Bruce Janda on Tissue Industry Transformation

Each issue of Tissue360° includes 'My Industry', a space where industry experts are welcomed to share their tissue industry opinions, knowledge, and experience. This column was originally published in the Spring/Summer 2026 issue and is shared here with AOTC readers with an interest in the success of the tissue industry.

Well-known tissue industry expert Bruce Janda is a Green Bay, WI, native. He was originally inspired to join the tissue industry by his brother, Bob, who managed the local P&G Tissue Mill. After earning a chemical engineering degree from Michigan Technological University, Janda began his career in 1976 as a process engineer at the TYPAR^® nonwoven plant in Tennessee. He later relocated to Neenah, WI, for tissue R&D with American Can and Kimberly-Clark, earned an MBA, and secured 20 US patents focused on technology transfer. Janda’s leadership has spanned paperboard and tissue development; he learned French for European projects and served as global innovation leader at AstenJohnson. Now retired from ResourceWise, he teaches TAPPI tissue courses.

Since the late 1970s, the North American tissue industry has transformed dramatically.

In the 1970s and 1980s, the industry featured high secrecy, internal technology development, and strong in-house talent mentoring, with Beloit and the Institute of Paper Chemistry as key influencers. Over time, technology shifted to Europe, Beloit closed, and widespread downsizing reduced mill and technical staff. By the 2000s, printing/writing paper declined, leaving tissue and packaging as growth areas amid overall industry contraction. Suppliers are now expected to provide much more development and support when it comes to new innovations.

The biggest ongoing challenge the industry faces is talent loss through retirement, creating shortages of skilled engineers and tradespeople.

The industry has acknowledged the challenge and is actively leveraging retired experts for consulting—for example, Georgia-Pacific’s recent initiatives. Other opportunities lie in external organizations like TAPPI, which now play vital roles in training and knowledge transfer. TAPPI in-mill training courses stand out as highly effective, enabling tailored, collaborative learning for engineers, operators, and tradespeople. Progress exists, but economic disruptions (2008 recession, pandemic) have limited focus and funding for sustained talent building, leaving significant room for improvement.

There has been a major shift across the industry when it comes to products, with the move from branded to private-label dominance.

In the 1970s, branded tissue relied on heavy advertising and broad distribution; today, private label holds ∼80 percent in Europe and ∼50 percent in North America, driven by retail consolidation (few major chains, many European-owned) and warehouse club sales. National TV advertising is now rare, mainly P&G and Georgia-Pacific. This forces producers to respond quickly to retailer demands, increasing risk and requiring leaner, more versatile technical teams focused on adaptability rather than narrow specialization.

The greatest innovation in the improvement of tissue production over the last decades is Through-Air Dried (TAD) technology.

Pioneered in the late 1950s-1960s at Procter & Gamble in Wisconsin and later refined by others, the concept remains the greatest advance in the industry. It delivers unmatched bulk, softness, absorbency, and fiber efficiency, especially for toweling. Structured tissue followed as a lower-energy cost alternative, offering partial benefits. No breakthrough yet matches TAD’s full advantages without high energy use, so TAD continues growing where fiber savings and environmental gains outweigh costs.

The industry has been extremely effective when adapting to new technology and trends.

A good example is the rapid 1990s adoption of TAD technology in North America. Advanced digital controls and scanners have improved process control, quality, and efficiency. However, sustaining incremental daily improvements in cost, quality, and environmental performance remains difficult in lean operations, where major overhauls receive more attention than continuous refinement.

In terms of environmental factors, tissue production is resource-intensive, including the use of water, energy, and fiber.

US mills often benefit from abundant resources, but global and arid-region producers have driven efficiency innovations. Growing consumer scrutiny demands accountability. Promising developments include on-site pulp integration, cogeneration, heat recovery—via heat pumps—and better waste management. Operational efficiency is essential for both economics and sustainability, with wide variability among mills.

People remain central to the industry.

The global tissue community is close-knit and passionate, with machine discussions evoking genuine enthusiasm and camaraderie rare in other sectors. Many dedicated innovators advanced the field without much recognition. Early-career mentoring was invaluable and shaped a rewarding environment.

Over the next 10 years, consolidation will continue.

There will be capacity shifts, for example European/Canadian investment in US, slowing growth in China due to population trends, and post-globalization supply chain strains. Demographic decline will reduce workforce and demand, making product innovation critical to increase per-capita use. TAD will expand where viable, alongside heat recovery and efficiency gains. AI (combined with engineering models) will increasingly improve processes. The industry should prioritize robust talent pipelines, supply chain resilience, environmental innovations, and agile product development to address these shifts.

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