OPERATION FOCUS – LOOKING EAST Scanning result of log with shots


will supply a log crosscut and sorting line for ILIM’s Bratsk development this year. That logyard is part of a pulp project worth about $700 million. All projects realised in the past were private projects. “Russia is one of our most


For the Austrian log handling specialist, the logyard and sawmill infeed contract with Kraslesinvest the 11th of such magnitude in


Russia over the past few years covering both sawmill and wood- based panel sectors. Apart from the Kraslesinvest project, Holtec


important markets,” Holtec General Manager Alexander Gebele told International Forest Industries. “There seems to be a genuine preparedness to invest by


Russian groups looking to establish worldclass wood processing businesses. Our current projects in Russia show that there is a great demand in high-quality solutions for the sawmill and wood-based panel industry in the east of the Ural.” There are two green sorting


lines provided and installed by Jartek. Each line has a Comact lug loader (one piece feeder), automatic quality grading with


Suppliers work in harmony on x-ray scanning system


The x-ray scanning system Holtec has employed for its part in the Kraslesinvest project – the logyard has a log sorter with 80 boxes and an x-ray-scanning- system analysing all larch logs for sorting into individual branch categories – was not an individual effort. Far from it, in fact. And the company speaks glowingly of development partners with whom it was able to produce what it believes has evolved into an industry-leading piece of equipment. Holtec’s CT-x-ray scanning system was the result of a cooperation between the Austrian, Finnish group Bintec and German company, Jorg Elektronik, and was first presented at the Ligna last year. The technology in various forms has been working successfully for more than 10 years in Scandinavia but this is the first time it has been installed in Russia in its highly sophisticated state. “Every partner focuses on its


own competences,” Holtec ‘s Gebele said. “Jörg Elektronik supplied the optical scanning part in terms of a 3D-laser scanner and Bintec the x-ray scanner CT Wood-X. “Bintec is the pionier and market leader in the range of x- ray-scanning for logs. Bintec created the basis for the x-ray- technology referring CT-scanning through the dissertation of Dr Antti Kari in 1996. In 2002, Bintec supplied the first CT-scanner with four x-ray sources to UPM. In the meantime, UPM installed five x- ray-scanning systems. Forty million m3


of logs have been


scanned by Bintec since then. That’s more logs than Germany


annually cuts. Another major sawmill and Bintec customer is Stora Enso.”


Holtec, meanwhile, is


responsible for the mechanical and electrical components as well as for the infrastructure of the total system. The company integrates the x-ray-scanner into a “reliable and required conveying system” and makes the sales, as well as looking after the project management for systems in Middle and Eastern Europe. Owing to the rough conditions expected in the logyard, the three partners chose an approach with fixed x-ray sources. Tests with three, four and six x-ray sources were completed, which showed that four x-ray sources was the most efficient solution in relation to cost and benefit. The relevant data for creating a practicable 3D- model can be generated by four planes – more detailed data are not practical for daily work. “The optical log measurement has been standard for many decades,” Gebele said. “The measuring method has been improved continuously, however, many quality features cannot be determined by a mere look at the enveloping surface. Due to the increasing raw material costs as well as an increasing scarcity of resources, log optimisation is becoming more important. In this course, the requirement for receiving information about the inner log has become the priority.”


He said the sawmill industry had been long asking for the “glassy” log – the scanning of quality features such as knots, annual rings etcetera provides a


high potential for savings. Using these data, the value creation can be controlled in the sawmill by aligning the log qualities to the corresponding sawing patterns at the earliest possible stage. When this is possible,


assortments with a higher profit margin can be sorted directly at the logyard. Rejections in the later part of the process thereby decrease. By using a quality matrix, it is possible to set individual parameters. In times of log shortages and increasing raw material costs, a better utilisation of logs is increasingly important. “The optical scanning systems


have been maxed out in the last few years,” Gebele said. “Realistically, a further improvement is not possible. A look inside the log and the evaluation of the inside quality of the log is the next dimension. The return-on-investment is made primarily by a specific sawing of logs.”


Bintec x-ray evolution


1989: Wood-X CT industrial development consortium established by UPM, Stora Enso and Finnforest.


1989-94: Wood-X CT technical feasibility studies carried out.


1996: Dissertation about basic research (University Olulu, Finland).


1995-11: First industrial pilot Wood-X CT with three directions implemented, tested and evaluated from a business point of view in three sawmills. Conclusion showed that four directions was optimum for speed and accuracy requirements of the sawmill, taking into account the investment costs.


2002: First Wood-X CT 4D in Europe was delivered. FEBRUARY/MARCH 2012 | International Forest Industries 67


The test installation at Holtec goes smoothly ahead of shipment to Russia


The x-ray system can be individually configured for each application.


Analysis includes:


• quantity/quality of knots • density/elasticity moduls • detection of stones and metal • scanning of annual rings.


Technical data: • log length from 3-25 m • log diameter 100-500 mm • line speed typically 100-250 m/minute.


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