Ziegler Paper Mill completes annual overhaul during July

GRELLINGEN, Switzerland, Aug. 19, 2009 (Press Release) -

Between 11 and 22 July 2009, a number of repairs and renovations were performed at Ziegler Paper Mill as part of this year's annual overhaul. This ensures that our works are ideally equipped to face the future in respect of both production capacity and environmental efficiency.

Special attention was focussed on the overhaul of the waste heat boiler used for generating hot water. This was fitted with supplementary heat exchangers that obtain 600 kW from the boiler's waste air and lower the temperature of the waste air exiting from the flue from 120°C to around 50°C. This makes it possible to heat 30 m³ of water per hour to a temperature of 60 - 80 °C. This warm water is used in the paper machine in sections that were previously supplied with fresh cold water. The energy formerly used to heat this water will therefore be saved in future. This means that specific energy consumption per tonne of paper is reduced by 3%. In the energy-intensive papermaking industry, this corresponds to the quite substantial energy volume of 12 tonnes of steam a day.

In order to cope with the significant rise in overall production levels experienced over recent years, a major enhancement was performed on the pope roller of the paper machine, which was completely replaced to enable the machine to operate now with larger empty drums. This means that the maximum tonnage possible on a roll of paper is now higher, making it easier to handle the increased production volumes.

Another important focus of the overhaul was refurbishing the electrical distribution system. Old distribution and transformer equipment was replaced in order to ensure the safety of our electrical supply in the future. Needless to say, in addition to these major projects, a number of smaller tasks we also carried out, including the installation of new pumps for transporting pulp to the paper machine.

Our summer 2009 overhaul therefore means that Ziegler Paper Mill is ready and equipped to start another successful new year of production.

N.B. This press release has been updated from a previous version.