First graders, fourth graders, and adults write differently, and paper mills have to adapt. Prices of paper are a challenge.
24.8.2022, Czech Republic / Brno - Today’s testing of exercise books in Brno showed the differences that people should pay attention to when buying school supplies. The 10-sheet exercise books for the youngest schoolchildren reliably resist the writing style and pens typical of primary school pupils in grades 1 and 2. The new Ecology with eco-friendly paper and natural motifs will satisfy pupils from the 4th grade up who already use pens. A total of 5 types of exercise books from Papírny Brno and their premium brand Paper Factory were tested for a total of 5 types of writing instruments that are most common in Czech, Moravian, and Silesian schools.
“Our surveys among consumers show that they are interested in a wider range of eco-friendly exercise books that need to be affordable the same time. That’s why we’ve added the new Ecology line with a new type of environmentally friendly paper to our established Economy line. Thanks to the new eco-friendly paper, we have also managed to keep price increases at the level of the current inflation rate, even though regular paper has doubled in price and energy has increased by full 370 %,” describes Miroslav Konečný, Executive Director at Papírny Brno.
Whether pupils write with a fountain pen or a ballpoint pen, they always need the written text to remain legible – so that it does not split, bleed, or soak between sheets of paper. This places different demands on school exercise books. At the same time, exercise manufacturers have to respond to the demands of parents and teachers as well as to the environmental friendliness of exercise books. The paper undergoes stringent tests before it becomes the part of exercise books.
“By testing the exercise books, we wanted to highlight the differences between the different types of paper in the exercise books and at the same time to model how young school children write. Especially first- and second-graders write very slowly and often push the pen, and today’s tests have shown that the exercise books for the smallest schoolchildren contain paper most suitable for this way of writing,” explains Petra Rohovská, Marketing Manager at Papírny Brno.
In practice, this means that exercise books for the youngest schoolchildren are made from paper that is smoother, whiter and has a higher weight. It therefore handles classic ink and today’s popular rollers well. Exercise books for older pupils have less stringent criteria and are more suited to ballpoint pens.
“The price of recycled paper has risen significantly, but above all it is not available in sufficient quantities on the market. Therefore, we were looking for an affordable alternative for our customers. For the new Ecology line, we have managed to keep the wholesale price increase at the level of inflation, i.e. around 20 %. Moreover, the sustainable paper we now use has a lower ecological footprint than recycled paper,” says Ladislav Pokorný, Head of Sales at Papírny Brno.
For the production of paper for Ecology exercise books, mainly sawmill chips, wood from forest clearing and some of the waste from forest harvesting, usually the tops of trees that have no other use, are used. Thanks to the TMP (Thermo Mechanical Pulp) method, 93–97 % of the fibres contained in the wood can be extracted, so waste is minimal. Around 30% of the electricity for paper production comes from renewable sources and the water used in production is in a closed cycle, replenished only by evaporated water from fresh souces. Unlike wood-free paper, Ecology’s notebook paper uses chemistry only for bleaching.
ABOUT PAPÍRNY BRNO:
PAPÍRNY BRNO was founded in 1953. It is one of the major players in the Czech and European paper industry and also the largest domestic producer of exercise books. PAPÍRNY developed a numerical system for marking school exercise books, for marking school exercise books, which is still a standard tool for teachers and parents when buying school supplies. In addition to standard paper, cardboard and paperboard products PAPÍRNY BRNO also offer premium quality with the new Paper Factory brand.
