Rapid revamp of dormant mill will provide cutting-edge, digital solutions to automate operations and optimize performance

Leading Canadian forest product company, Chantiers Chibougamau, has selected technology leader ABB to help overhaul its Nordic Kraft pulp mill in Lebel-Sur-Quevillion in northern Quebec. The order comprises the delivery and integration of a new drives system and ABB Ability ™ Quality Management System (QMS). This includes ABB’s Web Imaging System (WIS) and Web Monitoring System (WMS) into the ABB Ability™ System 800xA distributed control system (DCS). ABB will provide a comprehensive service contract and remote connection for diagnostic and service activity.

The project will transform the Nordic Kraft mill, which had been dormant for 12 years prior to its acquisition by Chantiers Chibougamau in 2018. It will become a modern, efficient and fully integrated digital site, equipped for the first time with complete quality control. The new solutions will accelerate Nordic Kraft’s issue identification and produce semi-autonomous responses to conditions leading to fewer quality rejects.

“The high value and quality of ABB solutions together with our stepwise approach and ability to complete a tight turnaround were the key to this order win,” said John Roberts, Market Segment Manager for Pulp and Paper, ABB. “We worked closely with the mill to ensure that everything we supply has a clear benefit in terms of quality control and ease of operability. Our suite of leading technology coupled with remote monitoring, diagnostic and issue resolution means Nordic Kraft can head off problems before they arise and optimize production to make more on spec kraft pulp.”

ABB NP1200 scanner

As part of the ABB Ability™ QMS, the order includes a new NP1200 scanner with online sensors for moisture, brightness and ABB’s revolutionary Basis Weight Sensor, which offers industry-leading levels of accuracy and reliability in basis weight measurements. The Basis Weight Sensor provides the detailed information needed for optimal machine direction (MD) and cross direction (CD) weight control. The QMS also includes a WIS installation with Web Imaging Dirt Count and a WMS with eight cameras, all designed to provide operators with full visibility over production with integrated online measurement, process and quality controls and defect detection.

“We wanted a reliable and flexible way to make this mill, inoperative for 15 years, more productive and profitable,” said Dany Bellemare, Senior Electrical Engineer and Reliability/Plant Upgrading Project Manager, Nordic Kraft in Lebel-sur-Quévillon. “We were impressed by ABB’s commitment to demonstrating the value in every part of their proposed solution and look forward to a long and successful collaboration.”

Chantiers Chibougamau Ltée, a family business founded in 1961, employs nearly 600 people in Chibougamau, a quarter of the working population in this northern Quebec municipality. The company values ​​the forest resources of the northern boreal forest in Quebec to produce lumber products, I-beams, beams and columns of Nordic Lam glued laminated wood and Nordic X cross-laminated wood panels. -Lam. The latter products are marketed by its sister company Nordic Structures, which relies on a multidisciplinary team of 35 professionals specializing in wood design and engineering. These products are mainly distributed in North America for residential construction and in Quebec for non-residential construction.

Valmet will supply a complete steam boiler plant to Norske Skog’s paper mill in Bruck an der Mur, Austria.

The order was included in Valmet’s orders received of the first quarter 2020. The value of the order is approximately EUR 40 million. The boiler plant will be handed over to the customer in 2022.

The investment will improve the mill’s cost competitiveness, reduce its carbon footprint and create new business beyond publication paper by generating revenue from the combustion of refuse-derived fuels (RDF).

“Norske Skog Bruck has chosen Valmet’s proven technology solution based on several well-performing reference plants. This project is a next step in our green diversification initiatives within the Norske Skog group and a milestone for further development of the Bruck site,” says Enzo Zadra, Managing Director, Norske Skog Bruck GmbH.

“Valmet will deliver a technically demanding boiler plant in which all pieces of advanced technology are seamlessly integrated together to serve the mill’s targets. Valmet Industrial Internet (VII) solutions will play an important role in improving boiler performance and profitability,” says Kai Janhunen, Vice President, Pulp and Energy business line, Energy business unit, Valmet.

With a fuel power of 56 megawatts, the new boiler will run mainly on RDF, pulper rejects and sludge with natural gas as a secondary fuel. It will partly replace the steam production of existing natural-gas-fired boilers as well as supply heat to the paper mill and local district heating network in Bruck, resulting in lower CO₂ emissions.

Information about Valmet’s delivery

Valmet’s turnkey delivery includes Valmet’s BFB boiler plant that utilizes bubbling fluidized bed technology. It features a robust and integrated concept consisting of a gas-fired superheater for final steam superheating, baghouse filter for primary pollution control, SCR system for NO_x reduction, combustion air humidifier as well as a condensing scrubber for heat production and final emission reduction. Additionally, the delivery includes the construction of new buildings for the equipment, an upgrade of an existing Valmet DNA Automation System and Valmet Industrial Internet (VII) solutions with DNA Combustion Manager and DNA Boiler Sootblowing Manager solutions and VII cloud services.

Information about the customer Norske Skog

Norske Skog is a world-leading producer of publication paper with a strong market position in Europe and Australasia. The group operates six paper mills and a pellets business in five countries, with an annual publication paper production capacity of 2.3 million tons and pellets capacity of 85,000 tons. Newsprint and magazine paper is sold through sales offices and agents to over 80 countries. The group has approximately 2,300 employees. In addition to the traditional publication paper and pellets business, it has launched new growth initiatives related to renewable energy, biochemical products and fiber products.

Voith’s new refurbishment service for screw presses enables the full restoration of screw performance and reduces downtimes by up to 20 percent compared to conventional repair methods. With SmartGrinder, the new refurbishment service, customers can restore original screw performance and achieve an optimum balance between operating costs and technological performance – a decisive factor for paper quality and cost efficiency in paper production.

• Full restoration of original screw performance with SmartGrinder
• Reduction of downtimes by up to 20 percent
• No need to dismantle the screw or to use spare screws

SmartGrinder: restoration of original screw performance and reduced downtimes
SmartGrinder is a modular system that can be set up during operation according to the size and requirements of the screw press to be serviced in order to minimize downtime and production losses. Before proceeding with the repair, a detailed digitized condition measurement is carried out for the screw stem and flights. This allows a professional analysis of the existing wear pattern, indicating the areas that require additional attention.

Smartgrinder

The design of the SmartGrinder allows a fast and highly precise restoration of the press screw diameter. "It can thus follow the flight geometry exactly, reducing downtimes by up to 20 percent compared to conventional repairs," says Geert Tichler, Senior Product Management & Global Expert Refurbishment Technologies, Voith Paper. "As our service provides the flights with the required sharp edges, this results in an optimum removal from the fibermat."

No need to dismantle the screw or to use spare screws
After the first service, the SmartGrinder can be replaced even faster because the assembly plates remain on the screw press. In addition, all new Voith screw presses are already equipped with designated assembly plates, allowing fast and specialized Voith on-site services. When repaired using the SmartGrinder, there is no need to dismantle the screw or to use spare screws, and costly screw transport is eliminated.

Expansion of Servolution portfolio with refurbishment services
The SmartGrinder ideally complements Voith’s Servolution portfolio. Similar systems for the reconditioning of product geometries are already in use not only for screw presses but also, for example, for disc filter centershaft repairs.

For further information about our optimization services for screw presses please visit: http://voith.com/corp-en/screw-press-optimization.html

About the Voith Group
The Voith Group is a global technology company. With its broad portfolio of systems, products, services and digital applications, Voith sets standards in the markets of energy, oil & gas, paper, raw materials and transport and automotive. Founded in 1867, the company today has more than 19,000 employees, sales of € 4.3 billion and locations in more than 60 countries worldwide and is thus one of the larger family-owned companies in Europe.

The Group Division Voith Paper is part of the Voith Group. As the full-line supplier to the paper industry, it provides the largest range of technologies, services, components and products on the market, and offers paper manufacturers solutions from a single source. The company’s continuous stream of innovations takes papermaking to the next level and facilitates resource-conserving production. With its Servolution concept, Voith offers its customers tailored service solutions for all sections of the production process. Voith Papermaking 4.0 ensures that equipment is optimally connected, while the secure use of generated data enables paper manufacturers to improve plant availability and efficiency.

The collaboration helps the pulp and paper industry to improve efficiency, streamline processes and enable crucial information sharing in the whole value chain.

TietoEVRY is partnering with Turck Vilant Systems to generate more value for data in the logistics ecosystem. The collaboration helps the pulp and paper industry to improve efficiency, streamline processes and enable crucial information sharing in the whole value chain.

Turck Vilant is the leading RFID solutions provider in the pulp and paper industry. Their RFID solutions benefit numerous pulp and paper producers by generating operational visibility and efficiency. The co-operation between TietoEVRY and Turck Vilant includes co-innovation in solution development, technology sharing, as well as sales and marketing.

Identifying product units and managing related data all along the logistics chain plays a key role in logistics efficiency, quality and cost management. With RFID, the identification of the batches, units, and rolls can be automated, and the collected information can be shared between the different parties efficiently.

”We are pleased to expand the use of RFID in the pulp and paper industry and making information on logistics units easily available. We welcome the co-operation with TietoEVRY, whose extensive experience in this industry and information sharing services creates value for our customers,” says Ville Kauppinen, Managing Director of Turck Vilant Systems.

“Utilising and sharing of data has increasingly bigger role in the industrial sector. We are constantly searching new ways to improve our customers’ efficiency and operational excellence. Co-operation with Turck Vilant Systems expands our capabilities to create more value from data,” says Jarmo Ropponen from TietoEVRY’s Pulp, Paper and Fibre industries.

TIPS Industry Solutions and Services, is optimized for pulp, paper, board, packaging, tissue and non-woven customers through the use of industry-proven best practices. It is the leading industry-specific ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and MES (Manufacturing Execution System) and has already been installed in close to 300 locations worldwide.

For more information, please contact:

Jarmo Ropponen
Head of Sales and Marketing, Pulp, Paper and Fibre, TietoEVRY
mobile + 358 40 7499 732
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sami Oksanen
Global Sales and Marketing Director, Turck Vilant Systems Oy
Mobile +358 40 564 2497
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TietoEVRY creates digital advantage for businesses and society. We are a leading digital services and software company with local presence and global capabilities. Our Nordic values and heritage steer our success.

Headquartered in Finland, TietoEVRY employs around 24 000 experts globally. The company serves thousands of enterprise and public sector customers in more than 90 countries. TietoEVRY’s annual turnover is approximately EUR 3 billion and its shares are listed on the NASDAQ in Helsinki and Stockholm as well as on the Oslo Börs. www.tietoevry.com

Turck Vilant Systems is Europe’s leading supplier of supply chain and asset tracking RFID systems. Since 2002, we have been awarded with numerous growth and innovation awards, and we have delivered RFID Solutions to 38 countries on five continents. Turck Vilant Systems offers its customers turnkey RFID solutions that result in faster stock turnover, lower inventory levels and more efficient supply chain processes. Our offering includes in-house developed RFID middleware, own or third-party hardware supplied from a trusted partner network and services such as installation, integration, consultation and 24/7 support. www.turckvilant.com

WEPA Giershagen is steadily operating its Toscotec-supplied AHEAD-2.0S tissue line (PM19) at the speed of 2,200 mpm. PM19 came online in October 2015 and after a machine speed-up, reached the constant speed of 2,200 mpm. Based on this result, WEPA sets a new world record in the tissue industry for machine speed in continuous running conditions.

The AHEAD-2.0S line is dedicated to the production of high quality tissue from 15 to 16.5 gsm basis weight. WEPA maximized its efficiency and achieved top performance in terms of production capacity with low energy consumption. PM19 production fulfils the quality parameters of WEPA’s super-soft toilet paper.

Frank-Peter Folcz, Plant Manager WEPA Giershagen, said: “Concerning the layout of the machine, we decided for a double press with 2x 120 kN/m line load. This was a new way for us, but it was exactly the right way. In order to produce paper in this speed range in a stable manner and with the highest performance, you do not only need a good machine - motivated and very well-trained staff is just as important. This combination is key to success”.

Riccardo Gennai, Toscotec Sales Manager, said, “We congratulate WEPA on the incredible job they did on this Toscotec machine. Our longstanding partnership has led to many achievements, and taking PM19 to the constant speed of 2,200 mpm is certainly a great one. This is what we work for everyday at Toscotec: supporting our customers’ success with the best technology and services. It is a satisfaction for us to see that PM19 still has untapped drying capacity, given the considerable margin both in terms of steam pressure and hood temperature.”

From 2006, Toscotec supplied the WEPA Group with 5 complete tissue lines - three of which on a full turnkey basis - and eight rebuild projects in paper mills in Germany, France, Italy and Poland.

About WEPA

The WEPA Group is a family business operating throughout Europe and offers sustainable and innovative hygiene solutions that provide a safe feeling of hygiene and contribute to the well-being of millions of consumers all over Europe every day. With 3,700 employees, the WEPA Group produces hygiene paper products such as toilet paper, towel paper, handkerchiefs and napkins at 13 production sites in Europe. WEPA is one of the three largest European manufacturers and is market leader in the production of hygiene paper made of recycled fibres. The annual turnover amounts to approximately 1.3 billion euros. In the consumer business unit, WEPA is the specialist for the private label of European retailers. The Professional business unit, with the brands BlackSatino and Satino by WEPA, stands for sustainable and professional hygiene solutions, which are used in public washrooms, the industry, offices or health care for example. The headquarters of the WEPA Group is in Arnsberg, North Rhine-Westphalia.

International technology group ANDRITZ has received an order to supply a complete PrimeLineCOMPACT S 1300 tissue machine with stock preparation system to Xuong Giang Paper Mill, Vietnam, a subsidiary company of Bac Giang Import Export JSC.

The new line has a design capacity of 54 tons/d, a design speed of 1,300 m/min and a paper width of 2.85 meters. It will process virgin pulp as raw material to produce high-quality facial and toilet tissue as well as napkins. Start-up is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2020.

The stock preparation plant is split into separate short fiber and long fiber systems and also includes the approach flow system, fiber recovery and broke handling equipment, and pumps.

ANDRITZ PrimeLineCOMPACT S 1300 tissue machine © ANDRITZ

The tissue machine has a 12-ft. PrimeDry Steel Yankee, equipped with a steam-heated hood to ensure highly efficient drying and substantial energy cost savings compared to operations with a cast iron Yankee and gas-heated hood. The Yankee will be manufactured at the ANDRITZ Steel Yankee Business Center located in Foshan, China.

ANDRITZ will also supply a tailored automation system, including PrimeControl MCS (Machine Control System), DCS (Distributed Control System) and MMD (Multi-Motor Drive) as well as the complete LV MCC (Low-Voltage Motor Control Center). Detailed engineering, erection work supervision and commissioning services for the high-performance production process complete the scope of supply.

Excellent performance by ANDRITZ equipment already operating at the mill, successful cooperation during previous projects and responsive service capabilities were the decisive criteria for Xuong Giang Paper Mill to choose ANDRITZ as its partner once again. This ANDRITZ PrimeLineCOMPACT S 1300 is the third tissue machine to be supplied by ANDRITZ to the Vietnamese market in recent years.

With hygiene being front-of-mind for government, business leaders and the public alike, James Cropper’s papers with PaperGard antimicrobial technology have been tested against Feline Coronavirus, with favourable results.

Recent studies show Coronaviruses can remain viable on metal, glass, wood, textiles, plastic and paper surfaces from several hours to a number of days[1].  Whilst the viability of Coronaviruses is not strong on paper compared to other surfaces, with in-built anti-microbial protection the level of risk of cross-contamination from people’s hands is significantly reduced.

James Cropper is expert at applying silver ion technology to paper, with antimicrobial papers having been a part of the product portfolio since 2006. PaperGard offers product protection for the lifetime of the paper, incorporating Biomaster® antimicrobial technology from the UK’s leading additive specialist, Addmaster.

The technology, when applied to paper, is known to be highly effective against pathogens such as MRSA and E-coli and following rigorous testing by an independent laboratory, its viral efficacy against Feline Coronavirus has been proven. In testing, the PaperGard protected papers were proven effective at reducing the viability of the viral strain by over 95% in only two hours.

Addmaster regulatory affairs manager Lesley Taylor explains: “Feline Coronavirus and Covid-19 are members of the Coronaviridae family of viruses which cause a broad spectrum of animal and human disease.

“This group of viruses are enveloped and rely on a protective lipid coating and are amongst the easiest types of virus to deactivate. Biomaster has yet to be tested against Covid-19 on product surfaces and currently there is not yet a suitable method validated for Covid-19, however the result clearly demonstrates the antiviral efficacy of silver ion technology against a member of the Coronaviridae family.”

Coronaviruses are relatively easy to destroy with simple disinfectants which break the delicate envelope that surrounds the tiny microbe. However, these topical sanitising products are only effective for a short period before cleaning needs to re-occur, and not always practical on paper products. The silver ion treatment in PaperGard is incorporated into the paper during manufacture; it cannot be removed with any amount of wear and tear. It becomes an integral part of the material.

Richard Bracewell, marketing and technical director at James Cropper comments, “This innovation addresses demand for cleaner surfaces. PaperGard allows paper products exposed to high touch volumes to in effect ‘self-sanitise’, without affecting the appearance or performance of the paper itself. 

“The silver ions present within the paper continually work to prevent the growth of the micro-organisms, effectively reducing contamination levels on the surface.”

Whilst PaperGard has been regularly used for the production of medical and healthcare documents this technology can be applied across the portfolio of paper products manufactured by James Cropper, including papers and boards for premium packaging or greetings cards that are subject to a lot of handling.

How PaperGard works:

• Silver ions bind to the cell wall of the micro-organism; preventing growth
• The silver ions interrupt enzyme production; stopping the microbe from producing energy
• Silver ions interrupt the cell's DNA; preventing DNA replication and new cell formation
• This process does not allow the micro-organisms to develop any resistance

[1] New England Journal of Medicine: telegraph.co.uk/health-fitness/body/does-coronavirus-live-different-surfaces/

SRP700, system ready package, is a solution offering based on the FieldCare device configuration application and combined with new Health Monitoring Application software.

Endress+Hauser launches its Asset Health Monitoring Solution, a pre-engineered software-based solution for Rockwell Automation systems and tailored for various industries. The solution accesses field instrumentation diagnostics and presents it in easily readable format to plant personnel, improving transparency, reducing maintenance costs and increasing plant availability.

The SRP700 runs on traditional hardware or in a virtual machine environment and is comprised of a central monitor and gateway, a standard client for device configuration management as well as a mobile client, and the field-proven Field Xpert SMT70 IP65/Class 1 Div 2 industrial tablet. It is used to access and acquire data from a variety of field devices, primarily analyzers and instruments. A KPI Dashboard (optional) presents diagnostics, history, statistics, and other information. in an easily readable format.

Plant personnel can use the SRP700 to:

• Take actions on diagnostic data provided by devices
• Connect to devices for troubleshooting and configuration
• See actual and past diagnostic data with corrective measures related with time stamps
• Analyze historical device diagnostic data

The Rockwell Edition of Endress+Hauser’s Asset Health Monitoring solution leverages Rockwell Automation PAC and HART I/O infrastructure to directly monitor diagnostics from Endress+Hauser and 3^rd party field process instruments for process technician users.

For more information visit https://eh.digital/3dNcIfL.

About Endress+Hauser in the U.S.

Endress+Hauser is a global leader in measurement instrumentation, services and solutions for industrial process engineering. Endress+Hauser provides sensors, instruments, systems and services for level, flow, pressure and temperature measurement as well as analytics and data acquisition. We work closely with the chemical, petrochemical, food & beverage, oil & gas, water & wastewater, power & energy, life science, primaries & metal, renewable energies, pulp & paper and shipbuilding industries. Endress+Hauser supports its customers in optimizing their processes in terms of reliability, safety, economic efficiency and environmental impact. The Group employs nearly 14,000 personnel worldwide and generated [net sales of] more than 2.6 billion euros (2.89 billion U.S. dollars) in 2019.

In order to avoid conflicts of interest, Lotta Lyrå has decided to resign from  SCA’s Board of Directors with immediate effect.

“We thank Lotta Lyrå for valuable contributions to the company”, says Pär Boman, Chairman of SCA’s Board of Directors.

For further information, please contact:
Björn Lyngfelt, Senior Vice President, Communications, tel +46 60 19 34 98
Katarina Nilsson, General Counsel and Secretary to the Board, tel +46 60 19 31 29

The core of SCA’s business is the forest, Europe’s largest private forest holding. Around this unique resource, we have built a well-developed value chain based on renewable raw material from our own and others’ forests.
We offer paper for packaging and print, pulp, wood products, renewable energy, services for forest owners and efficient transport solutions. In 2019, the forest products company SCA had approximately 4,000 employees and sales amounted to approximately SEK 19.6bn (EUR 1.9bn). SCA was founded in 1929 and has its headquarters in Sundsvall, Sweden. For more information, visit www.sca.com

The Board of Södra has appointed Lotta Lyrå as new President and CEO. She will take office this year and thereby replace CFO Peter Karlsson, who has been Interim President since 20 February this year.

“I am very proud to present Lotta Lyrå as our new President and CEO. She has the right competency profile to develop Södra within the context of the new Group strategy that has been developed. With a background in Södra and experience in both forestry and industry, she has an understanding of the development potential of family forestry and the innovation-driven culture that exists within the Group,” said Lena Ek, Chair of Södra.

Lotta Lyrå has served as CEO of Clas Ohlsson since 2017 and also held various senior positions in the IKEA Group. At Södra, she was previously employed as Head of Productivity for the Group and Sawmill Manager at Mönsterås.

“I am delighted and honoured to be entrusted with this opportunity – together with Södra’s members, employees, customers and contractors – to nurture and further develop Södra for the future. Södra has a unique platform, in terms of both raw material and mills, for future profitability, growth and innovation. Especially in light of the climate benefits that forests and forest products can provide through both forest growth and the replacement of fossil-based products. I am really looking forward to returning Södra, with its strong set of values, optimism and competence, and reconnecting with colleagues, members and customers,” said Lotta Lyrå.