Day 8 Part 1 – Metsa Board Tako Mill

Day 8 Part 1 – by Tom Zarszynski, William Pearson, Ryan Walters, Luke Griffin

After an exciting stay in Jyväskylä, we arrived in Tampere around 7 AM last night. Students were able to enjoy the city and catch up on sleep since we did not have to be at the mill until 10 AM or later. We split up into two groups to take separate tours at the TAKO board mill which produces premium, multi-layer board for packaging luxury brands. Group A went at 10 AM and Group B went at 11 AM. 

The TAKO mill is unique since it is directly in the middle of Tampere. The tour guide stated that the mill was built first, over 100 years ago, before the city infrastructure was built. Since the mill was so close, we were able to walk from the hotel to the mill. Because the mill is in the middle of a city, it cannot receive and deliver materials in a typical manner. Rather, the mill has a terminal 2.5 km away where it stores raw materials and finished goods. Conveyors transport these materials to and from the terminal.

When we arrived at the mill, we collected our PPE and received a brief overview of the mill. The helmets given to us were particularly cool since they had glasses and earmuffs connected to them. The mill produces 210,000 tonnes using two machines. We first walked past the winders for both machines and then to the wet end of BM1. BM1 makes three-layer folding box board. The top ply is SBSK or SBHK, the middle ply is TMP, and the bottom ply is CTMP. Each layer has their own forming section before being merged at 12-15% consistency. After being combined, the sheet traveled to a traditional press section.

The machine was partially dried via steam cylinders to 35-40% moisture before being transported to a yankee dryer. This was a unique experience since yankee dryers are not commonly installed on paper machines. The Yankee dryer was utilized to promote premium smoothness so that the board could be printed with a rotogravure process. The tour guide stated that they had the “smoothest board in the world.” 

After drying the board with the Yankee dryer, the board was further dried with more steam cylinders. Then, starch was applied at the size press. After more drying, the sheet passed through 3 blade coaters to improve the sheet appearance and functionality. At the conclusion of the tour, we had the opportunity to see the mill’s paper testing lab, BM1 PID, and ask questions to the tour guide. Overall, it was a great experience! The main highlights were seeing the Yankee dryer and understanding how the mill operates despite being in the middle of the city.