Smurfit Westrock has implemented a cross-border rail logistics solution linking its Hoya paper and board mill in Germany with production facilities in Poland, reducing emissions and improving supply reliability.
The Hoya mill produces over 500,000 tonnes of paper annually using recovered fibre as its primary raw material. Under the new logistics setup, paper reels are stored at local warehouses before being collected by regional operator VGH and transported by rail to Poland by Transwaggon. Each train consists of 24 wagons, measures approximately 600 metres in length, and carries around 1,250 tonnes of paper.
Smurfit Westrock reports that the modal shift has delivered double-digit improvements in delivery performance due to the higher reliability of rail compared with road transport. The logistics corridor supports the company’s Pruszków facility in Poland, where incoming reels are scanned and fed directly into production lines for corrugated packaging serving fast-moving consumer goods, retail, private label and e-commerce sectors. PKP Cargo serves as long-distance and last mile traction for this service.
The project forms part of Smurfit Westrock’s broader strategy to increase rail utilisation across its European paper and board logistics network, strengthening end-to-end supply chain efficiency while reducing environmental impact.
