ND Paper: Rumford Mill wraps up historic outage

The Rumford outage recently wrapped up a historic outage. This outage was a massive undertaking, and the company is excited for a more efficient and more productive future.

Throughout August and September, the historic mill received a deep-cleaning, some much-needed TLC, and several major repairs and significant projects took place throughout the mill.

This outage is a significant milestone in ND Paper’s commitment to operational efficiency and safety and approximately 1,000 contractors were on site performing various functions. Unlike the simultaneous annual outage, a cold outage involved a complete shutdown of all equipment and electricity. This pause in production allowed the mill’s team to make critical repairs and replacement on typically inaccessible machinery.

The cold outage spanned nine days and included major steam, air, water, electrical and sewer system repairs. All four boilers were taken offline, allowing for the execution of 88 work orders focused on steam system leaks and valve issues.

In addition to the cold outage, the Rumford Mill’s annual outage took place and noteworthy repair items included: an annual shutdown of liquor cycle components, replacement of the Turbine Generator rotor and the Lime Kiln Stack Replacement. The liquor cycle was out of operation for 6 weeks for several capital projects. These projects include replacement of the Recovery Boiler Superheater and Left and Right Lower Furnace Walls, Precipitator T/R Upgrade and ID Fan Rotor Replacement. This surpasses the typical 12-day annual outage duration.

A notable enhancement within the liquor cycle was the installation of the Smelt Runner, the second of its design being introduced in North America. The Lime Kiln Stack, rising high above most of the facility, was also replaced. There were significant holes and rust in sections of the stack, so the entire column was replaced.