ANAPLAN CASE STUDY | Recycled Paper Mills

OUR CLIENT

Our client is a  a FTSE 100 global leader in paper-based packaging, operating in 30+ countries across three continents with over 40,000 employees. The Group generates global revenues of approximately USD 30+ billion.

Within the Group, the European Recycled Paper Mills (RPC) business produces more than 8 million tonnes of paper and packaging board annually. This case focuses on the transformation of financial and operational planning across the European RPC operations.

BUSINESS CHALLENGES

The client’s paper recycling division relied on Excel-based planning models for budgeting, forecasting and management reporting. Each mill produced its own spreadsheets which were consolidated centrally, creating slow cycles, version-control issues and limited transparency.

Actuals were only incorporated quarterly, meaning forecasts were regularly out of date. Consolidated group views were only available at the end of the cycle, leaving little time for review, challenge or informed decision-making.

The models also contained complex operational and cost calculations. Changes in energy, starch and raw material prices required extensive manual rework to assess impact. With increasing commodity volatility and decarbonisation pressures, RPC lacked the ability to quickly evaluate scenarios such as energy hedging, green energy investments or cost exposure by mill.

The business needed:

• Rolling monthly actualisation.
• Faster, more reliable forecasting.
• Real-time consolidated reporting.
• Scenario modelling for volatile commodities.

A single, trusted financial and operational view. 

SOLUTION

The European mill operations selected Profit& through a formal tender process to deliver Anaplan as the enterprise planning platform for the Group.  Between 2021 and 2025, Profit& delivered a multi-wave transformation programme covering multiple business units. A global FP&A template was created and rolled out, forming the foundation for connected financial and operational planning.

“By building our solution on Anaplan, we now have a single, connected view of our financial and operational drivers. We can see the impact of energy, production and cost changes instantly across the P&L and balance sheet, which has fundamentally improved how we make decisions.” Group Finance Director

Solution Architecture

Anaplan was deployed as the central planning platform, integrated as follows:

• SAP and HFM as source systems.
• HFM as the financial consolidation target.
• Active Directory and Single Sign-On for security and user management.
• A central Anaplan Data Hub provides a single source of truth. All mills submit budgets and forecasts directly into Anaplan, while actuals are loaded automatically from HFM.

Connected Planning Model

The solution covers:

• P&L, OPEX, Balance Sheet, and Non-Financials.
• Production, BOM and machine efficiency.
• Energy and CO₂ emissions.
• Headcount and personnel costs.
• Intercompany transactions.
• Real-time consolidation and reporting.

 Each mill works in a controlled environment, while a central model consolidates all data in real time, including intercompany balances.

Rolling actuals and forecasting

• Actuals flow automatically into Anaplan, instantly updating:
  • Budget vs actuals
  • Forecasts
  • Management reports

This enables rolling monthly actualisation and real-time quarterly forecasting, giving Central Finance time to review, challenge and collaborate before submitting to HFM.

Scenario modelling

Energy, starch and other key commodities are modelled using a bottom-up, driver-based approach, with energy consumption planned at the level of individual boilers, machine types and production assets. Energy costs are calculated dynamically from operational inputs, enabling accurate, granular analysis across mills, production clusters and financial statements.   

This allows the business to rapidly test what-if scenarios around energy sourcing, efficiency improvements and green energy initiatives, with full transparency into how operational changes translate into cost, margin and financial impact.

Delivery Model

The programme was delivered using the Profit& Way, an iterative build–review–adjust approach with:

 User stories defining each phase

• Short sprints with continuous testing
• Close collaboration with local finance and operations

A co-build approach was used, transferring knowledge to internal teams and establishing local Centres of Excellence, making Smurfit Westrock self-sufficient in running and extending the platform.

BENEFITS

Finance Efficiency

Shorter planning and forecasting cycles mean that time previously spent consolidating and reconciling spreadsheets is now focused on analysis and decision support. Finance can respond quickly to market volitility with real-time, accurate data.

Scenario Planning

Fast scenario modelling for energy, commodities  and sustainability metrics, enables strategic planning despite market volatility.

Support for Sustainability Decisions

Enhanced energy modelling enables the business to assess the financial impact of green energy investments and efficiency initiatives with far greater accuracy and speed.

Real-time Insights

Real-time, mulit-entity budgets and forecasts visibility, and fully connected P&L, Balance Sheets and Operational Metrics drives faster more effective decision making.

Central and Local Alignment

The model provides a group-wide view while allowing for limited local variations where they add value, ensuring consistency without sacrificing flexibility.

Elimitated Excel Risk and Manua Consolidation

The central data hub provides a consistent, accurate source of data for all mills. Direct integration with existing systems has removed reconciliation risks and improved confidence in management information.

 WHY ANAPLAN AND PROFIT& 

Anaplan was chosen for its flexibility, transparency and ease of use and rapid time to value.

Profit& was selected for our deep experience in the paper and packaging sector and proven ability to deliver large-scale Anaplan transformations, including previous deployments across the group.  The result is a platform that our client runs independently, with minimal reliance on external consultants.