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Volume 2, Issue 12

Pins And Fines: a SmallCause of Big LossesBy Gregory R. True, “Chip Doc”BiomassResources

The chipping process at most chip millsand saw mills in North America is carefullyanalyzed and setup for optimal chip thick-ness production and testing. This providesfeedback to suppliers so they can minimizepins and fines and maximize fiber yield.Pins and fines are very small particles offiber that are dealt with in the chipping andpulping process. But what is their impacton the bottom line? Read on and find out…

CChhiippppiinngg –– tthhee ttiipp ooff tthhee iicceebbeerrggThe first step to increase fiber yield is tounderstand the pulp mill’s digesters anddevelop an ideal chip specification andthickness target. This leads to proper chip-ping equipment setups, the best chip han-dling procedures, and good screening oper-ations that will minimize fiber losses. Thereduced variability and tightened chip distri-bution lets the pulp mill concentrate on oper-ations that improve fiber yields and reducechemical and process costs at the digesters.The chipping process is just the tip of theiceberg, but it is the most important part ofdeveloping ideal chip quality for fiber use.

YYoouurr mmiissssiioonn –– rreedduucciinngg ppiinnss aanndd ffiinneessThe objective is to reduce pins and finesthat are typically screened out and sent forboiler fuel. Also you want to reduce theamount that makes it to the digesters due totheir low yielding fiber values (graph 1).

Many mills have pins extraction programs,however the relative amounts that are

being used are small compared with whatis being produced or purchased. The yieldat these mills is higher, but there is still a lotof fiber yield variance based upon chip pur-chase price.

MMoonniittoorriinngg qquuaalliittyy == mmoonniittoorriinngg tthhiicckknneessssTo accurately monitor chip quality you mustfocus on targeting chip thickness.Thickness testing allows you to more accu-rately determine what the ideal chip qualityis for the mill’s digesters. Thickness is nowa standard test. Typically a 4-6mm meanthickness target is ideal for the pulpingprocess, however this can change basedon a mill’s specific operations.

TTaarrggeettiinngg cchhiipp ssiizzeeNow it’s time for an example. Let’s assumea chip mean of 4-6mm has been determinedto be ideal for a particular mill, and we’reusing this chip specification:

Fines = 0.05 4-8mm = 63.00Pins = 1.50 8-10mm = 10.002-4mm = 15.00 >10mm = 10.00

Within chippers (not canters) there is adirect correlation between chip thicknessand chip length. A 4-6mm mean target

would mean to a 7/8” -15/16” chip size.Typically a 7/8” chip size would be selectedfor summer months (wood is not frozen)and in the winter months (months wherewood is frozen or drier) knife widths wouldbe extended or knife pockets shimmed toproduce a 15/16” chip size. Although thewidth of the chipper knives is extended inthe winter to make a 15/16” chip, thefrozen or drier environmental factorsensure a 7/8” size and a 4-6mm nominalthickness throughout these months.

OOppttiimmiizziinngg cchhiipp qquuaalliittyyNow that a chip size has been targeted,the chipper must be setup and maintainedto ensure that this chip quality is being pro-duced. Chippers are fairly simplemachines; however, it is this simplicity thatcreates a problem. All wear points and tol-erances must be accurately analyzed andfixed to get the best operating conditionswithin a chipper. These tolerances can behard to achieve and even harder to sus-tain. In addition, people and conditions caninadvertently affect tolerances before thechipper even runs, for example the knifegrinder, millwrights, and maintenancetechnician. However, with proper setup,knife grinding techniques/tolerances,maintenance, and communicationbetween employees - optimal chip qualitycan be achieved and maintained.

Assuming you have reached this point it’stime to study how much fiber is lost in theproduction of excessive pins and fines.Here are some real-life examples thatshow how excessive pins and fines resultin significantly lower pulp yield.

In This Issue• Pins and Fines Cover Page• Improving Uptime with Wellness Fair Uptime• Finding My Place Downtime• Doctor Blade Load Tubes Up & Running

Copyright 2006 by TAPPI, all rights reserved.

Graph 1 - Fiber yield improves as chip thickness increases.

Traffic LightsThe other evening I was driving to our min-ister’s house for a meeting. About 50 yardsfrom a traffic light another vehicle buzzedby me about the time the light turned yel-low. I couldn’t make the light but the othercar blew through it. It was red before heentered the intersection. Luckily, the greenlight delay held up traffic long enough forhim to clear the intersection. After the

same light went though its cycle and turned green for us again, aSuburban ran the light from the other direction. Two dangerousincidents within two minutes! This got me thinking about the thingsI’ve learned about risks from safety meetings and bad experiencesat work and home. People like you and me take risks and get awaywith it time and time again. Then one day we take a risk again andWHAM – we get hurt or worse. A man reaches into a nip point toremove some trash and loses his arm. Two men enter a limekilnwithout a lookout and die from carbon monoxide. Workers take ashortcut in a lockout and get injured. A young driver reaches to getsomething from the passenger side, swerves into the oncominglane, hits a vehicle head on and causes the death of a good friend.These are all true incidents from my sad memories of others takingrisk. Every one of them could have been avoided. Every single one.As we enter into the holiday season, we get preoccupied withmany things both at work and at home. These make it more “con-venient” to take short cuts. To keep me on track, I have tried to liveby a couple of rules and I recommend them to you.

First, I will never knowingly run a red light. Never. In our town itmakes no sense since the next light will just be red anyway.Hurrying needlessly gains nothing.

Second, if I’m first or second in line at a red light, I look both wayswhen the light turns green. Every time. Make it a habit so you do itautomatically.

Third, know the safety rules at work and follow them every time. If youcan prevent a piece of machinery from shutting down by violating asafety rule and taking a risk, let the machine shut down – period.

We cannot eliminate risks from our lives but we can do things thatreduce our risks. Being especially care-ful behind the wheel and at work aretwo such things. I wish you all a safeand happy holiday.

Gene Canavan

RReeaall--lliiffee eexxaammpplleeIn the following two graphs, the black line shows the current distribu-tion of chip thickness. The blue line represents the standard to achieve,with a desired peak in the 4-8mm range. Graph 2 shows a pulp manu-facturer who is properly setup and getting optimal chip quality after thechipper (unscreened).

In graph 3 the same supplier is using the same setup as before, but hasjust reached winter chipping conditions and has not yet increased hisknife width. The result is increased pins and fines.

We know how much money this supplier was paying for raw material,the production level they are running at, and what they are sellingchips for. So we can now figure out how much fiber they are losingthrough the increased production of pins and fines. Based on 800,000tons and a specific Kappa, the screen losses and digester losses on anannualized basis shown in graph 4 are significant.

PPiinnss && ffiinneess ccoosstt mmoonneeyy!!The increased production of pins and fines dramatically influencedthe ratio of raw material to usable fiber. The influence was so signifi-cant that if this particular supplier had run at their current conditionsand not extended their knives to offset the winter wood conditions(from Nov. – Mar.) they would lose $8,795,768 in fiber alone.

Although this example is particular to one supplier, experience withmajor paper corporations and their pulp suppliers shows this repre-sents most mills in North America. Pins and fines tend to increase dra-matically through the winter months due to improper or no preparationfor frozen and drier wood conditions. This increase in pins and finestends to stay somewhat consistent through the winter months andtypically causes significant monetary loss in fiber.

Many mills don’t understand what is causing the increase of pins andfines. As a result, they make incorrect alterations to their chipper andmake the problem worse. Increased pins and fines negatively affecteveryone - from the supplier through the pulp mill.

All information is from real suppliers utilizing the patented CHIPMACS™ software program, a joint venture between BiomassResources, Inc. “Home of the Chip Doctors” and Fiber-MTechnologies. FF

For more information, contact Erik True at etrue@thechipdoctor.com.

Graph 4 - Increased pins and fines result in significant losses.

Graph 2 - Proper setup minimizes pins and fines.

Graph 3 - Improper setup increases pins and fines.

Baseline Values

UptimeImproving Uptimewith a Wellness FairBy Paula Lamey, Smurfit-StoneContainer Corp

Normally, this area of the newsletter dealswith ways to improve the uptime of machin-ery and processes. This month, our empha-sis is on improving “your” uptime. Read onand see what one paper mill is doing tobuild employee wellness.

Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation’sMissoula Mill holds a wellness fair everyyear, organized by a committee of millemployees. The Missoula pulp and papermill currently has about 500 employees. Thehealth fair started out very modestly in 1996with only a handful of people attending. Ithas grown to be a very popular event, hav-ing more than 350 people in attendance.

TTiimmiinngg iiss iimmppoorrttaannttThe fair is typically held in the fall, shortlyafter the mill’s annual maintenance outageand before hunting season begins so themajority of the employees, their familiesand mill retirees can participate. The fair isscheduled from 5:00 AM – 8:30 AM on aThursday and a Friday to accommodatetwelve-hour shift workers, giving mostemployees the opportunity to participate.

Current employees and former employeestypically begin calling the mill in August tofind out the dates for the next Wellness Fair.

UUnnccoovveerriinngg uunnkknnoowwnn pprroobblleemmssOne of the biggest attractions of the fair isthe blood screening. The company subsi-dizes a portion of the cost for its employees.Many serious illnesses have been identi-fied from these screenings, saving lives ofseveral people who were not aware of theirmedical conditions. Cancer, diabetes, thy-roid problems, kidney and liver diseasesare examples of issues identified throughthe blood screening process.

Bone density is also offered free of chargeat the wellness fair. The beginnings ofosteoporosis have been identified for sev-eral people.

Although the fair does not provide a com-prehensive medical analysis, it givesemployees, their families and the retireeswho take advantage of these screeningsthe opportunity to check their overall healthand to seek proper medical care, if needed.Since blood screening can take place onlyafter a ten-hour fast, a healthy and heartybreakfast is served to all who attend. Theemployees who have worked all night with-out eating really appreciate the breakfast!

SSoommeetthhiinngg ffoorr eevveerryyoonneeThe wellness fair truly has something foreveryone. Several professionals offer theirservices during this event. The companydoctor, physician’s assistant and nurse areon hand for blood pressure checks, skincancer checks, flu shots and answeringquestions. A chiropractor is present, whilea physical therapist and message therapistgive table and chair messages. Other pro-fessionals include: a nutritionist who coun-sels both employee and family members; anacupuncturist who performs on site treat-ments; vision screenings; fitness screen-ings by personal trainers; herbal, vitaminand supplement booths; smoking cessationinformation; health club discounts; and astress management and sleep distur-bances booth.

Many of the vendors supply samples and/ordemonstrations of their products and services.

The event is fun filled as well as education-al, with everyone who attends receiving awellness-related gift. FF

For more information on the Missoula healthfair, Paula Lamey can be reached atplamey@smurfit.com.

www.npt2.net

PPuuttttiinngg aa lliiffeettiimmee ooff wwoorrkk ttoo uusseeI made my first trip to the Philippines in October of 2003. They putme to work applying my knowledge to their process. During myten-day visit, we were able to cut their processing time for abatch of hemp pulp from nine hours to three and to cut theirchemical costs for a batch by about 90%.

I returned to the Philippines in March of 2004. It turns out anothermajor need at the Village Handcrafters paper mill is to developand implement a wastewater treatment process. Surprisingly, Ialso have some experience in wastewater treatment! During mysecond trip I was able to run a set of experiments to determinehow to best process the mill’s effluent so it can be released with-out harm to the environment.

I plan to return to the Philippines as soon as the timing is right forthe installation of the wastewater process. The project has beendelayed until the Village has the capital to conduct the project. Inthe meantime I stay in touch with Ed and the Village by e-mail.Often I am asked to give advice on technical questions. I am partof Village team and look forward to seeing them again soon.

FFiinnddiinngg yyoouurr oowwnn ppllaacceeWhat’s my message to you? Whoever you are, whatever you do,there is a place for you to serve. If you take the first step you willbe amazed at the journey you will take. I would never have foundmy place with Village Handcrafters if I had not followed the callto attend the ministry track at that Church conference. My faithhas been strengthened by this experience. I am certain that I amfollowing a higher agenda in working with Village Handcrafters.Blessings have rained downupon me because of theconnection that was madethere! In the spirit of this hol-iday season – I urge you tofind your own place. Useyour skills and experiencefor a higher purpose. It’s awonderful feeling! FF

Dan can be contacted atDan@gicleepaper.com, andthe Finishers Project can befound at www.finishers.org.

Downtime

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To receive Frontline Focus at your mill eachmonth for FREE, contact Mary Beth Cornell

at 770 209-7210; mcornell@tappi.org

Finding My PlaceBy Daniel S. Blevins, Norcross, GA

In June 2003 I attended a ChurchMission conference in downtownAtlanta. There were three days ofprogramming with a ministry track Iwas particularly interested in. Thelast session was called, “Findingyour place in Ministry – Your Skillsare Needed”. The instructor beganhis presentation stating thatregardless of what your skills werethere was a ministry somewhere that could use you. He said, “I’mgoing to go around the room and have you tell me what you do orwant to do and I will suggest to you a ministry that would fit yoursituation.” He started around the room and told teachers, electri-cians, nurses, etc ministries and places in the world where theycould be involved. My turn was coming. I began to wonder what Iwould say. My degree is in chemistry but for the past twenty-fiveyears I had specialized in the technology of making paper.

The instructor motioned toward me. “And what do you do, sir?”“I’m a paper chemist,” I answered. The instructor’s jaw droppedand the room erupted in laughter. “Well, you stumped me with thatone,” he admitted. “I don’t know of a place for a paper chemist.”Suddenly, from the back of the room a voice called out, “I know aministry that needs a paper chemist.” We all spun around to seewho had said that. It was a fellow named Norman Malwitz, sittingat the back of the room. And that was the beginning of my callingwith a group called Finishers that Norman Malwitz founded.

Norman led the way to a booth for Action International where I metMarvin and Sarah Graves, mission mobilizers based in Seattle.They were displaying some wrapping papers, and guest booksmade from handmade paper. The paper was made from Manilahemp, a non-wood material. By an amazing coincidence, I happento have a specialization in making paper from non-wood materialssuch as cotton, flax, straw, and, oh yes, hemp too. As I looked at apicture from the paper mill, I was stunned to see they were doingexactly the type of processing that corresponds with my expertise.

VViillllaaggee HHaannddccrraafftteerrss –– tthhee ppllaaccee ffoorr mmeeI learned from Marvin that the ministry is Village Handcrafters,located outside of Manila in the Philippines. They do livelihooddevelopment among the poor squatter people around Manila anduse the profits to fund pastors who plant churches among thesquatters. Action missionary Ed Landry who had the vision to cre-ate useful products out of local materials started VillageHandcrafters in 1995. He struck upon the idea of handmade paperfrom hemp and began learning how to make the paper and turn itinto commercial products. The Village now employs about 40 peo-ple and funds three church plants.

I then contacted Ed Landry directly. After a few discussions abouttheir paper process Ed told me, “We are self-taught amateurs. Wereally need you to come to the Philippines and help us.” That wasenough for me. I took early retirement in 2004 at the age of 51.Consequently, I am available to travel at any time.

Probably the most frequent cause ofdoctoring problems is a failed loadtube. With heat and age, tubesbecome brittle and will fail. Tubes arerelatively simple to replace.However, check with your doctorsupplier for the latest material foryour application.

When applying a new tube, be sureto massage all the kinks out of thematerial before it is installed. The lin-ing in some of the tubes has beenknown to stick together, totally block-ing a tube.

After a new tube is installed, it maygrow in length for a couple of weeksbefore it stabilizes. After this period,the tube should be checked, and theextra length cut off. This stretchedlength can present a problem,depending on how the tube isclamped. If the clamp is attached tothe mounting plate, the tube hasnowhere to go end-wise so it movessideways, trying to extrude throughthe gap between the fingers and theretainer flange. If the retainer is cap-screwed on, it may shear the cap-

screws and bulge out. If the retaineris part of the mounting (or tube tray),it may bend the flange to free itself.This problem will show up as a wideworn area on the blade. A couple ofweeks after a new tube is installed,the excess (grown) length should betrimmed off the “dead” end of thetube.

A few years ago, one supplier pro-vided tubing that was too small as areplacement for load tubes. If there isany of this tubing in the mill, discardit and order the proper size tubing.We have also found that industrialsupply houses have been supplying“fire hose” for replacement DST tub-ing. The size of the tubing determinesthe effective loading area of theblade holder and is critical to its per-formance.

Doctor suppliers furnish replace-ment tubes of various diameters and“firmness” - all for the same applica-tion. “Firmness” becomes a real fac-tor when used in the unload tube.Pressure in the load tube may haveto be increased to overcome the

residual “firmness” and collapse theunload tube.

SSuuppeerriioorr qquuaalliittyy ddooccttoorr bbllaaddeellooaaddiinngg ttuubbeessMetso Paper offers superior qualitydoctor blade air loading tubes for allof your doctor blade holders.Switching from the tubes you arepresently using to the new andimproved Metso low or high temper-ature doctor blade load tubes is easy.

For starters, it's as easy as calling torequest more information. Metsoloading tubes fit any blade holder,have a high temperature rating, andare provided by Metso's one-stopsource. The Metso tubes will provideyou with flexible coverage for all yourdoctors and performance at a priceyou can afford. Making the switch toMetso doctor blade loading tubes iseasy, just pick up the nearest phoneand call your Metso representative formore information.

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