EKI Paper Mill
On 25 January, The Economic Board presented the first Parel Award of 2023 to EKI and Papierfabriek Nijmegen. EKI made a significant contribution to the development of circular innovations and production processes within Lifeport. Papierfabriek Nijmegen is a historic production site that has been fully transformed to operate sustainably. Bart van der Tol and Chantal Peters (directors) speak enthusiastically about their innovations and winning the Parel Award.
EKI (Emphation, Knowledge and Innovation) is a true family business and has been manufacturing cellular rubber, foam and rubber since 1875. John Brom, alderman of the municipality of Nijmegen: "I am proud that a company like EKI Papierfabriek is located in Nijmegen. EKI Paper Mill's achievements in innovation, energy, circularity, social sustainability and labour market are an inspiration for many other companies."
"Twice a year, The Economic Board presents a pearl award to an organisation with an exceptional, innovative or sustainable initiative. Both companies fit right into that picture with their focus on innovation, energy, circularity and smart sustainability. With their achievements in line with the region's spearheads, EKI and the Paper Mill put the Arnhem Nijmegen region on the map (inter)nationally. That is also why EKI Papierfabriek receives the Pearl," said Jan van Dellen, director of The Economic Board.
Ambachtsweg 2 6541 DB Nijmegen
info@papierfabrieknijmegen.nl
+31 (0)24 303 1079Growth and the Paper Mill
EKI's growth manifested itself in new customers, new machines and new products. Bart van der Tol says: "In fact, we grew so fast that we moved to a new location in 2020: the old Paper Factory."
"Together with local contractors, we managed to make the move to this beautiful, historic location possible," continued Chantal Peters. "We have made great strides in terms of sustainability, digitalisation and social innovation. In the process, EKI has all the space it needs to continue to grow rapidly, 20,000m2. We transformed the 45,000m2 of space we had left into a beautiful event location: the Paper Factory. We use that space for creative purposes for big A-brands, such as Redbull, Sony and Audi."
Climate-positive, also energy for other companies and households
When EKI moved into the old paper factory, the building's energy facilities were made as sustainable as possible. "We are completely gas-free," explains Peters. "For energy and heat, we use solar panels, heat pumps and pellet stoves. This makes our company climate-positive and provides 800 households with green electricity. We are working with the municipality on a smart energy hub, so that we can also supply other companies with our power."
As a manufacturer of rubber products, EKI is also working hard to make its own materials more sustainable. Van der Tol explains: "Rubber is often produced from oil. We are testing rubber production from recycled or vegetable raw materials that are fully degradable. We also ensure that the rubber from our sealing strips is reused in, for example, art projects and clothing."
EKI gained 120,000 new production workers this year. "In the form of bees," Chantal says with a laugh. "We now have four nesting sites on our roof. That's good for biodiversity ánd our customers can now enjoy a nice jar of honey!"
Customer-friendly ordering process and pleasant working environment
EKI is also not standing still in the field of digitalisation and social innovation. For instance, the company has simplified the ordering process on its website. "With our product configurator, customers and employees easily walk through the billions of ordering options. All processes are now automatic. For example, if a customer chooses a certain colour or material, the system immediately looks at stock and which machines are needed. This makes it much easier to make quotations. We are now using the system in the rubber industry, but every industry will benefit from it."
Since Chantal became involved with the company in 2019, there has been a cultural shift at EKI. "It was still a very traditional company, managed top down. We started investing hard in employee self-organisation and a new way of management, focused on collaboration. This is how we engage with our people, to create a nice working environment. The other day, for instance, we developed a new inventory system. Here, we include everyone: from management to the people on the production floor."
The Pearl Award
Winning the Pearl award is the icing on the cake for EKI. "It's great that our innovations stand out. For our people, it is really a confirmation that we are on the right track. With our way of working, we also hope to inspire other companies and people."
"We ultimately get energy from people! Especially from happy people who work with us and set up cool projects together with creative companies. For instance, we regularly involve our people in one of the creative productions at the Paper Factory. The other day, for example, hip-hop artist Bizzey came by to record his latest clip. We were all our employees dancing to his music!"
In the fields of sustainability, digitalisation and social innovation, EKI has already achieved a lot, but it also dreams about the future: "Our premises have already been made sustainable in many ways, which is why we are now focusing on sustainable employability. With this historic building, we really have gold in our hands, and we are happy to share it!"
Twentieth time
This is the twentieth time that The Economic Board has presented the Parel Award. The award is given to companies and organisations which, according to The Economic Board, stand out for their interesting innovations or, conversely, for their tried-and-tested business processes.
