Drive technology for paper machine

ABB has been awarded a contract to supply an Industrial IT Direct Drive system to Norske Skog Albury site's sole paper machine PM1 and the winder.

The existing DC drives and motors will be replaced as part of a major upgrade of the Albury facility, comprising rebuild of the paper machine including a shoe press and a new winder. The investment is set to boost the 215,000 tonnes per year newsprint machine's output by 50,000 tonnes per year when work is completed in the first quarter of 2006.

The Direct Drive solution for the paper machine includes 36 induction motor drive sections, of which 10 are new technology, permanent magnet motors.

The paper machine drive PMC800 is the latest AC drive technology for paper machine drives and includes a combination of traditional AC variable speed motors and ABB's latest permanent magnet direct drive motors, a new innovation simplifying the mechanical configuration of the paper machine and reducing the need for a traditional gearbox between the motor and paper machine.

Located in Albury, New South Wales, the mill started production in 1981 and ranks among the best newsprint production facilities in the world. The mill utilises 40% recycled fibre, which is produced in Australia's first large scale newsprint de-inking plant. The other source of fibre used at the mill is plantation radiata pine.