Supply Chain Collaboration: A Key Element in Scalable Paper Packaging Solutions

Effective paperization requires a collaborative supply chain vs. a linear supply chain. Image courtesy of Solenis.

By William ‘Bill’ Kuecker, Senior Director, Global Strategic Marketing at Solenis

No single company can deliver the shift to paper-based packaging alone — it takes effective collaboration across the supply chain.

That’s where we left off in our last article, with printing-press applied barrier coatings as a case in point: a breakthrough made possible not just by chemistry, but by a strategic partnership between a specialty chemistry provider and a printing press manufacturer. Barrier coatings have traditionally been applied in a separate step, requiring additional equipment, time, and handling. By enabling converters and packaging producers to apply coatings in-line on existing flexographic presses, this collaboration removes that layer of complexity.

This example illustrates what effective collaboration looks like in practice: different players combining their expertise to develop solutions that result in a faster, more efficient path to producing fiber-based packaging at scale.

Why Collaboration is Essential

The packaging supply chain has historically operated in a linear, role-specific fashion, with raw material suppliers, converters, and brand owners each focused on their own stage. This model has worked well for conventional materials like plastic, which typically meet packaging requirements with minimal coordination across the chain.

Fiber-based packaging requires a different approach. Paper often needs to be modified to meet performance, production, and compliance requirements. These changes cannot be made in isolation. Each decision, whether about material properties and functionality, process compatibility, or regulatory alignment, affects how the package performs at the next stage and in the hands of the end user.

This shift calls for a different kind of collaboration. It requires partners to work together with a shared understanding of how every choice influences what comes next. Success depends on early alignment, clear communication of constraints, and coordinated decision-making. It’s not about overhauling the supply chain, but about strengthening connections between the segments to support practical, scalable solutions.

Strengthening Collaboration: Four Practices to Move from Concept to Commercialization

Collaboration during the transition to fiber-based packaging is not just a principle—it’s a process. Moving from concept to commercially viable solutions requires more than individual expertise. It calls for a shift in how decisions are made, how stakeholders are engaged, and how trade-offs are managed across functions and organizations.

The following four practices offer a practical framework for strengthening collaboration across the packaging value chain. They focus on designing packaging for fiber from the outset, engaging the right partners early in development, aligning stakeholders across functions and organizations, and evaluating total value beyond material cost.

1. Design for paper — not around plastic
   Paper isn’t a drop-in replacement for plastic. It behaves differently in production and use, with unique strengths and limitations. Designing packaging based on plastic specifications often introduces unnecessary complexity or can result in underperformance when applied to fiber. Instead, the design process should begin with the application’s functional needs and consider how paper, when adapted appropriately, can meet them. This shift in mindset leads to solutions that align with paper’s characteristics, making them more practical to produce and scale.
2. Involve the right partners early
   Many of the adaptations that make paper viable for packaging begin upstream, during papermaking. Chemical suppliers play a foundational role at this stage by providing both functional chemistries, such as barrier coatings and strength additives, and process chemistries that improve fiber bonding, sheet consistency, and machine efficiency. Involving these partners early in development allows packaging teams to better align material performance with production and end-use requirements from the start. This helps minimize delays, rework, and late-stage trade-offs while strengthening the credibility of sustainability claims and improving internal alignment. Although chemistry often operates behind the scenes, its early involvement can determine whether a packaging concept succeeds in real-world production or stalls during scale-up.
3. Align across functions and partners
   Today’s packaging decisions are rarely made by a single department. R&D, sustainability, marketing, operations, and procurement each bring different priorities to the table. Aligning these perspectives early helps ensure that solutions meet technical, regulatory, commercial, and operational requirements—not just one piece of the puzzle. The same need for alignment applies across the supply chain. For example, cross-functional collaboration between a brand’s innovation team and a chemical supplier’s technical or marketing team can lead to more accurate communication and better fit-for-use solutions. These engagements help clarify performance needs, identify trade-offs early and accelerate the development of packaging that works across the full system.
4. Evaluate total value, not just material cost
   Unit price is only part of the picture. A low-cost material that causes production delays, fails compliance checks, or underperforms in actual use can be more expensive in the long run. Procurement teams should assess total value by considering how a material performs across the entire supply chain. A broader perspective here helps identify solutions that are not only cost-competitive, but are also reliable, scalable, and aligned with long-term business goals.

From Concept to Scale: Why Collaboration Delivers the Difference

The transition to paper packaging, or paperization, is more than a materials change. It requires a shift in how the packaging supply chain operates. Collaboration is not a trend; it is a strategic approach that transforms the model from a linear supply chain into an integrated value chain, where every stakeholder contributes not only to their role, but to the performance of the entire packaging solution.

The practices shared here are grounded in the realities of packaging today. They reflect what it takes to move from concept to commercialization, not through isolated steps, but through coordinated efforts across teams, functions, and partners.

Chemistry enables paper to meet the functional demands of packaging. Collaboration ensures those solutions are aligned across design, production, and end use, making paper-based packaging viable at scale.

The opportunity ahead is not just to replace plastic. It is to rethink how packaging can be made better. The companies that build collaboration into every stage will lead with solutions that are more sustainable, more practical, and better suited for the future.

About the Author

William ‘Bill’ Kuecker drives global growth at Solenis by advancing chemistry innovations that power high-performing, sustainable fiber-based solutions. Visit: www.solenis.com/chemistryforpaper