Featuring news, products and people 1/2009

At your service

Tamfelt and Larox: Close cooperation already

for over 25 years

Packaging board machines place new demands on forming fabrics

Sleeves enjoy major success in North America

Rhein Papier PM 1: Newsprint world record is

now 2,010 m/min

Tamfelt

2

IN!Speaker’s Corner

Innofabrics 1/2009Published by Tamfelt Corp.Editor-in-Chief:Anne Paloheimo-Seppänen, Tamfelt Corp.anne.paloheimo-seppanen@tamfelt.comText editing and layout:imageneering | worldwide partners

Photos:Sami Helenius and Tamfelt Editorial address:P.O. Box 427, FI-33101 TAMPERETel. +358 10 4049 000Fax +358 10 4049 930E-mail: tamfelt@tamfelt.comwww.tamfelt.com

Contents

is

Cooperation

Dear Reader

Tamfelt, a company of over 200 years of age, welcomed a new President and CEO at the be-ginning of 2009. Before joining Tamfelt, Mr. Reima Kerttula, M.Sc. (Eng.), was Senior Vice President of Metso Paper’s Paper and Board Machines and Plant Manager of Metso’s Rautpohja plant in Jyväskylä, Finland. With his long track record at Metso and its predecessor companies, Mr. Kerttula brings solid experience from the paper and pulp industry, including involvement in a high number of international projects.

Challenging economic climate

The new President started at Tam-felt at a most challenging moment. “In August 2008, when I accepted this position, the business world around us looked much different from what it is today. For example, the price competition in the paper machine clothing market is tighten-ing in line with the crippling world economy,” he says.

2 Speaker’s Corner Change of name at Fanafel

3 Tamfelt and Larox: Close cooperation already for over 25 years

4 Filtrate clearness problems solvedEnergy savings with a new lime mud fi lter cloth

5 A monofi lament polyamide fabric rules in the Polish mining industry

6 Packaging board machines place new demands on forming fabrics

8 One, two, three strong press felts from TamfeltCongratulations, Stora Enso Kvarnsveden PM 12!

9 Rhein Papier PM 1: Newsprint world record is now 2,010 m/min

10 Sleeves enjoy major success in North America

11 Dryer fabrics: A look into the future

12Appointments at Tamfelt

Congratulations, Pratt Industries PM 15!

Tamfelt Ltda. receives the Samarco Excellence Award

In this weak market situation, also Tamfelt has been forced to resort to lay-offs and temporary lay-offs as well as to other cost savings. “To ensure that the com-pany remains profi table, we have to adjust our operations to the weakened economic environment,” Mr. Kerttula explains. “However, over the years, Tamfelt has made signifi cant investments in its plants to ensure that they are in good condition. With the help of our excellent products, good machin-ery and professional workforce, we will make constant efforts to realize daily improvements for our customers’ benefi t.”

Focus markets and growth opportunities

Tamfelt is dedicated to its own focus market as a full-line sup-plier for modern paper and board machines. In fi lter fabrics, too, the company has stayed focused on certain selected fi ltering processes. “Our RTD (research and technical development), together with our sales and technical service, work intensively to fulfi ll the customers’

needs both in the PMC and fi lter fabric mar-kets. New products are underway and existing ones are being further improved. In the past months, Tamfelt’s products have again contributed to two new world speed records as well as successful start-ups,” Mr. Kerttula points out.

When it comes to opportunities for growth and expansion world-wide, it’s the fi lter fabric business that provides the best perspectives. Together with the paper industry, fi lter fabrics are the company’s mainstay. Reima Kerttula sees growth prospects for fi lter fabrics especially in the fi eld of environmental technology, since increasing environmental awareness together with stricter environmental standards have boosted their demand. This trend is expected to continue into the future. High-quality fi lter fabrics are key in the reduction of emissions from fossil fuels, such as coal, as well as in various air and water fi ltration processes.

Mr. Kerttula believes that ad-ditional growth will be achieved in the PMC business, too – even in Western Europe, where a number of projects for paper as well as board are underway. The projected board machines are wide, reaching almost the speeds of paper ma-chines. It is also very important for Tamfelt to safeguard its expansion in the Chinese market, where its new production unit in Tianjin got off to a good start in 2008.

To better support its growth targets, Tamfelt has recently made some organizational changes. The appointments are listed later in this issue.

Customer relations and personnel are key to success

“Tamfelt’s foundation lies in its customers and professional workforce. Our success depends on the success of our customers. The value of sustainable partner-ships is emphasized at times of economic turbulence. When we keep our promise and ensure that the quality of the product is right, the customers get the added value they expect. RTD investments and cooperation with customers bring important benefi ts as well,” Reima Kerttula sums up.

Wishing you interesting moments with this Innofabrics Now issue.

Innofabrics Now staff

Mr. Reima Kerttula started as Tamfelt’s CEO and President at the beginning of 2009.

Change of name at Fanafel Fanafel Fábrica Nacional de Feltros Industriais Lda., in brief, Fanafel, has been a successful part of the Tamfelt Group since 1990. In order to harmonize the company names within the Group, Fanafel’s name will be changed into Tamfelt Technical Textiles, Lda as of May 1, 2009.

3

IN!

Larox and Tamfelt have cooperated in sales and marketing already for over 25 years. Tamfelt sup-plies, for example, all start-up clothing for Larox PF tower presses, and Tamfelt’s fabric experts support Larox’s after-sales service globally. Expert choice of correct fi lter media is crucial for fi ltration equipment performance. Optimal fi ltra-tion results are gained through close teamwork between the customer, Larox, and Tamfelt.

“Tamfelt has cooperated with Larox Group since its founda-tion and consequently with customers using Larox tower presses. Today, there are hun-dreds of Larox PF applications equipped with Tamfelt fi lter fab-rics running smoothly around the world,” says Mr. Esa Oksanen, Product Manager, Tamfelt Filtration Corp.

As a result of its long experi-ence, extensive RTD (research and technical development), as well as close cooperation with Larox and the customers, Tam-

Tamfelt and Larox

Close cooperation already for over 25 years

felt also provides state-of-the-art solutions for the Scheibler fi lters, such as tailor-made bags and fab-rics to match specifi c needs.

Tamfelt’s long experience in horizontal belt fi lter fabrics makes them just right for the Pannevis fi lters of all sizes. For example, the StrongMax product line represents an ideal solution for demanding applications that are under a lot of wear. The high quality and long lifetime of Tamfelt’s cloths – multi-fi lament as well as light and heavy monofi lament fabrics – exceed all customer expectations.

This extensive know-how and the wide selection of automatic pressure fi lter fabrics is available for the Hoesch fi lters, too. The ben-efi ts gained from the development of Hoesch fi lter applications in close cooperation between Tamfelt and Larox have become clear to many new customers.

“The past decades have involved a lot of high-spirited teamwork between all parties, and Tamfelt continues to be 100% committed to developing the fi ltration process further. We make expert visits to the end-user plants and also offer in-depth, hands-on fi lter fabric training,” Esa Oksanen explains. “Short delivery times, extensive fi l-ter fabric RTD and laboratory tests and services are also important factors when discussing coopera-tion between Larox, Tamfelt and

the end-user. Tamfelt offers both technically and economi-cally the optimal fabric for each application. It all adds up to reliability.”

Good teamwork will continue

Since Larox had strongly expanded its operations in the past few years, it was time to renew the cooperation agree-ment between the two com-panies. Signed on January 15, 2009, the new agreement now includes, in addition to Larox tower presses, also Scheibler polishing fi lters, Pannevis hori-zontal vacuum belt fi lters, and Hoesch MFP and FFP chamber fi lters.

Teamwork is part of the two companies’ close cooperation. Pictured from the left: Jari Stålhammar (Tamfelt), Juhana Ylikojola (Larox), Pasi Ehrling (Larox), Petri Viinikka (Larox) and Kimmo Järvinen (Tamfelt).

Larox is a leading innovator and supplier of solid/liquid separation solutions for the world’s process industries. Companies in the mining and metallurgy, chemical processing and relat-ed industries benefi t from its high-performance, high-effi ciency process solutions, technologies and products. Larox operates in over 40 coun-tries and has over 460 employees. Larox Group is headquartered in Lappeenranta, Finland. Its net sales in 2008 were 208 million euros, 93% of which came from sales outside of Finland.

4

On LM disc filters, the dry con-tent of the lime mud has gained importance as the energy consumption in the oven has become especially important due to increased energy prices. On the other hand, however, the solids content of the filtrate should remain sufficiently low. Since these two are opposite values (an either-or-case), the lime mud filtration RTD has taken a lot of time and testing in order to produce an optimal solution. But now it’s here!

Tamfelt is proud to introduce a brand new lime mud filter cloth, S11P02-R1, which meets the above two-way requirements as closely as possible. Its monofila-ment yarns in warp and partly in weft provide permeability values that yield a 70-85% dry content, depending on the process and the lime mud quality. Thanks to the monofilament yarns, the cloth stays clean and maintains its properties throughout its running life. The 0.3-mm monofilament is very durable, enabling the desired

Energy savings with a new lime mud filter cloth

minimum one-year running life. The multifilament weft yarns make the cloth dense enough so filtrate pu-rity is 50-200 mg/l, depending on the pressure of the CPR washer.

Another important feature in designing the cloth was to make its installation easy for the mill person-nel. Using the 0.3-mm monofila-ment increases both the shrinkage percentage and the shrinkage force of the cloth. The bags will

shrink onto the sectors quickly and tightly, ensuring a long run-ning life.

So far, Tamfelt’s new lime mud filter cloths have been success-fully run at UPM, Kuusanniemi, Finland; Stora Enso, Celbi, Por-tugal; and Suzano Mukuri, Brazil. More references keep flowing in when old cloths are changed over to new ones.

The multilayer fabric with special treatment

The multilayer fabric is a good example of Tamfelt’s development work driven by market demands. The fabric was developed to filter slurry with particles that are very small in size and have sharp edges. These particles have a tendency to penetrate the woven fabric and gradually grind a hole through it.

To prevent holes, Tamfelt developed a fabric that is able to resist the penetration of tiny, sharp particles. The fabric surface has been treated to allow water to pass through but to prevent the particles from pushing through the surface. This not only extends

Filtrate clearnessTamfelt has been working closely with Larox Group in the field of tower presses for several decades. Along the way, both the market and the filters have continuously developed. Tamfelt has met the growing requirements by developing filter fabrics accordingly to suit the more demanding applica-tions. This all means the end user has been given the advantage of the best filters and the best filter fabrics in the market.

the fabric life significantly but also yields a clearer filtrate and keeps the filtrate clearness at a constant level throughout the fabric life.

Satisfied customer

Solvay GmbH in Rheinberg, Germany, is one of Tamfelt’s many satisfied multilayer fabric custom-

ers. Earlier, the plant had used a woven fabric in their Larox PF filter. Every time a fabric had been run for a certain period of time, the filtrate clearness began to deterio-rate. On closer inspection, the staff noticed several tiny holes in the fabric which were allowing particles to go through to the filtrate.

After the fabric was changed over to Tamfelt’s multilayer fabric, the problem vanished. Since then,

Solvay has been able to run the filter for much longer periods of time without a fabric change. Additionally, the plant appreci-ates the fabric’s durability against mechanical strain and the fact that the filtrate clearness is now at a completely new level during the whole cloth lifetime.

problems solved

Energy savings with S11PO2-R1.

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In Poland, like else-where, coal cleaning operations usually produce a fine waste stream containing a considerable amount of coal. This coal is sepa-rated in a multistage flo-tation/filtration process, in which different filtra-tion devices are used.

One of these processes is the filtration of wet ashes, which have to be separated from the industrial water circulating in coal washing. The critical parameters in it are a short filtration time and an easy cake release. The mines mostly use chamber filter presses in this process.

Another process is the filtration of raw coal mud or the filtration of the concentrate of fine coal particles. These are products sold as part of energetic coal mixes. The mines mainly use vacuum disc filters in these processes.

“Tamfelt Poland is an expert in the production of fabrics for the mining industry, and our goal is to provide mines with fabrics that give better filtration efficiency. We have been cooperating with the biggest coal holdings in Europe for twenty years,” says Mr. Maciej Mater, Product Manager, Tamfelt Poland. “One of our main textiles especially suitable for mining is the SPT77S® monofilament fabric. It was devel-oped in 2001 and, after successful tests at the Polish Central Mining Institute, it has been widely used at coal washing stations. This filter fabric is made of polyamide yarn. Thanks to the yarn properties and the special fabric treatment, the fabric provides excellent filtration quality.

Double the efficiency gained

The main advantages of using SPT77S® on the horizontal plate filter presses include a better cake release, due to the monofilament yarn and the special satin weave, as well as a shorter filtration time, which increases the filtration ca-pacity. The filter cloths made from this fabric are easy to clean, a fac-tor which extends their lifetime and reduces maintenance costs. Also, cake moisture is reduced.

According to reports, using SPT77S® on the vacuum disc filters in filtrating raw mud and concentrate has given mines a 1-2% lower cake moisture and at least doubled the efficiency compared to older monofilament types of fabrics. The reduction of cake moisture after filtration of raw coal mud or after flotation means, in every case, an increase in the energy value of energetic coal. It gives always the fabric users the

rules in the Polish mining industry

A monofilament polyamide fabric

possibility to get a better price for their own product.

The main clients using SPT77S® are Kompania Weglowa S.A., the biggest mining holding in Europe extracting over 45 millions of tons

of coal per year, and Jastrzebska Spółka Weglowa S.A., the biggest producer of coking coal in the EU.

“In addition to SPT77S®, we also manufacture many other types of textiles for extracting different types

of run and for different washing technologies. We are able to choose the right fabric for all process conditions,” Mr. Mater points out.

Wet ashes filtration time according to cycle count (tests led by Central Mining Institute)

Mine A Mine B Mine C

Number of tested cycles

Tim

e (m

in.)

polyamide multifilament fabricSPT77S® polyamide monofilament fabric

6

In recent times, the most important growing segment of paper produc-tion has been that of packaging boards, liners and flutings. Mills use several types of formers and their combinations in making paper. Along with the gap forming techniques, the machine speeds have increased, with the fastest machines now running at over 1,500 m/min. New machines are designed to reach speeds up to 1,800 m/min. Speeds of 1,000 m/min are now common even on hybrid formers.

In paper grades, the trend has been towards lightness. For example, in corrugating medium, a common basis weight is 90 g/m2, and the trend seems to continue towards even lighter weights. Thanks to efficient recycling, re-cycled fiber has become the most important raw material, especially in areas with large populations.

“In pace with the changes, the requirements for forming fab-rics have also changed towards

Today’s packaging board machines are faster and use more recycled pulp than earlier. This means more demands on forming fabrics. In Tamfelt’s extensive forming fabric range there is a solution even for the most demanding positions of various liner and fluting machines.

Packaging board machines

place new demands on forming fabrics

features formerly known in printing paper machines. Also, the impor-tance of energy and production efficiency will increase. Tamfelt’s research and technical develop-ment will pay special attention to these facts as we develop new fabric solutions for the fluting and liner machines of the future,” points out Mr. Pekka Kortelainen, R&D Manager, Forming Fabrics, at Tam-felt PMC Corp.

New challenges and require-ments ahead

The higher speeds of container board machines have increased the demands placed on forming fabrics. In a modern high-speed

fluting gap former machine, the amount of water filtering through the fabric may be higher than on a top-speed printing paper machine (Fig. 1).

“The water removal capacity of the forming fabrics must naturally be high in order to achieve as high a dry content as possible. The fabric stability must also be good so the high water removal pressure will not deform the fabric. In order to keep the fabric lifetime long enough, the wear resistance must be sufficient. It can be improved both through a fabric structure and a correct raw material choice,” says Mr. Ahti Marin, Product Manager, Forming Fabrics, at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

The increasing use of recycled pulp requires more in terms of keep-ing both the machine and the fabrics clean. Machine cleanliness is one of the most important runnability issues on fluting and liner machines. Shorter fibers make high retention more difficult and tend to increase fiber bleed-through.

“The paper technical require-ments of the end product depend on the application, and they can be influenced through a correct fabric choice. With fluting, for example, important properties include bending stiffness and crushing strength (sct, cmt). With liners, surface printability is a property to be considered in choosing a fabric,” adds Mr. Marin.

Fig. 4

Excellent weave stabilityon Packmaster products

Diagonal stability

Packmaster F30603PMOPackmaster F3860PMDPackmaster F3643PM

Optistar F2852ELChampion F4152Optistar F2838EL

Load (N)

DL designs

SSB designs

Fig. 3

An open paper side on traditionalChampion and Optistar fabrics

ChampionF4152

OptistarF2838EL

OptistarF2852EL

PackmasterF3643PM

PackmasterF30603PMO

PackmasterF3860PMD

Open area %

DL designs SSB designs

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An extensive fabric range for various positions

Tamfelt PMC provides container board (liner and fluting) producers with a wide range of suitable form-ing fabrics. There are three groups (Fig. 2) from which to choose a suitable product. Each group has distinctive properties, as described in the table. In addition, all prod-ucts related to the group have also many other significant properties to offer.

“The final choice must always be a fabric that will yield the best

product in each application both economically and quality wise,” emphasizes Mr. Kortelainen.

The 2.5-layer Champion and Optistar fabrics have been the longest in the market; that’s why Tamfelt calls them ‘traditional’. The fabrics are flexible in the machine direction and have a large open surface on the paper side (Fig. 3), so they provide excellent water removal. Still today, these fabrics give excellent runnability both in fourdriniers and gap formers.

The next group is ‘targeted’ and

includes the Packmaster PM SSB fabrics, made especially for liner and fluting grades. They feature exceptional stability thanks to their structure (Fig. 4) that also provides good guiding. The SSB structure makes it possible to fully utilize the wear potential on the roll side (Fig. 5). These fabrics have shown record lifetimes in hybrid and gap formers as well as on fourdrinier machines.

The third group includes the ‘adapted’ Packmaster PMD and Packmaster PMO fabrics, which

are made in fine warps used for printing paper fabrics. They pro-vide very high fiber support (Fig. 6), resulting in high mechanical retention. The fabrics are thin and dense, keeping both the fabric and the fabric run clean, thus improv-ing machine runnability. Thanks to the high non-paper side yarn number, there has been no need to compromise on the running life. On the contrary, record lifetimes have been reached also with these fabric types.

Fig. 1 Fig. 2

Fig. 5 Fig. 6

ChampionF4152

OptistarF2838EL

OptistarF2852EL

PackmasterF3643PM

PackmasterF30603PMO

PackmasterF3860PMD

High wear potential on the targeted Packmaster PM style

Wear potential

ChampionF4152

OptistarF2838EL

OptistarF2852EL

PackmasterF3643PM

PackmasterF30603PMO

PackmasterF3860PMD

High fiber support on the refined Packmaster PMD and PMO fabrics

SP count

Printing paperSpeedFormer HS-SC

Speed

A high amount of water passing throughfabrics on liner and fluting

Product classification

FlutingDuoformer Base

Initialdewatering

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(l/s FF m2)

Traditional Targeted Adapted

Champion Packmaster PM Packmaster PMD Sturdy weave High stability Fine, dense, thin Good runnability Excellent wear Clean fabric and resistance fabric run

Optistar EL Packmaster PMO High fiber support Fine paper side on 2.5-layer fabrics Open wear side

DL designs SSB designs DL designs SSB designs

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Read what’s new on the innovation front and meet the Aquamaster, Ecoaqua and Transmaster Open/SeamMaster Open press fabrics. They all feature unique structures, properties and benefits that contribute to more efficient papermaking.

strong press felts from Tamfelt

One, two, three –

Aquamaster – a new-genera-tion non-woven press felt

Tamfelt’s strong input in research and technical development es-pecially in the field of non-woven press felts has again borne fruit. We are proud to introduce the new-generation non-woven Aqua-master felt.

This development has been coming for some years, since especially high-speed paper machines need press felts that combine a fast start-up and good runnability. There has been a need for a felt with a highly compress-ible structure. One that saturates quickly, builds up the necessary hydraulic pressure and starts to remove water from the sheet.

Water removal takes place in the nip, raising the dry content of the sheet, thus enabling a higher machine speed. High nip drain-age also cleans the felt efficiently, keeping the felt structure open and operating effectively. This also makes it possible to run the felt without suction boxes, which meets one requirement for press felts: to lower machine costs in another way rather than just by increasing production.

Ecoaqua – a hybrid fabric

To explain the essence of the Ecoaqua fabric, we need to go back to the ten-year-old Ecostar product family that has been intro-duced in the earlier issues of the Innofabrics Now! newsletter. The technical advantage of Ecostar lies in its smooth surface; the surface weave smoothness is achieved through thin (0.20 mm in diameter) lengthwise yarns and long yarn floats. The smooth surface yields a large contact area on the sheet, which in turn provides for a very fast start-up and good, uniform water removal. The smooth surface also contributes to marking-free paper quality and the best pos-sible paper properties. In the felt structure, the dense surface fabric prevents it from tangling with the woven second base fabric. This means the Ecostar structure does not compress, a feature that ex-tends its running life.

When designing felts, you must always consider the application and other targets, such as the start-up, runnability, paper quality, and felt life. To speed up the start-up, Tamfelt combined the tradi-tional weaving and new non-woven

Transmaster Open/SeamMaster Open – the hybrid of the hybrids

Transmaster Open (TMO)/Seam-Master Open (SMO) represents the latest, patented Tamfelt press fab-ric technology. This special product can be made on any basic felt style, including Aquamaster and Ecoaqua. It thus turns a traditional press felt into a hybrid of hybrids – into TMO. The operating window of the felt becomes virtually constant, that is, the felt starts up right away and operates uniformly throughout the desired running life.

The TMO fabrics have contrib-uted to many world speed records. For example, a fine paper machine with TMO first ran at 1,604 m/min and later at over 1,700 m/min. Recently, a newsprint machine first ran at 1,980 m/min, then at 2,010 m/min (Rhein Papier PM 1, see following page). Several paper machines have also broken their own records with TMO. The list also includes the fastest paper machine in Asia. Not bad for TMO, the hybrid of the hybrids!

Record speed

Stora Enso Kvarnsveden PM 12!

Tamfelt’s forming fabric and press felts have also contributed to an SC paper world speed record. The world’s fast-est SC paper machine, Stora Enso Kvarnsveden PM 12, ran again a new speed record on January 12, 2009. The new record now is 1,926 m/min (6,317 fpm).

During the record run, the machine was clothed with Tamfelt’s forming fabric and press felts. Gapmaster PRO was used for the inner fabric, Ecomax for the pick-up felt and Eco star for the 3rd press felt. The machine perform-ance during the whole time was excel-lent, with good runnability and paper quality.

Aquamaster

Ecoaqua

Transmaster Open

techniques. The result is a smooth-surface, fast-starting laminated felt, Ecoaqua.

It combines the good proper-ties of the woven Ecostar felt with those of the non-woven Aquamas-ter felt. Here one plus one equals a press felt that provides good paper quality, good paper profiles, and good drainage both in the nip and on the suction boxes. The incompressible structure provides for a long felt lifetime. These felts have yielded very good results from modern high-speed paper machines, both on roll presses and on shoe presses.

Ecoaqua for tissue machines

There is more to come! Ecoaqua is an optimal fabric also for high-speed tissue machines. On a tissue machine you need a smooth-surface, fairly light-weight, fast-starting fabric designed for tough conditions. Tamfelt can now offer a solution for these positions as well. The first Ecoaquas have already been run, reorders from Finnish mills have been received, and the first orders from export markets have come in.

Congratulations

9

What were the main issues in reaching the new speed record in your opinion?

JE: It’s a combination of many steps because everything has to work well. The bottleneck in the press section was the 1st press. The TMOs worked out very well for us. This set of felts gave us the ex-tra push and moved the bottleneck away from the press section.

What does the record mean for Rhein Papier and the crew?

JE: The record is important and a sign of development. We try to im-prove in every business area, and speed is one of the most impor-tant factors of productivity. A new record is like a sign of success. The record is also good for the thinking because many times the limitations are psychological and not physical. It’s great motivation for everybody. It’s like winning the Formula 1 Grand Prix, but for the company the most important thing is to win the championship.

What are the key issues in PM runnability and in what way did Tamfelt’s products contribute to it?

JE: Machine runnability was excel-lent. There were no edge issues or wrinkle issues. We were not limited through dryness or steam. The tail threading from the last

cylinder to the reel has reached its limits and that kept us from running even faster. In the 1st nip, the TMOs gave us the possibility to run without edge issues or dryness problems. It seems the dry content was increasing with the speed.

How was the road to success?

JE: Making a record requires a good team. It doesn’t come over-night. The Rhein Papier team has done an excellent job in improving the operations. Compliments to the team! The intensive coopera-tion with Tamfelt has lasted for over a year now, and the results are excellent. Tamfelt was supporting us through their know-how, ideas and products, which worked for us perfectly.

What do you think about the coop-eration/development with Tamfelt?

JE: The cooperation has been very systematic. Each step has been very carefully planned and analyzed. Then the next step has been planned and evaluated. This is hard work but it’s a guarantee for getting good results. The coop-eration and support have been excellent.

How important is the cooperation between the machine crew and the paper machine clothing supplier?

JE: For the clothing supplier, it is important to exactly understand the issues the machine crew is working on. In optimum coopera-tion there is common understand-ing about the problems, chal-lenges, bottlenecks and actions that need to be improved. To reach this, both parties have to trust each other. It starts with trust; oth-erwise the probability of success is small.

How do you see the future? Where are the limits?

JE: For any company to be suc-cessful, one needs excellent op-erations. We are improving opera-tions through better productivity, meaning higher speed and higher effi ciency. Having said that, we need to walk the talk. The future will bring many trials, new ideas and innovations. For sure there will be failures as well. But we have to maintain the spirit of improvement. Nobody knows where the limits

are. Right now we know our bottle-necks, but when they are solved we don’t know the next ones. But we’ll fi nd a solution to those yet unknown bottlenecks, too.

Rhein Papier has an excellent butsmall production team. The knowl-edge is concentrated. We need strong partners to make sure that new ideas come in and that the team gets the support whenever needed. With Tamfelt we have both the know-how and support we need to improve further. It’s too easy to say that with these felts we made the record but it’s a sum of many issues and steps taken to achieve this result. But without the support, cooperation and products we would not be where we are today.

Thank you for the interview!

PS After Juha Ebeling’s interview, the monthly fi gures for March production have become offi cial. With an average speed of 1,915 m/min, and with effi ciency of 90.1%, March was clearly the best production month ever for Rhein Papier PM 1.

Rhein Papier PM 1 in Germany ran a new newsprint world speed record of 2,010 m/min (6,593 fpm) on March 10, 2009. During the 24-hour record run, both of the most demanding press positions, pick-up and 1PRB, were

clothed with Tamfelt Transmaster Open (TMO) press fabrics. The machine performance was excellent all the time, with high effi ciency (95.2%), excellent runnability and paper quality. We had the opportunity to interview Mr. Juha Ebeling, General Manager of Rhein Papier, soon after the event.

Newsprint world record is now 2,010 m/min

Rhein Papier PM 1:

10

Sleeves

It’s a fact that Tamfelt’s shoe press sleeve products have continued to gain market share around the world. Another fact is that nowhere has the increase within all paper grades and sleeve applications been as great as in the North American market. Right now, there are more than a dozen Tamfelt sleeves running on various paper machine concepts and grades.

enjoy major success in North America

“With new machine start-ups as well as press section rebuilds, the shoe press is now not only an option for papermakers but a necessity for added machine efficiency, good overall runnability and high sheet quality,” says Mr. David Blalock, Territory Sales Manager, Tamfelt PMC, Inc. “There has never been more demand for consistent sleeve performance from shoe press sleeve suppliers than in today’s market.”

Tamfelt’s service teams have taken sleeve service to a new level. The days of going in on a down day and just looking at the sleeve are over. Today, the down day is the day when we collect and measure the data needed to understand the press better under running condi-tions.

“Tamfelt’s sleeve scanner and castings have given the customer the opportunity to see the full picture as they relate to true sleeve void volume, total wear, and groove wear changes. The customer is also able to identify edge and surface cracks or wear patterns or other issues related to the sleeve surface or shoe press,” Mr. Blalock continues.

The service teams collect data during the down days to form a true profile history of the sleeve run-ning as well as of the shoe press signature (CMD scan) to better understand sleeve/shoe changes from outage to outage. They also

use the Total Nip Concept (TNC) as well as the Nip Load Loss (NLL) concept to better understand and predict sleeve life and machine run efficiency loss due to loss in the Total Nip Void Volume (TNVV), which is the true indicator for sleeve or press felt removal in the shoe press.

The TNVV allows a complete understanding of the press. With the sleeve and press felts losing void volume throughout their life, we need to know the minimum allowable void volume in order to determine the optimum sleeve and felt removal times, to ensure high machine efficiency.

Sleeves for all needs

“No two shoe presses are the same, so having many product choices is a big advantage when deciding suitable products for different positions. Today, Tamfelt supplies all designs to the North American market,” comments Mr. Ville Lahdensuo, Product Man-ager, Belts, Tamfelt PMC Corp.

The product portfolio includes Tambelt S, Tambelt V, Tambelt 3G and the newest product, BlackBelt. Each sleeve is tailor made to meet the needs of a particular customer press.

“Our patented V groove and 3G triple-layer base have solved many sleeve issues that our competi-tion has not been able to solve. Tamfelt’s V groove allows narrower grooves without collapsing under load, which ensures a better land pressing surface. The triple-layer 3G base has given us many oppor-tunities for better stability as well as retarding edge-related cracking at shoe edges,” Mr. Lahdensuo points out.

BlackBelt combines the V-groove technology, the triple-layer base fabric technology and Tamfelt’s new High Performance Polyurethane (HPP) in one product. The wide range of sleeve designs for the shoe presses has given the North American papermakers choices they have not had before.

Global knowledge adds to better service

Understanding the machine ap-plications and product design options are key in supplying the right products to the papermaker. Tamfelt’s product managers, sales managers and service group work very closely to accumulate all the information to design the best pos-sible products for each customer.

“Tamfelt’s ONE COMPANY approach has allowed the North American team to have access to the world market as it relates to products and machine references. This has widened the knowledge base by expanding the information used to manufacture and deliver sleeves to our customers. New machines, rebuilds and machines that have been online for some time give our team the required knowledge and data to make deci-sions concerning service needs as well as product applications,” adds Mr. Blalock.

MD crack found with scanner

Major advancement in sleeve service as each groove is checked (MD crack found with scanner while still on the machine)

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Grade Fine paper LWCFine paperLinerboardCorrugating mediumCorrugating mediumCorrugating mediumFine paperLWCNewsprintCore stockFine paperCoated fi ne paperCoreboardTissue

Press type

Single-shoe pressTri-nip 3rd press shoe Single-shoe pressTri-vent 2nd press shoeDouble-shoe pressDouble-shoe pressTri-nip 3rd press shoeTri-nip 2nd press shoeTri-nip 3rd press shoeTri-nip 3rd press shoe2nd press shoeDouble-shoe OptiPress3rd press shoe2nd press shoeCrescent former 1st press shoe

Tamfelt sleeve

Tambelt V/BlackBelt 3G Tambelt V/BlackBelt 3G Tambelt 3GTambelt 3G/BlackBelt 3GTambelt V Tambelt S/Tambelt VTambelt V/Tambelt 3G Tambelt V, not currently running Tambelt V Tambelt 3G Tambelt S, not currently running Tambelt V Tambelt V 3G Tambelt S Tambelt V 3G

Tamfelt sleeves in North America

SMOOTH

SG

GROOVED

DG

2-LAYER 3-LAYER 2-LAYER BB 3-LAYER BBProduct range

Dryer fabrics A look into the future

Our research and technical development is actively involved in production, technical service and sales. Also, our logistics department has good relations with transport companies and long experience which ensures that the goods are shipped and reach the customer on time,” Mr. Siljander points out. “We are always interested in hearing feedback from our customers. Please let us know how we can serve you better!”

1960s. Since the beginning of 2000, it has manufactured over four million square meters of dryer fabrics.

The main product, Tamstar, is an economical dryer fabric with a running life measured to be 15-20% longer than traditional dryer fabrics. This was verifi ed in a study on fabrics that were run in Finland during 2000-2007.

Customer feedback is always welcome

“We have suffi cient production capacity to serve our customerswell and make all the fabric types needed in the market.

“In an emergency situation, we can always make a fabric in less than seven days. Transportation to Western and Central Europe takes a maximum of two to three days with special delivery.”

Tamfelt’s dryer fabric product range covers all the dryer fab-rics needed on paper and board machines. The PET fabrics (made of polyester) are for normal paper machine conditions, whereas the PPS reinforced dryer fabrics are for hydrolysis-prone positions where high steam pressures are used. Tamfelt has made dryer fabrics out of synthetic monofi lament yarns with today’s techniques since the

The diffi cult market situation challenges also Tamfelt’s Dryer Fabrics to further plan and de-velop its operations. “We did a lot already before the downturn set in, so it will be easier for us to build the future. The Tampere unit will strive to strengthen its position especially in Finland, Scandinavia and Europe as a trustworthy dryer fabric supplier with excellent products and fast and reliable delivery times. Today, Tamfelt is the only dryer fabric manufacturer in Finland and Scandinavia,” says Mr. Olof Siljander, Vice President, Dryer Fabrics, at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

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Appointmentsat Tamfelt as of April 1, 2009Tamfelt Group’s Corporate Executive Board:

Tamfelt Filtration Corp.’s President, Mr. Heikki Rehakka has been appointed Executive Vice President, Business Develop-ment, at Tamfelt Corp.

Mr. Jari Stålhammar has been appointed to the posi-tion of President of Tamfelt Filtration Corp. He will also continue being in charge of the Finnish unit of Tamfelt Filtration.

Mr. Martti Heinola, Vice President, PMC Export, has been appointed President of Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mr. Seppo Holkko will continue as the Deputy to President and CEO, Mr. Reima Kerttula, with special assignments until his retire-ment in spring 2010.

Other appointments:

Mr. Luciano S. Amaral has been appointed President of Fanafel Lda.

Mr. Kimmo Järvinen has been appointed Vice Presi-dent in the Business Develop-ment function.

Mr. Juha Mettälä has been appointed Manager, Corpo-rate Quality and Environment.

Mr. Matti Vainio has been appointed Vice President, Sales, at Tamfelt Filtration Corp. He was earlier Sales Director, Domestic Sales of Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mr. Jarmo Lindfors will be responsible for sales at Tam-felt Filtration’s Finland unit. He also coordinates the global sales of Tamfelt’s wet filtration products.

Ms. Teija Koskinen has been appointed Assistant to the Management of Tamfelt Filtration Corp.

At Tamfelt PMC Corp., Mr. Jukka Lehto has been appointed Vice President, Sales. Both the domestic and export sales management is now combined into one organization. Jukka Lehto is also the President for Tamfelt PMC, Inc. and Tamfelt PMC Canada, Inc.

Mr. Jarmo Hasselqvist has been appointed Vice Presi-dent, Press Felts, at Tamfelt PMC Corp. He is in charge of the press felt product group.

Mr. Andreas Haselgrübler has been appointed Sales Manager for Southern Ger-many, Austria, Switzerland and Italy at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mr. Guido Kern has been appointed Sales Manager for Northern Germany, Benelux and France at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mr. Jukka-Pekka Jaunes has been appointed Sales Manager for Finland at Tam-felt PMC Corp.

Mr. Hannu Holkeri has been appointed Sales Manager,

Pratt Industries PM 15 in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA, started up on February 12, 2009 with Tamfelt clothing. Tamfelt congratulates the mill manage-ment and the PM 15 machine crew on the successful start-up.

Tamfelt’s start-up team as-sisted in the start-up, which included Tamfelt clothing in the

Congratulations

dryer section and the forming section as well as in the shoe press sleeve application. Tamfelt delivered for the start-up all the dryer screens (style Tamstar), both of the forming fabrics (style Champion) and Tambelt V for the shoe press belt position. The Ecomax and Porostar press felts are waiting to be installed. The

machine crew has been very satisfied with Tamfelt’s start-up support and the performance of Tamfelt’s products.

PM 15 produces liner and flut-ing out of 100% recycled paper.

Corporate Sales, at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mr. Sebastian Lohm has been appointed Technical Service Manager at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mr. Pascall Schuivens has been appointed Business De-velopment Manager, Packaging Grades, at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mrs. Taru Koskinen has been appointed Assistant to the Man-agement of Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Mr. Olof Siljander has been appointed Production Director at PMC’s Tampere plant. He continues also as Product Group Manager for dryer fabrics.

Mr. Kari Haikonen, Produc-tion Manager at Juankoski, has been appointed Gen-eral Manager of the whole Juankoski plant.

Mr. Lassi Calonius has been appointed Operations Development Manager at Tamfelt PMC Corp.

Tamfelt Ltda. receives the Samarco Excellence Award for the second time

Samarco Mineração S.A., one of the top three mining companies in Brazil, presented its best suppliers with Excellence Awards in October 2008 in Vitória, Espírito Santo State, Brazil, where the company is located. Tamfelt Ltda. received this recognition now for the second time. The first time was in 2007.

The criteria taken into account for this award included the quality of products and services, cost, punctuality in delivery, safety, as well as social and environmental responsibility.

“At Tamfelt Ltda. we have continuously been developing an approach and a consistent prod-uct concept that includes high quality, customer intimacy and respect for people and the envi-ronment. This award once again recognizes the work we have done with Samarco in providing them with the best products and services during all these years,” comments Mr. Eustaquio

Barbosa, President of Tam-felt Ltda. “All these principles guarantee trustworthiness and recognition of the customer.”

Samarco Mineração S.A. is engaged in the mining, benefici-ation, pelletizing and exportation of iron ore. Established in 1977, it today ranks second on the overseas pellet market, export-ing 100% of its products to more than 15 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas. The company has been one of Tamfelt Ltda.’s major customers since 1999 when Tamfelt started its opera-tions in Brazil.

Mr. Eustaquio Barbosa, President of Tamfelt Ltda., (left) receives the Award from Mr. Ricardo Vescovi de Aragão, Samarco’s Operations and Sustainability Director.

Pratt Industries PM 15!