Sofidel expands Inola tissue production plant in Oklahoma in USD 775M deal
The new tissue machine is scheduled to begin operations in the second quarter of 2028.
USA – Sofidel is expanding its tissue production plant in Inola, Oklahoma, in the United States, through a 90,000-square-meter development supported by an integrated intralogistics system created in partnership with E80 Group.
The project represents another important milestone in the long-standing relationship between the two Italian companies, a partnership that began in 1997 and has developed alongside Sofidel’s international expansion.
The expansion will increase the plant’s production capacity and introduce a fully integrated intralogistics ecosystem designed to improve operational efficiency, safety, and automation throughout the site.
The development includes a high-density automated warehouse capable of holding up to 100,000 unit-load positions, which will be directly connected to production through laser-guided vehicles, or LGVs.
The project will also add palletizing and wrapping systems and expand the LGV fleet to manage the higher production volumes expected from the enlarged facility.
The new infrastructure will support Sofidel’s move toward fully automated operations, including automatic truck loading and automated reel handling for both the site’s existing converting lines and the newly installed ones.
E80 Group’s proprietary SM.I.LE80 software platform will serve as the central coordination system, connecting technologies, data, and processes while managing material flows across the entire facility.
The Inola expansion will also include a third paper machine, joining the two machines already operating at the site.
The new machine will use Through-Air-Drying, or TAD, technology and will have an annual production capacity of 75,000 tonnes.
It is intended to produce premium-quality tissue products that require advanced reel-handling capabilities.
Luigi Lazzareschi, Chief Executive Officer of Sofidel Group, said, “This investment further strengthens our presence in the United States and confirms Sofidel’s commitment to continued growth through innovation, efficiency, and sustainability.”
For E80 Group, the Inola project builds on a long-term industrial relationship centered on creating increasingly advanced intralogistics solutions for the tissue sector.
According to Enrico Grassi, President and Founder of E80 Group, the new facility in the United States marks another step in that direction, creating a technologically advanced operation designed to consistently deliver the required performance levels.
The collaboration between Sofidel and E80 Group began in 1997, when E80 Group introduced its first laser-guided vehicles at Sofidel’s production facilities.
Over nearly three decades, the partnership has expanded to include a wide range of intralogistics technologies, such as palletizers, stretch-wrapping systems, LGVs, and automated warehouses across Sofidel’s manufacturing network.
A major milestone in the relationship was the development of Sofidel’s highly automated plant in Circleville, Ohio, which was inaugurated in 2018.
That 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 collaboration between Sofidel and E80 Group and reflects the increasing importance of integrated automation in strengthening tissue manufacturing capacity, material handling, and logistics efficiency.
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