Together, Lenzing and Södra take a giant leap further towards closing the loop from fiber to fiber in fashion.

Lenzing, a leading global supplier of wood-based specialty fibers, and Södra, a world-class producer of pulp, signed a cooperation agreement on, June 02, 2021, with the clear objective of making a decisive contribution to addressing the enormous textile waste challenges of the industry and the society. The cooperation involves the transfer of knowledge between the two companies, which have been proactively driving the circular economy issue for many years, and a joint process development followed by a capacity expansion for pulp from post-consumer waste. The goal is to process 25,000 tons of textile waste per year by 2025.

The fashion industry is one of the major polluting industries in the world. Millions of tons of textile waste are created each year, most of it ends up in landfills. In the spirit of the circular economy transition, both Lenzing and Södra have independently addressed the issue and developed appropriate solution options so far. Both companies are experts in their respective fields with many years of large-scale industrial experience.

Södra CEO: "We now taking the next step on our journey"
Together, they give textile recycling a huge boost by developing technologies further towards a broader, industrial-scale use of post-consumer cellulosic waste. The jointly developed pulp OnceMore® will subsequently also be used as a raw material for the production of Lenzing’s TENCEL™ x REFIBRA™ branded specialty fibers.

“The cooperation with Södra is a major milestone towards achieving our ambitious climate and sustainability goals. We are proud to be able to go this way with a competent partner. One company alone cannot solve the pressing issue of textile waste. It is proactive partnerships like this that enable us to move forward and bring about real systemic change”, says Christian Skilich, Member of the Managing Board of Lenzing.

“With OnceMore® pulp, Södra has created a globally unique solution to base textile on a recycled source. By joining forces with Lenzing, we now taking the next step on our journey and will bring world-class recycling to the textile value chain. Through a new investment, we will also ten-fold our production capacity of OnceMore® pulp during 2022 and have a higher level of recycled textile content. These are important steps towards our long-term target to create a circular textile industry”, says Lotta Lyrå, President and CEO of Södra.

“In this turn around decade for our planet, making forest-based fabrics from recycled textiles is critical to protect biodiversity, alleviate pressure on forests and address the growing climate crisis. Canopy is excited to see these two major producers join forces to bring vital Next Generation Solutions to the fashion industry. We look forward to seeing greater commercial volumes come to market”, says Nicole Rycroft, Canopy’s Founder and Executive Director.

Two companies with bold visions and large-scale solutions for the reuse of waste
In line with its circular economy vision, “We give waste a new life. Every day”, Lenzing drives the industry towards a fully-fledged circular economy by striving to give waste a new life in all aspects of its core business and by co-developing circular solutions with potential partners in and outside the current value chain. Lenzing has extensive knowledge in developing cutting-edge innovations in recycling such as its REFIBRA™ and Eco Cycle technologies. Besides virgin dissolving wood pulp, these technologies allow the processing of a substantial proportion of recycled materials based on pre-consumer cottons scraps and post-consumer garments.

OnceMore® by Södra is the world’s first process for industrial-scale recycling of textile waste of blended fibers, and it’s the forest who makes that possible. The process combines wood cellulose with textile waste to create a pure, high-quality dissolving pulp which can be used to produce new clothing and other textile products. During 2022, a new investment will ten-fold the production capacity of OnceMore® pulp and reach a higher level of recycled textile content. The goal for 2025 is to process 25,000 tons of textile and offer a OnceMore® pulp based on our wood material and 50 percent recycled textile material.

About the Lenzing Group
The Lenzing Group stands for ecologically responsible production of specialty fibers made from the renewable raw material wood. As an innovation leader, Lenzing is a partner of global textile and nonwoven manufacturers and drives many new technological developments.

The Lenzing Group’s high-quality fibers form the basis for a variety of textile applications ranging from elegant ladies clothing to versatile denims and high-performance sports clothing. Due to their consistent high quality, their biodegradability and compostability Lenzing fibers are also highly suitable for hygiene products and agricultural applications.

The business model of the Lenzing Group goes far beyond that of a traditional fiber producer. Together with its customers and partners, Lenzing develops innovative products along the value chain, creating added value for consumers. The Lenzing Group strives for the efficient utilization and processing of all raw materials and offers solutions to help redirect the textile sector towards a closed-loop economy. In order to reduce the speed of global warming and to accomplish the targets of the Paris Climate Agreement and the “Green Deal” of the EU Commission, Lenzing has a clear vision: namely to make a zero-carbon future come true.

Key Facts & Figures Lenzing Group 2020
Revenue: EUR 1.63 bn
Nameplate capacity: 1,045,000 tons
Employees: 7,358
TENCEL™, VEOCEL™, LENZING™, REFIBRA™, ECOVERO™, LENZING MODAL™, LENZING VISCOSE™, MICROMODAL™ and PROMODAL™ are trademarks of Lenzing AG.

About Södra
Södra was founded in 1938 and is the largest forest-owner association in Sweden, with a membership of 53,000 forest owners. Södra is also an international forest industry Group, with 3,000 employees around the world. Net sales in 2020 were 20 SEK billion. Balancing production efficiency with nature conservation guides everything that we do. We produce timber products, pulp for paper and textiles, and green energy. We use every part of the tree, and are always looking to develop new products from this fantastic, renewable raw material. Södra is a world-leading producer of market pulp and also owns one of the largest sawmill operations in Europe. Through value-generating relationships and a long-term approach, Södra is leading the way for the future of sustainable forestry.

Key Facts & Figures Södra 2020
Net sales: SEK 20,351 million
Operating profit: SEK 891 million
Employees: 3,100  

SWAPP® to paper packaging for a sustainable future! SWAPP® with an extra P for paper is a range of fibre-based packaging materials from BillerudKorsnäs to enable transition from plastic to paper and meet new consumer demands through better sustainability performance for people and the planet.

BillerudKorsnäs’ SWAPP® is an opportunity for companies to grow business by meeting new consumer and regulatory demands through renewable and innovative paper applications. SWAPP® is a collaborative and seamless process where the BillerudKorsnäs guides brand owners and retailers through the transformation towards sustainable paper packaging solutions.

“The FMCG packaging market is in a transformation phase – immense change will have to take place if brand owners and retailers are to meet directives and fulfil corporate commitments by 2025. With the SWAPP® offering BillerudKorsnäs provides sustainable paper alternatives to resolve some of the most imminent challenges: driving plastic reduction, CO2 reduction, and increasing recycling rates”,   says Patrik Bosander, Director Packaging Solutions at BillerudKorsnäs.  

BillerudKorsnäs takes responsibility for the transition from A to Z. Within a SWAPP® project the team supervises all actions to deliver a solution designed for consumer appeal and commercial performance. BillerudKorsnäs can provide paper material expertise, industrial experience, a network of converters and designers and prepare for a full-scale industrial packaging production.

“SWAPP® is about focusing on the needs and market requirements of brand owners and retailers as they move to paper solutions. Our brand owner managers and project teams collaborate with the key functions within the brand owner’s organization – packaging development, brand management, production – to deliver paper solutions that are “on brand” and are suited for their own production scale-up.  We orchestrate the critical players in the supply chain: from the brand’s production hall and filling machine adaptation, to converting and guidance to capable partners and ultimately to our own paper mills and innovation teams.” says Kristopher Fain, Director Solutions Sales, BillerudKorsnäs. 

Read more here: https://www.billerudkorsnas.com/our-offer/packaging-solutions/swapp

BillerudKorsnäs provides packaging materials and solutions that challenge conventional packaging for a sustainable future. We are a world-leading provider of primary fibre based packaging materials and have customers in over 100 countries. The company has 8 production units in Sweden, Finland and the UK and about 4500 employees in over 13 countries. BillerudKorsnäs has an annual turnover of about SEK 24 billion and is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. www.billerudkorsnas.com

Stora Enso has signed an agreement to divest its Sachsen Mill located in Eilenburg, Germany, to the Swiss-based family-owned company Model Group. Sachsen Mill has an annual production capacity of 310 000 tonnes of newsprint specialty paper based on recycled paper.

Under the agreement, Model Group will own and operate Sachsen Mill after the transaction is closed. Stora Enso will continue to sell and distribute Sachsen’s paper products under a contract manufacturing agreement for a period of 18 months after the closing. After that period, Model will convert the mill to the production of containerboard. All 230 employees at Sachsen Mill will move to Model Group with the transaction.

“We believe Model will be a good owner to ensure long-term development of the Sachsen Mill. We will continue to serve our customers with high quality paper products from Sachsen Mill at least until the end of 2022,” said Kati ter Horst, EVP, Stora Enso’s Paper division.

”Sachsen Mill is a perfect fit into our value chain within our existing network of operations, and we are looking forward to developing the site further,” said Daniel Model, Chairman and CEO.

The enterprise value of the transaction is EUR 35 million, subject to customary purchase price adjustments. The impact on Stora Enso’s operational EBIT or net debt is not considered material. Stora Enso will book a one-time cost of approximately EUR 32 million in its IFRS operating profit in the second quarter of 2021, considered as an item affecting comparability (IAC). The transaction is expected to be closed during the third quarter of 2021.

About Model Group
Model Holding AG is a 100% family-owned company founded in 1882. Headquartered in Weinfelden, Switzerland, Model Group develops, produces and delivers innovative packaging solutions using cardboard and corrugated board. The company has 9 corrugating production plants in Europe, and it produces containerboard paper at two sites, Weinfelden and Niedergösgen, in Switzerland. The company revenue in 2020 was CHF 859 million and the number of employees 4 225. More info at www.modelgroup.com

Part of the bioeconomy, Stora Enso is a leading global provider of renewable solutions in packaging, biomaterials, wooden constructions and paper. We believe that everything that is made from fossil-based materials today can be made from a tree tomorrow. Stora Enso has some 23 000 employees, and sales in over 50 countries. Our sales in 2020 were EUR 8.6 billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in the USA as ADRs (SEOAY). storaenso.com

International technology Group ANDRITZ has received an order from Nine Dragons Paper Industries to supply two chemi-thermomechanical pulping systems for their mills in China.

The start-ups are scheduled for spring and summer 2022.

ANDRITZ will install its well-proven P-RC APMP (pre-conditioning refiner chemical alkaline peroxide mechanical pulp) technology to ensure optimum pulp quality at lowest energy consumption and highest availability. The fiberlines will have a capacity of 1,000 admt/d and 670 admt/d, respectively, and will process a mixture of eucalyptus, acacia and poplar wood chips for the production of folding boxboard (FBB).

ANDRITZ will supply the main equipment – from chip washing to the storage tower – for both fiberlines, featuring the following highlights:

• MSD Impressafiner for wood chip maceration to enable optimum chemical impregnation
• High-consistency (HC) refining stage with TX68 refiner, including an advanced feeding system for optimum fiber development and lowest shive levels
• Low-consistency (LC) refining stages with TwinFlo refiners for low specific energy consumption and well-developed fibers
• Four newly developed PrimeFilter D disc filters for fiber recovery and thickening. The innovative disc filters feature the so-called HHw (high consistency, high freeness, wider space between discs) technology for advanced feeding and optimum flow conditions within the filter as well as CC bagless sectors for advanced operation and reduced maintenance.

The scope of supply also includes the basic engineering as well as supervision of mechanical installation, commissioning and start-up.

High-capacity and high-performance refining with the ANDRITZ TX68 refiner © Croce

Nine Dragons Paper is part of the Nine Dragons Paper Group, an important global player in the pulp and paper industry with mills in China, Vietnam, Malaysia, and the United States. The group primarily produces linerboard, high-performance corrugating medium and coated duplex board as well as printing and writing paper.

ANDRITZ GROUP International technology group ANDRITZ offers a broad portfolio of innovative plants, equipment, systems and services for the pulp and paper industry, the hydropower sector, the metals processing and forming industry, pumps, solid/liquid separation in the municipal and industrial sectors, as well as animal feed and biomass pelleting. Plants for power generation, flue gas cleaning, recycling, and the production of nonwovens and panelboard complete the global product and service offering. Innovative products and services in the industrial digitalization sector are offered under the brand name Metris and help customers to make their plants more user-friendly, efficient and profitable. The publicly listed group has around 26,950 employees and more than 280 locations in over 40 countries.

ANDRITZ PULP & PAPER ANDRITZ Pulp & Paper provides equipment, systems, complete plants and services for the production of all types of pulp, paper, board and tissue. The technologies and services focus on maximum utilization of raw materials, increased production efficiency and sustainability as well as lower overall operating costs. Boilers for power generation, flue gas cleaning systems, plants for the production of nonwovens and panelboard (MDF), as well as recycling and shredding solutions for various waste materials also form a part of this business area. State-of-the-art IIoT technologies as part of Metris digitalization solutions complete the comprehensive product offering.

International technology Group ANDRITZ has received an order from Shanying Paper (Guangdong) to supply the approach flow-, fiber recovery-, and broke handling systems for two board production lines to its mill in Zhaoqing, Guangdong Province, China.

Start-up is scheduled for the second quarter of 2022.

ANDRITZ’ scope of supply features the following technological highlights:

• ModuScreen HBE screens with proven inflow design for highly efficient and pulsation-free headbox screening at low energy consumption
• ModuScreen F screens with advanced rotor and screen basket design enabling high screening efficiency in the broke handling
• Newly developed PrimeFilter D saveall disc filters with Conical Cell bagless sectors providing excellent filtrate quality and minimum maintenance efforts in the fiber recovery

Newly developed PrimeFilter D saveall disc filter © ANDRITZ

Zhaoqing mill’s production lines PM52 and PM53 feature a total capacity of 3,300 t/d and process OCC as raw material producing linerboard and testliner as final product.

Shanying Paper (Guangdong) Co., Ltd. is part of Shanying International Holdings Co., which is a leading enterprise producing various paper products like culture paper, kraft papers, various packaging paper boards, and corrugated cardboard boxes.

ANDRITZ GROUP
International technology group ANDRITZ offers a broad portfolio of innovative plants, equipment, systems and services for the pulp and paper industry, the hydropower sector, the metals processing and forming industry, pumps, solid/liquid separation in the municipal and industrial sectors, as well as animal feed and biomass pelleting. Plants for power generation, flue gas cleaning, recycling, and the production of nonwovens and panelboard complete the global product and service offering. Innovative products and services in the industrial digitalization sector are offered under the brand name Metris and help customers to make their plants more user-friendly, efficient and profitable. The publicly listed group has around 26,950 employees and more than 280 locations in over 40 countries.

ANDRITZ PULP & PAPER
ANDRITZ Pulp & Paper provides equipment, systems, complete plants and services for the production of all types of pulp, paper, board and tissue. The technologies and services focus on maximum utilization of raw materials, increased production efficiency and sustainability as well as lower overall operating costs. Boilers for power generation, flue gas cleaning systems, plants for the production of nonwovens and panelboard (MDF), as well as recycling and shredding solutions for various waste materials also form a part of this business area. State-of-the-art IIoT technologies as part of Metris digitalization solutions complete the comprehensive product offering. 

Valmet supplies a Valmet IntelliTissue 1600 tissue making line to Chinese tissue producer C&S. The new line will be installed at the company’s mill in Tangshan, China. The start-up is scheduled for the first quarter of 2022.

The order was included in Valmet’s orders received of the first quarter 2021. The value of the order will not be disclosed. However, a project of this size and scope is typically valued at around EUR 5-10 million.

Valmet IntelliTissue machines belong to the small and medium size tissue machines that were integrated to Valmet’s offering when the company acquired PMP from Poland in 2020. Thanks to a long-term customer relationship, this order will be Valmet’s twelfth IntelliTissue tissue making line delivery to C&S.

“The target for our investment is to expand C&S’ share on the Chinese tissue market. We have decided to go for the IntelliTissue technology and execute the project together with Valmet due to their excellent references implemented worldwide,” says Tiande Lin, Director of Technology Center, C&S.

“This solution is a perfect match to the customers’ expectations. Valmet’s IntelliTissue technology ensures low energy consumption and high tissue quality thanks to state-of-the-art technology. The machines are responding to the needs of the customers in developing markets who see the possibility to grow their business not only by increasing the capacity, but also by lowering the production costs,” says Harrison Zhang, Vice General Manager of SMM (Small and medium size machinery), Changzhou, Paper business line, Valmet.

About C&S

C&S is a household paper manufacturing company in China and it is listed in Shenzhen stock exchange. The company has six production bases in Jiangmen and Yunfu of Guangdong, Chengdu of Sichuan, Jiaxing of Zhejiang, Xiaogan of Hubei and Tangshan of Hebei, with a sales network radiating to six biggest areas of east, south, west, north and middle of China, Hong Kong and Macao. C&S is selling its products to the overseas markets such as Southeast Asia, Middle East, Australia, and Africa.

Valmet is the leading global developer and supplier of process technologies, automation and services for the pulp, paper and energy industries. We aim to become the global champion in serving our customers.

Valmet's strong technology offering includes pulp mills, tissue, board and paper production lines, as well as power plants for bioenergy production. Our advanced services and automation solutions improve the reliability and performance of our customers' processes and enhance the effective utilization of raw materials and energy.  

Valmet's net sales in 2020 were approximately EUR 3.7 billion. Our 14,000 professionals around the world work close to our customers and are committed to moving our customers' performance forward - every day. Valmet's head office is in Espoo, Finland and its shares are listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki.

Read more www.valmet.com

In the ongoing work to challenge conventional packaging, BillerudKorsnäs and Aisa are launching a collaboration that opens up outstanding new possibilities in tube packaging made of paper. With BillerudKorsnäs FibreForm® you can replace plastics on tube shoulder and sleeve without compromising on user experience.

BillerudKorsnäs FibreForm® is a unique low-carbon material that allows the tube to keep its shape when squeezed, without traces, and that makes it unique compared to tubes made of other fibre material. FibreForm ® allows for up to ten times deeper embossing than regular paper, resulting in unique 3D effects and a memorable tactile experience.

“We will never compromise with user experience. FibreForm® is a unique material and this collaboration is another application where we can help brand owners on their journey towards sustainable packaging”, says Lovisa Westergren, Sales Director FibreForm ® at BillerudKorsnäs.

“Over the last few years we have seen an increasing demand for fibre-based packaging solutions including tube applications. This tube solution developed together with Aisa is utilizing the unique characteristics of the Fibreform material and is able to meet the high expectations from brand owners – from plastic reduction, to excellent functionality and exceptional branding possibilities.”     

Tubes made of FibreForm® can be used in different segments as for example toothpaste and cosmetics. FibreForm is renewable biodegradable, cold-formable and it requires less energy in production than plastics. One of the great advantages of the collaboration between BillerudKorsnäs and Aisa is the smooth manufacturing process. It is possible to replace the plastic with FibreForm in Aisa's machines without them having to be rebuilt.

" FibreForm® adds luxurious features to the already wide range of tube decorations and our clients can now offer higher end solutions to product marketers looking to differentiate from mass market packaging. By using FibreForm®  from Billerudkorsnäs, Aisa is now able to replace up to 70% of plastic in the functional shoulder component and together with the tube sleeve made of over 85% of paper, this hybrid shoulder contributes to a package that now is composed of more than 80% paper”,  says Joachim Sander, Director Marketing & Sales at AISA Automation Industrielle SA.

About AISA Automation Industrielle SA

Aisa Packaging is a division of Aisa focusing on packaging development and evaluation as well as new material testing.

Aisa Machinery develops and produces packaging production machinery and more specifically is the world market leader in tube packaging production machinery. Decoseam™ is a patented technology of Aisa used, among others, to produce paper-based laminate tubes and the hybrid paper shoulder has patents pending. www.aisa.com

SCA, Europe’s largest private forest owner and producer of wood products, packaging paper, pulp and renewable energy, will return on a long-term deal to market leading UK Paper Hub* located at London’s major port, the Port of Tilbury. The 50-acre facility on the Thames will become SCA’s primary UK logistics hub for the import of packaging materials to supply their UK customers.

Sweden based SCA, are a major European logistics supplier - calling at terminals including Umea, Sundsvall, Helsingborg, Oxelösund, Malmo, Iggesund and Kiel – and will see substantial volumes of packaging paper and other third-party cargoes regularly transported by their own Ro-Ro vessels from Sweden to the UK Paper Hubs’ dedicated berths.

SCA’s packaging materials will be used by customers in the UK for ecommerce, industrial and food packaging as well as many other retail packaging solutions - all contributing to the UK’s growing demand for renewable packaging materials.

Helping to keep global and domestic markets moving, UK Paper Hub will also assist SCA’s circular supply chain with the export of RDF (Refuse Derived Fuel), supporting circular economy and energy from waste solutions across Sweden.

Commenting on the new contract for Tilbury, Paul Dale, Asset and Site Director said: “This is exciting news for the UK Paper Hub as we secure another market leader in the paper, packaging and forest products market. We warmly welcome SCA back to Tilbury and look forward to working collaboratively to ensure a world class, flexible, end to end service for their UK customers.

As the paper and forest product port for the future, we are focussing on making a real contribution to the environment and net zero targets by reducing all forms of waste within the paper and forest products supply chain. Through our location and connections, we offer unrivalled opportunities at our all-in-one facility.”

Steve Harley, Managing Director for SCA UK Logistics added, “2022 will mark our return to the Port of Tilbury. The move renews a long-standing relationship between SCA and Forth Ports which spans half a century. Ensuring that the logistics chain is as efficient as possible is our utmost concern and our Tilbury operation will align our shipping, warehousing and distribution activities with our customers’ geographical spread and service requirements. We look forward to a productive cooperation with the Forth Ports team.”

* UK Paper Hub is the collective brand covering Tilbury’s handling, storage and distribution services for paper and related forest products (including graphical papers and newsprint, packaging paper and board, tissue and hygiene products, and pulp). The brand brings together the expertise and facilities of the paper handling terminals, previously known as Enterprise Distribution Centre (EDC) and London Paper Terminal (LPT), which the port owns and operates.

The UK Paper Hub can handle paper and forest products in any form, any quantity using any method of shipping or distribution, both short sea and deep sea. The Hub has access to a nationwide haulage network and connects the UK’s domestic industries with markets across the globe. Tilbury’s newest port, Tilbury2, opened in May 2020 and along with London Container Terminal, offers the Hub further connections and capacity for customers. https://ukpaperhub.forthports.co.uk/

About Forth Ports / Port of Tilbury&Tilbury2

Forth Ports Limited owns and operates Tilbury, alongside seven other commercial ports on the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay: Grangemouth, Dundee, Leith, Rosyth, Methil, Burntisland and Kirkcaldy.

The Port of Tilbury is the number one UK port for forest products, construction materials, paper, grain, recyclables and warehousing space. The port has a strong market presence in bulk commodities, ro-ro, cars and cruise vessels. The port’s London Container Terminal handles a mix of short and deep-sea services, is the UK's number four port for containers and has the greatest reefer (refrigerated container) point connectivity in Europe. Tilbury's strategic location makes it a natural point for distribution, with nearly 20 million people living within 75 miles. Serving the UK's market, the port offers customers excellent transport links to and from the UK’s capital and across the South East where over 50% of the population live and work. The port is a diverse multi-modal hub, covering around 1,000 acres (850 acres and the London Distribution Park, in addition to the Tilbury2 site) and is well positioned to access the M25 orbital motorway and the rest of the UK's national motorway network. In addition, there are direct rail connections within the port and dedicated barge facilities.

Kemira, a global leader in sustainable chemical solutions for water intensive industries adds capacity in Asia-Pacific and announces the start-up of a new dry polymer production plant in Ulsan, South Korea and the initiation of planning for increased production capacity of sizing agents in Nanjing, China. These investments are part of Kemira’s growth strategy implementation and underline Kemira’s strong commitment to the paper and board customer base and support Kemira’s water treatment growth initiatives in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.  

Kemira has opened a new dry polymer production plant in Ulsan, South Korea in May 2021. The plant produces high quality dry polyacrylamide (DPAM) products primarily for retention and drainage applications which are critical in modern, fast paper and board production. The investment is a joint venture between Kemira and Yongsan Chemicals. 

The paper and board industry is seeing the fastest growth in the APAC region, particularly for consumer-driven packaging and board grades, and currently, most of the new production on the global market in all paper grades is being built in China and the APAC region. The new dedicated capacity strengthens Kemira’s local and global supply network of high-quality dry polymers and supports the growing Asia-Pacific markets for both Kemira’s business segments, Pulp & Paper and Industry & Water.   

“Building on our decades of experience, the state-of-the-art production technology at Ulsan ensures high, consistent product quality and performance. The manufacturing capabilities are supported by full backward integration to key raw materials, ensuring cost-effective production. The project has been executed smoothly in schedule in the challenging operating circumstances, with excellent site safety performance and in good cooperation with our partner,” states Maria Sederholm, Director, Global Product Lines, Polymers at Kemira. 

Kemira has also initiated a pre-engineering phase to construct a multimillion investment to increase the production capacity of ASA sizing agents at its Nanjing site in Jiangsu province in China. ASA (alkenyl succinic anhydride) sizing agents are used for improving water resistance in paper and board, including packaging solutions. Currently, Kemira is the leading producer and supplier of sizing agents in the APAC market and Nanjing is the world’s largest ASA production site. Kemira’s production in Nanjing has been expanding since the start in 2014. 

“The investment to a third production line in the modern and highly automated Nanjing site will further strengthen our leading position and enable us to even better supply the increasing demand for high quality sizing products. ASA is the most effective and cost-efficient sizing agent for packaging and board grades. Investment project will take approximately 2 years after pre-engineering phase is completed,” states Alexander Wahl, Director, Global Product Line, Sizing at Kemira. 

Kemira is a global leader in sustainable chemical solutions for water intensive industries. We provide best suited products and expertise to improve our customers’ product quality, process and resource efficiency. Our focus is on pulp & paper, water treatment and oil & gas. In 2020, Kemira had annual revenue of around EUR 2.4 billion and around 5,000 employees. Kemira shares are listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd. 

www.kemira.com

For more information: 

Antti Matula 
SVP, Global Product Lines & Business Development, Pulp & Paper 
Tel +358 505703576 
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  

Nichlas Kavander
SVP, Commercial, Pulp & Paper APAC 
Tel: +86 2180214811 
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Toscotec boosts the drying efficiency of its tissue lines with TT Drying Equilibrium, a simple and reliable system that ensures an optimal and automatic regulation of the air balance in the Yankee hoods and air system. The system was originally designed by Voith and transferred to Toscotec for further development in the synergy-creating cooperation established with the acquisition. TT Drying Equilibrium measures several attributes of the air going in and out of the hoods, and automatically adjusts the system to guarantee the highest productivity and energy efficiency.

Stefano Pecchia, Energy Technology Director at Toscotec, says: “In a properly balanced hood system, the masses of gases - vapour and dry air - that are fed into the system are equal to those that go out through the chimney as exhaust air. This balance is crucial to avoid fresh air getting in and hot air going out during manufacturing; in this way, you can achieve maximum drying efficiency. We recommend the automatic balancing system especially on tissue machines that frequently change basis weight during the production cycle. It would be more complicated for operators to balance the system manually at every change; TT Drying Equilibrium makes these adjustments automatically, in a much faster and more effective way.”

The control and regulation logics are managed by a dedicated PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) that communicates with the DCS (Distributed Control System) of the tissue machine. The mill can easily access the data collected, stored and organized by the PLC on local monitors, tablets, or smartphones, through a remote connection.

Ensure product quality 
A lack of balance in the hoods can be triggered both by over-pressure that causes hot air to go out, and by under-pressure that causes cold air to be pulled into system through the gap between the Yankee and the hoods. These imbalances will reduce energy efficiency, give rise to paper quality issues, cause environment-related issues, and potentially be unsafe to personnel. In fact, in the event of air suction, cold air on the paper can lead to its detachment from the Yankee surface and to an uneven moisture profile. In case of over-pressure, hot air can cause overheating of the surrounding area with increased fire risks, discomfort or danger for operators, possible damage to adjacent equipment, and deterioration of the environmental conditions of the machine hall. By ensuring hood balance, TT Drying Equilibrium contributes to effectively avoid these issues and deliver the best possible product quality. 

An effective twofold Balance Control
TT Drying Equilibrium consists of a set of various transmitters of physical data, including speed, flow rate, temperature, humidity, and pressure, and of a data acquisition and processing system.
The calculation algorithms produce the mass flow rates inside all the air ducts leading into and out of the Yankee hoods, including outgoing air, make-up air, and combustive air both on wet-end and dry-end.
The combustion air is regulated by the burner control system, while the flow of exhaust air can be regulated by the moisture control loop. TT Drying Equilibrium controls the dampers that allow for make-up air to enter the system, thereby maintaining a condition of balance over time.
In addition to controlling the air mass flows, the system also checks the actual balance using temperature sensors installed just outside the Yankee-Hoods gap and of pressure transmitters inside the hoods. As a result, TT Drying Equilibrium delivers an effective twofold balance control in real time, based on the calculated balance of the masses, and on the confirmation that hot air is not escaping or cool air is not being pulled in around Yankee and Hoods.

A key tool to monitor Machine Efficiency & optimize Production and Maintenance 
TT Drying Equilibrium also enables real time monitoring of the energy performance of the tissue machine. It processes production data acquired from the DCS and produces precise figures or trends relating to the tissue machine’s energy consumptions, including steam, gas, and electrical power consumption.
It also acquires key data of the air system’s heat recovery units, including inlet and outlet temperatures and flow rates, to monitor their performance, and plan maintenance activities. This allows the mill to check production efficiency by product over time, and to perform preventive maintenance.

For more information, please contact:
Marco Dalle Piagge, Sales Director, Toscotec Tissue division, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.