PulPac announced that its intellectual property portfolio in the field of Dry Molded Fiber has surpassed 500 national patent grants worldwide. The company emphasises that this milestone coincides with the growing recognition of the technology as an established manufacturing method rather than merely a new and emerging alternative. According to the company, fibre forming had been dominated by wet processes for decades. Today, this category is expanding as Dry Molded Fiber gains importance as a scalable and competitive fibre forming method. PulPac indicates that the development of the technology and the engineering base built over the years are intended to reduce uncertainty related to industrial implementation and lower barriers when moving to larger-scale production.
As Viktor Wingård Börjesson, Chief Operating Officer at PulPac, noted, "Dry Molded Fiber is no longer an experimental technology. It is an industrial category in its own right, and we are seeing the market move from curiosity to commitment. The intellectual property platform and engineering experience we have built over the past decade provide a stable foundation for companies investing in Dry Molded Fiber, and that is increasingly reflected in the level of industrial engagement we are seeing."
Patent coverage and development base
PulPac’s patent portfolio covers fibre preparation and airlaying, forming and pressing methods, tooling configurations, and integrated functional product features. Surpassing 500 granted national patents strengthens the company’s position as the most established intellectual property holder in the field of industrial dry fibre forming.
The company states that reaching this level of patent protection is the result of many years of accumulated engineering experience and continuous process improvement. According to PulPac, the company is approaching 800,000 R&D hours devoted to Dry Molded Fiber technology. In the company’s view, this accumulated knowledge significantly reduces uncertainty in industrial implementation and lowers barriers to scale-up.
Industrialisation support and the role of the market environment
The industrialisation process is to be supported by PulPac’s ecosystem of machine manufacturing partners. The company describes this network as a group of globally active enterprises with expertise in areas such as injection moulding, nonwovens, fibre processing, and advanced packaging automation. According to the company, further developments within this ecosystem, including the expansion of Dry Molded Fiber platform capabilities, confirm industrial commitment and support broader implementation of the technology across markets.
In Viktor Wingård Börjesson’s assessment, there are visible signs that Dry Molded Fiber is approaching a tipping point. "We see clear signs that Dry Molded Fiber is approaching a tipping point. The engagement of globally established machine builders is one indicator, while regulatory developments such as the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation are further accelerating demand for scalable fibre-based alternatives. Implementation is increasingly taking place alongside plastics converting and traditional wet molded fibre production rather than through direct replacement, which lowers the barrier to adoption. The foundations for large-scale implementation are now in place."
Innovation continues to advance at PulPac’s R&D lab.
