Toscotec Undertakes Two Tissue Machine Rebuilds in North and South America on Same Day

For both the tissue machine rebuild projects, Toscotec upgraded the wet and the dry section of the two respective production lines.

November28,2022

On 11 November 2022, Toscotec started up two tissue machinerebuildsattheproductionfacilitiesoftwomajor producers in North and South America. On both projects, the scope of the modificationswasextensive, covering the wet and dry section of the two lines.The tight periods of machine stops havebeenexecutedaccordingtoschedule.

In the words of Mr. Andrea Paganucci, Toscotec Project Manager, “One of the most challenging aspects on this large rebuild was the integration ofToscotec's key components with the existing equipment. Creating an effective interface between different systems requires strong multi-stakeholder coordination. We are happy that the machine is now running efficientlyasexpected.”

About the rebuild projects, Mr. Flavio D'Orlando, Toscotec Site Manager, says,“After the rebuild, the machine started producing sellable paper right away. We are now fine-tuning the new equipment, which is already meeting the mill's product quality requirements. The on-site operations, including dismantling, erection,commissioning,andstart-up,allwentverysmoothly.”

SKF India to Enable Pulp & Paper Industry in Upgrading Machine Uptime and Productivity

For its multi-year contracts with Mehali Papers and Urvashi Pulp and Paper Mills, SKF India will provide a wide range of products and remote diagnostic services and onsite training programs.

December30,2022

One of the leading technology and solutions providers of bearings andservicesinthecountry–SKFIndiahasinked multi-year performance-based agreements with two renowned pulp and paper manufacturers – Mehali Papers Pvt. Ltd.andUrvashiPulpandPaperMills.

These performance-based contracts are aimed at improving productivity, reducing downtime, and raising profitability, as stated in media reports. Moreover, the contracts are a component of the Rotating Equipment Performance (REP) offering, with which the customers are enabled to increase the machine's reliability and outcome while reducing the Total CostofOwnership(TCO).

Within the agreement,SKF India will be responsible for offering a thorough range of products such as – bearings, lubrication systems, onsite vibration analysis, dynamic balancing and alignment, connected condition monitoring units as well as remotediagnosticservicesandonsitetrainingprograms.

In the words of Mr. Sujeeth Pai, Director – Industrial Market, SKF India and Southeast Asia,“As a customer-centric organization, SKF develops innovative products and solutions that meet its customers' objectives. With our performance-based REP contracts, customers can gain valuable insights to maximize their equipment's productivity, reliability, and efficiency while reducingtheiroverallcostofmaintenance.”

Speaking about the agreements, Mr. Sundeep Shah, Managing Director, Urvashi Paper said, “With fast-growing paper market in India, paper machine uptime & OEE are primary growth drivers for UrvashiPaper to cater the market demand for higher quality paper. Partnering with SKF will help us achieve the desired Rotating Equipment Performance and improve productivity, with greater flexibility on mechanical maintenancecostandoptimization.”

In addition, SKF India has developed a fee-based business model around the customer's needs and productivity targets. Thus, the Company offers an appropriate combination of products and services to help customers improve the competitivenessoftheirmachines.

Mr. Ashraf Nathani, Managing Director, Mehali Paper, said,“The pulp and paper sector is transitioning towards Industry 4.0 for more flexible & efficient manufacturing process. Continuous innovation can not only improve processes, products, and services, but also have a positive impact on business models, workforce training, and environmental compliances. With the long-term performance-oriented REP contracts, we are confident of improving the efficiency of our maintenance strategy by leveraging SKF's digital solutions and application engineeringknowledge.”n

Smurfit Kappa Infuses Over EUR 20 Million in its Plants in Czech Republic & Slovakia

Smurfit Kappa's investments in the two plants include installing state-of-the-art equipment for capacity augmentation in view of the rising consumer demand for paper-based packaging solutions.

November24,2022

Europe's leading paper-based packaging producer Smurfit Kappa has infused significant investments in its Olomouc plant in the Czech Republic and Obaly Štúrovo site in Slovakia. The previous year, the Company had announced investments of more than EUR 20 million in expansion in line with the commitment to strengthen operations in Central and Eastern Europe.

With the investments, there were significant upgradations in the two plants including the installation of state-of-the-art equipment for capacity augmentation in view of the rising consumer demand for paper-based packaging solutions. A new converting equipment has been installed which will enhance the converting capacity by more than 100 million regularandoffsetprintedboxesperannum.

Additionally, the investments are aimed at further enhancing Smurfit Kappa's positioning in the Czech Republic and Slovakia so as to further target specific industries, most notably the FMCGandelectro-technicalsectors.

Mr. Tony Smurfit, Group CEO of Smurfit Kappa and Mr. Saverio Mayer, CEO of Smurfit Kappa Europe, attended the official launch of the upgraded plants during which customers were givenadetailedwalk-throughoftheenhancedcapabilitiesand SmurfitKappa'sdeep-rootedsustainabilitycredentials.

Commenting at the official unveiling of the two upgraded plants, Mr. Zdenek Suchitra, CEO of Smurfit Central & SouthEast Europe, said,“I am delighted to announce that both of our investments at the Olomouc (Czech Republic) and Obaly Štúrovo (Slovakia) plants have finished on time and within our original budget in a time when there is a scarcity of all kinds of materials. These investments, along with the investments we made in two additional sites in the Czech Republic, demonstrate our commitment to our customers and operations in CentralandEasternEurope.”

Mr. Suchitra further explained that they have transformed their plants into state-of-the-art facilities through these investments. The group is assured of its positioning to satisfy their well-establishedcustomerbase.n

Metsä Board Kemi Mill Achieves the Milestone of 15 Million Tonnes

Metsä Board's current development programme, which is a EUR 67 million investment, will increase the production capacity of the mill's coated white kraftliners by 40,000 tonnes.

December15,2022

Metsä Board's Kemi mill has been a forerunner in the product development of coated white kraftliners. Production of brown kraftliner started in 1971 and the capacity was 180,000 tonnes per annum. In 1975, the mill's bleaching plant was completed, and the production of mottled liner began soon after. Following investments, the production of white top kraftliner began in 1986. In 1990, the degree of upgrading was further raised with the launch of coating, followed by investments made in double-coating in 2011. From January 2023, Kemi mill's full focus will be on the development and enhancing the availability of coated white kraftlinerstomeetthegrowingdemand.

Presently, there are three different coated grades in the product range and, as a result of continuous process development and numerous investments over the years, the production capacity of the mill has more than doubled to 425,000 tonnes per year. Metsä Board's current development programmeisaEUR67millioninvestmentthatwillincreasethe production capacity of the mill's coated white kraftliners by a further40,000tonnesandhelpimprovethemill'ssustainability performance.

“The basis for the development of the coated grades has from the very beginning been meeting the most demanding customer needs and anticipating future trends of the end user industry”, says Panu Räsänen, Product Manager WKL, Metsä Board.

Owing to an experience spanning many years of systematic development,Kemimill'scurrentproductrangehasanoptimal coated krafliner grade for each printing method. Metsä Board's aim is to support circular economy by premium and lightweight paperboards produced resource-efficiently, helping customerstoreducetheircarbonfootprint.n