MOTORS & DRIVES
Boosting reliability with hydraulic drives in critical applications - New technology pays dividends for Metsä Board Husum
In the pulp and paper industry, unscheduled stoppages mean massive production losses and high costs. For Metsä Board Husum, a leading pulp and paperboard manufacturer, reliability is the reason for turning to hydraulic drive systems. “We now have 21 Hägglunds motors in operation,” reports Jan Edlund, reliability engineer and head of preventive maintenance. “We’ve switched from gearboxes to hydraulic motors in several locations.”
Metsä Board is part of the Metsä Group, a forest industry group that produces renewable products from Nordic forests. At the Husum mill, Jan Edlund’s task is to ensure the machines run smoothly.
“Many years ago we had 17 employees working on pump repairs,” Edlund says. “Thanks to preventive maintenance, we’ve been able to reduce that number to two. We find a fault, create a work order and carry out maintenance during scheduled shutdowns. We are naturally prepared to tackle problems, but despite having thousands of motors and pumps the team is rarely called out.”
MARCH/APRIL 2023
That picture is confirmed by Mattias Ahlqvist, a hydraulics technician.
“Very little goes wrong. I started in 2007 and I’ve hardly ever seen a breakdown,” Ahlqvist says.
Ideal application for hydraulics At the Husum mill, Hägglunds hydraulic drives from Bosch Rexroth are installed wherever stops would quickly lead to expensive production losses. Examples include the cooking and washing stages, as well as conveyors and reactors.
“For those of us who work in maintenance and production, this type of drive solution is a dream because of its low rpm and high torque,” says Jan Edlund. “If you want reliability, hydraulic drives are the answer! It’s also relatively easy to replace a hydraulic motor, since no foundation is needed.”
The Husum mill’s relationship with Hägglunds drive solutions began in the mid-1970s, when Hägglunds hydraulic motors were installed on the wash presses in one of its pulp lines.
“One of the motors we installed in 1976
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is still running today!” Edlund relates. “This experience taught us the value of characteristics such as quality and reliability, and it led us to install the twenty-plus drives we have at the mill today.”
Reliable delivery
Metsä Board Husum handles its own replacement of motors and pumps, but the company also takes in specialist advice from the Hägglunds team at Bosch Rexroth.
“It’s important to have reliable suppliers when we need help,” says Jan Edlund. “It’s also good to have a fresh pair of eyes to check out our machines. Sometimes you overlook things you see every day, so you might miss a small leak. Regular cleaning helps to prolong the service life.”
The Husum mill has a contract for regular servicing by Hägglunds specialists, and the teamwork between the Metsä and Hägglunds service teams has extended drive service life further.
“The benefit of having a contract with Hägglunds is that we can contact them if anything unexpected happens at the mill
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