery that is more than 15-20 years old.

Converting equipment information

This section provides detailed information regarding the different converting equipment at the plant: converting machinery, printing machinery, die cutting (rotary and flat bed), folding and gluing, and inline machines. The first column presents the general converting operations at the plant. The following columns identify the equipment and manufacturers.

Certification information and miscellaneous information

The last columns present the assets’ certifications - we have used the most common certifications available.