Keynote Presentation

November 5 - 8, 2023 | Atlanta, Georgia

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2022 Keynote Presentation

8:30am - 10:00am

Monday, October 31, 2022

David Buchanan, Voith NA

David Buchanan

President, Voith Paper North America
TAPPI Board Member

 

"Papermaking of the future: leading solutions for the most sustainable and efficient papermaking process"
Thanks to the use of renewable raw materials and its recyclability, paper has great potential to make a positive contribution to climate protection and sustainability. The same must also apply for the manufacturing process. As a pioneer in the field of sustainability, Voith is working on various solutions to make paper production more resource-efficient. Together with customers and strong industrial alliances, we are committed to making paper as sustainable as possible and to optimizing our existing product portfolio to achieve this. In addition, Voith is taking action on innovative solutions to minimize CO2 emissions, water consumption and fiber losses. To this end, Voith has launched the "Papermaking for Life" sustainability program. Furthermore, the design study "Papermaking Vision" shows how Voith envisions the future of papermaking. This long-term concept is intended to significantly increase the efficiency, sustainability and ease of maintenance of production facilities. Amongst other, the design study builds on Voith’s in-depth know-how in the field of digitalization and automation. With its Papermaking 4.0 portfolio, Voith Paper is an international pioneer and innovation driver in paper production. The technology group now has more than 300 digital installations worldwide, which have led to a significant increase in the efficiency of the plants.

Learn more about David Buchanan:

David Buchanan, President of Voith Paper North America, has been in his current role since 2016. Mr. Buchanan has business line responsibility for Products and Services out of Appleton, Wisconsin. His career with Voith spans more than 30 years, and he has worked in many positions including service, sales, product management, project management, business development and several leadership roles over sales. Most of his career has been spent on the Fabric and Roll Systems side of the business before transferring to Products and Service in 2014.

Prior to 2014, Mr. Buchanan was the Vice President of Sales for Fabric and Roll Systems in Wilson, North Carolina, where he was responsible for all sales and service in North America. He held this position from 2008 to 2014. Before that, he was Technical Director for the Fabrics business from 2007 to 2008 and Business Development Manager for Fabrics from 2002 to 2007.

Mr. Buchanan has an extensive knowledge of the North American paper industry and is very familiar with the top paper manufacturing companies that Voith does business with today.

Mr. Buchanan holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. He also holds a certification from the Advanced Management Program at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and sits on the Board of Directors for the Association of Suppliers to the Paper Industry (ASPI) and TAPPI.

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