Tasman $17.5M upgrade

Press, 19 June 1986, Page 23

Tasman $17.5M upgrade

PA Wellington Tasman Pulp and Paper Company, Ltd, will spend $17.5 million on further upgrading its No. 2 paper machine at Kawerau. Tasman said the move would build on successful projects completed on- the company’s Nos. 2 and 3 machines during the past three years which had seen more than S3OM spent in a drive to lift paper quality. Included In the programme

were the conversion of the machine to twin-wire forming, and the replacement of the current "calendering” arrangement (tiers of heated rolls which put the final polish on the newsprint sheet), with a single modern calender stack.

The latter project would result in an increase in saleable newsprint production of up to 7000 tonnes a year. Both jobs were scheduled to be completed during a twoweek machine shutdown early in 1988.

Twin-wire conversion meant the newsprint sheet would be formed between two converging synthetic meshes rather than on a single mesh, resulting in more even formation and improved surface characteristics.

A similar installation had been completed on the mill’s No. 3 machine in 1985, and according to Tasman’s paper production manager, Mr Dave Patterson, it had met all its quality objectives. The calender replacement

would provide improved uniformity of roll temperature and calendering intensity, reducing current losses in saleable production.

The simplified threading system offered by a single calender stack would also minimise machine downtime resulting from sheet breaks.

Mr Patterson said the combined effect of these efficiency improvements should see the machines annual saleable output lifted by some 7000 tonnes.