Pulp and paper making involves enormous investments in plant and equipment. But the success or failure of such investments can sometimes depend on rather simple chemistry, and on chemicals costing only a tiny fraction of the final-product sales price.
To help increase the odds of success in pulp and paper processes, Kemira has launched a TCM (Total Chemistry Management) partnership program with selected mills. The aim is to unlock value through positive synergies which come from the combination of our expertise in chemistry and the mill’s own intimate knowledge of their pulp and paper processes. Since being introduced, TCM has shown encouraging results.
Nichlas Kavander, Kemira’s Senior Vice President for Pulp & Paper in the Asia-Pacific region, explains the program. “Over the past couple years we’ve strategically invested to expand our portfolio to become the world
leader in pulp and paper chemistry.
We now have the complete range of chemicals for pulping and bleaching, as well as papermaking chemicals for sizing, retention, and surface treatment, through to biocides, foam and deposit control, and water treatment. Since we now offer all pulp and paper chemicals, we’re in a unique position to leverage our deep expertise and experience to create further added-value for our customers,” says Kavander.
Growing bigger, and closer together
The growth to become a global market leader in pulp and paper chemicals is, in fact, a reflection of what is also happening among pulp and paper manufacturers: Consolidation into bigger companies with greater global reach. The development of mega-sized pulp and paper companies, combined with the complete chemical portfolio available from Kemira, has generated new opportunities to optimize the chemistry of pulp and paper making.
“By working closely together with selected large-scale partners,” continues Kavander, “we can offer complete TCM solutions which, in addition to the chemicals themselves, also include our competence in areas such as applications, technical service, smart process management, R&D and logistics. This know-how is based on many years of successful hands-on experience, which has helped hundreds of mills around the world to make more saleable tons at better cost efficiency.”
Achieving specific targets through teamwork
Once the parties have agreed to a TCM partnership, the first step is to clearly identify specific targets and goals. The process of setting targets – such as cost reduction, speed increases, and developing new paper qualities – is the key to TCM partnerships since it catalyzes joint efforts towards common goals through close teamwork. After setting goals, the Kemira team, including account managers, technical service people and often R&D experts, works with the mill to identify resources available to best help achieve them.
The impact of TCM, Kavander states, has already been impressive. “Although we have only been running the program for short time, the TCM results in Asia-Pacific, for example, have clearly been positive.
Based on the advantages we can offer – full scope of products, proprietary equipment, and intimate knowledge of best practices – the TCM cooperation in large mills has achieved ambitious goals quite rapidly.
While we can’t mention specific mills or companies, due to confidentiality agreements, it is a fact that operating efficiencies have risen. This is confirmed by parameters such as faster machine speeds, fewer breaks, less downtime for cleaning, less overdosing of chemicals, or faster grade changes.”
Focusing on large mills
The TCM program is intended mainly for large mills and machines, since that is where economies of scale and synergies are best utilized. “The optimal results,” explains Kavander, “come from committed partners running large-size operations.”
In fact, all the big machines which have started up in Asia-Pacific since 2015 are Kemira TCM partners. These start-ups have been very smooth from the chemistry side with, as an example, one of the largest paper machines in Southeast Asia making salable paper within three days. Says Kavander: “That, quite simply, is as good as it gets for one of these giant machine start-ups.”
Another success with TCM came in a mill in Southeast Asia that was using old water treatment technology. Chemical consumption was very high, due to over-dosing that was done to be on the safe side. Smart TCM technology and diagnostics helped target the chemical application much more precisely, eliminating the tendency to over-dose, thus saving the mill 20-25% in water treatment costs immediately.
TCM examples also include a long-term cooperation for joint R&D with a partner. The project is targeting product development for an entirely new paper grade, aimed at specific applications where the mill has identified big growth potential.
“Instead of simply selling chemicals,” concludes Kavander, “Kemira TCM means we take care of all aspects of dosing, optimization, supply, logistics, and sometimes even R&D. This provides clear and immediate benefits in improved chemical and operational efficiencies for cost savings, as well as indirect synergies in personnel and back-office workload for items like supply chain management, ordering and logistics. TCM is a smart new way for big mills to get better quality and higher throughput with lower costs and fewer hassles.”
First published in PaperASIA Dec/2016 issue.