Crown Paper Mill (CPM) in Abu Dhabi was established in 1996 and is since 2016 part of Ittihad Group Company. Their long-term vision is to be the leading tissue mill in the Gulf countries and Middle East as well as maintain sustainable growth world-wide. Back in 2016 their main markets saw a tremendous growth due to increasing tourism and a need for high quality products.
At the same time competition was tough. Hence, to defend their position while continue to grow, they decided to increase the capacity from the current 35.000 tons/year to 100.000 tons/year. “We realized that we needed to build a line with the latest technology to reach the requirements of tissue quality, capacity and reliability. At the same time, it was a must to fulfill the targets to reduce the consumption of energy and water, and to control the emissions. So we started to look for the right partner to design and execute a complete mill to reach highest capacity and quality with lowest cost and environmental impact. For us it was important to select a partner we could trust and who could help us develop over time. We decided to go with Valmet” – says Abdullah Al Khateeb, Managing Director, Crown Paper Mill and Ittihad Paper Mill.
Technologies, automation and services for tissue production
Laying the puzzle for optimum performance
Both CPM and Valmet have a holistic approach and know that an efficient Mill Design is the base for optimum conditions and lowest possible consumption and emissions. The project was as close to a turnkey project you can get and the mill is equipped with all the energy saving products that are available today and has a closed loop to save water. In addition to the Advantage DCT® 200 tissue machine, it included Stock-preparation, two Focus Rewinders and all auxiliary equipment. It was a natural decision to go with Valmet DNA automation system to get a safe and future-proof solution with full control over the process, quality and consumption. And last but not least it gives easy access to remote monitoring and Valmet Industrial Internet services, which will ensure continued process optimization also in the future.
Highest capacity and tissue quality at lowest cost and environmental impact
“The Advantage DCT 200 machine turned out to be the best choice for us and today we are very proud of our mill. We reached 2000 m/min. with the expected tissue quality, in a very short time after the start-up” – says Abdullah Al Khateeb. Today Crown Paper Mill can provide products ranging from ultra-thin facial tissue of 12,5 gsm up to heavy kitchen towel grades and sterilized tissue. However, the Advantage DCT line is mainly producing low grammage facial tissue grade which is the main product in the region. Their two rewinders give the option to deliver jumbo rolls based on their customers’ needs.
Valmet’s flexible tissue making technology provides sustainable production of all types of grades
And the journey continues
Already from Day one CPM and Valmet formed an Industrial Internet agreement to further improve the overall productivity, tissue quality and keep control over consumption as part of their daily operations. “Our mill team has worked closely with the team at the Valmet Performance Center. Each month – states Abdullah Al Khateeb – we receive detailed reports from the data analysis and have joint production follow-up meetings with systematic KPI evaluations. So far, we have seen a ten percent average production increase and three percent capacity utilization improvement. The drying/pressing strategy contributed to a four percent reduction in specific energy consumption. And we have longer periods of stable production at high speed”.
Abdullah Al Khateeb and Crown Paper Mill are very proud of their Valmet tissue production line and at the time of writing they have just started to investigate the possibility to invest in a new tissue line project.
