Sofidel is expanding its Inola tissue production plant in Oklahoma, United States, through a 90,000-square-meter site expansion supported by an integrated intralogistics system developed in collaboration with E80 Group.

The project marks a new milestone in the partnership between the two Italian companies, which began in 1997 and has evolved alongside Sofidel’s international growth.

The expansion will increase production capacity and introduce a fully integrated intralogistics ecosystem designed to improve operational efficiency, safety and automation across the site.

Automated warehousing and material handling

The project includes a high-density automated warehouse with capacity for up to 100,000 unit-load positions, connected directly to production through laser-guided vehicles (LGVs).

Additional installations will include palletizing and wrapping systems, as well as an expanded fleet of LGVs to handle increased production volumes.

The new facilities will support the transition towards fully automated operations, including automatic truck loading and reel handling for both existing and newly installed converting lines.

E80 Group Laser Guided Vehicle (LGV) at Sofidel's plant in Sweden

The Inola expansion will also include a third paper machine, complementing the two already operating at the site. The new machine will use Through-Air-Drying (TAD) technology and have an annual production capacity of 75,000 tonnes, targeting premium-quality tissue products that require advanced reel-handling capabilities.

E80 Group’s proprietary SM.I.LE80 software platform will coordinate the integrated system by connecting technologies, data and processes and managing material flows across the facility.

“This investment further strengthens our presence in the United States and confirms Sofidel’s commitment to continued growth through innovation, efficiency, and sustainability,” said Luigi Lazzareschi, CEO of Sofidel Group. He added that the collaboration with E80 Group has become an established cornerstone of the company’s international development.

For E80 Group, the Inola project builds on a long-standing industrial relationship focused on developing increasingly advanced intralogistics solutions for the tissue sector.

“This partnership is the result of a long-term industrial journey built over time, based on a shared vision for the future,” said Enrico Grassi, President and Founder of E80 Group.

“We have developed increasingly advanced solutions that have supported Sofidel’s growth, helping to define new horizons for intralogistics in the tissue sector. The new facility in the United States represents a further step in this direction: a technologically advanced operation designed to consistently deliver the required performance levels.”

A partnership spanning nearly three decades

The collaboration between Sofidel and E80 Group began in 1997 with the introduction of E80 Group’s first laser-guided vehicles at Sofidel’s production facilities. Through the years, the partnership has expanded to encompass a range of intralogistics technologies, including palletizers, stretch-wrapping systems, LGVs and automated warehouses across Sofidel’s manufacturing network.

A major milestone was the development of Sofidel’s highly automated plant in Circleville, Ohio, inaugurated in 2018. The facility integrates automation across operations ranging from raw-material handling to storage, supporting the integration and digitalization of Sofidel’s logistics processes as the company expanded internationally.

The Inola expansion reinforces the companies’ collaboration and reflects the growing role of integrated automation in supporting tissue manufacturing capacity, material handling and logistics efficiency.

E80 Group LGV in Jumbo Rolls Warehouse (Ohio)