Tiger Forest & Paper Group

Yueyang Paper Mill, a member of China's top-ranking Tiger Forest & Paper Group, lies on the shore of Dongting Lake. Connected by the Yangtze River to the port of Shanghai, its high-quality paper travels not only across China, but also to Japan and beyond.

In 1998, facing rapid growth on the Chinese paper market, Tiger Forest & Paper Group made a strategic decision to invest in the Yueyang mill. A new papermaking line was required to meet demand and retain competitiveness, along with an effective solution to make use of recycled fiber.


Valuable references

Early on, Yueyang Paper decided to work with a single supplier, as this would allow better system integration and enable long-term optimization. Metso Paper was one of the suppliers considered, though at that time no relationship existed between the two companies.

It was the strength of Metso's references that proved decisive in the choice of supplier. Yueyang Paper officials visited two Metso customer sites in China, but were especially impressed by a visit to the UPM paper mill in Augsburg, Germany. After viewing UPM's Paper Machine PM 3, they ordered a similar on-line concept for Yueyang Paper's PM 8, including an OptiFeed wet-end system – the first of its kind in China.


An integrated investment

PM 8 is a swing machine, capable of handling today's newsprint needs then switching to LWC as the Chinese market develops. In addition, Yueyang Paper placed the order for a full-scope deinking line to furnish PM 8 with recycled pulp.

The need for a deinking line was tied to a number of factors. These included the scarcity of China's own forest resources, as well as demands from Japanese customers for paper produced with secondary fiber. Metso Paper was also chosen as supplier for the DIP plant, in keeping with the decision to work with a single partner.


Exceptional performance

Through intensive efforts and close cooperation, Metso and Yueyang Paper were able to bring both systems on line as planned during summer 2003. Since that time, both systems have performed well above expectations.

PM 8 is running over 200,000 tons per year, well over its original design capacity. Though only one of eight papermaking machines, it accounts for a full 50 percent of the mill's total production. Likewise, the deinking line is producing 400 t/d with results that compete with any deinking process in China. Yueyang Paper achieves bright, high-quality paper on PM 8 even using the recycled pulp.

The new lines are turning a reliable profit for the mill after only one year, instead of the two or more years that mill officials had predicted. This success has affirmed the choice of Metso as cooperation partner, and reflects well on the now strong relationship between management and technicians at the two companies.