As Lenzing implemented its decarbonization strategy, the company shifted the transportation of some inbound materials from road to rail transport and shipping to improve its CO2 footprint. This means, for example, that the transportation of sulfur purchased from one supplier was switched from road to rail.
Reducing GHG emissions in shipping
In 2022, Lenzing established a sustainable logistics transportation system involving break bulk mode transportation, thereby reducing GHG emissions by at least 15 percent versus container mode of transport, making the transport of dissolving wood pulp from Brazil to China more efficient. By the end of the third quarter 2023 around 90 percent of pulp was transported by break bulk and around 10 percent by container (data for the fourth quarter is not yet available).
Pentatrains
For the efficient transport of wood from the plantation to the pulp mill, the use of pentatrains, which have five cargo boxes instead of the conventional three, represents a productivity increase of more than 50 percent compared to tritrains. This can potentially lead to a reduction of 5,600 trips on highways and savings of up to 220,000 liters of diesel annually. This has already been implemented in the plantation in Brazil and LD Celulose has a fleet of 15 pentatrains to transport wood from its plantations. However, since the use of these trains is not allowed on public roads, conventional trucks are still partly used.
New software for wood purchasing ensures greater transparency and facilitates the logistics process
The Lenzing site (Austria) has a complex wood supply process involving numerous steps from tree felling to wood delivery, requiring precise logistics. To simplify operations, a specialized software has been adopted, achieving key milestones in 2019 with electronic billing and with contract management in 2022, and necessary updates in 2023 for the daily use of the software. In the third quarter of 2024 a Supplier and Client Portal is planned to be launched to facilitate data transferring for electronic transport documents, delivery notes and invoices and certification related information. These improvements enhance transparency, reduce the workload and will move the wood purchasing department closer to a paperless office along the way.