At the end of October, Voith successfully started up Asia Symbol's BM 13 at Rugao, 180 km north of Shanghai, China. The state-of-the-art machine is 8.16 m wide with a design speed of 1,400 m/min and an annual capacity of around one million tons. It mainly produces high-quality white folding boxboard in the basis weight range of 170 to 400 gsm.
“Voith has always been a reliable partner for us. Thanks to Voith's full-line package, the Rugao BM 13 achieves excellent results in terms of product quality, production efficiency, and operating and maintenance costs, which further strengthens our competitive advantage in the market,” says Eric Xu, General Manager Rugao BM 13 of Asia Symbol.
“I thank both teams for the successful start-up! Asia Symbol is a partner that always sets new goals to achieve excellence. We look forward to deepening our business relationship in the future,” says Carlos Lin, Senior Vice President Order Execution and Operations, Voith Paper Asia.
The full-line solution supplied by Voith for the Rugao BM 13 includes a wide portfolio of state-of-the-art solutions, from BlueLine stock preparation and intelligent XcelLine paper machine to two VariFlex Performance winders with a fully automated Flying Splice reel change. For the plant, Voith and Asia Symbol placed a special focus on sustainable and efficient solutions. In addition to the resource-saving Triple NipcoFlex press, an energy-efficient EcoHood dryer hood, ropeless transfer in the dryer section and contactless qDry Pro drying with the HelioX infrared emitters are installed. Voith also supplied a comprehensive wear parts package and a wide range of automation solutions, including the OnControl MCS, DCS, Drive Control, OnQuality MD/CD Control and the OnCare Health condition monitoring system.
Successful project despite challenges
Despite a tight timeframe, complex tasks and challenging conditions due to the global pandemic, the project was successfully implemented. The project team benefited from mutual trust based on many years of successful cooperation. The Voith and Asia Symbol team worked crossnationally with the local teams and enabled a smooth execution of the project through very close and committed cooperation from planning to implementation.
The commissioning of Rugao BM 13 now strengthens Asia Symbol's market position and reinforces its supply chain. The line supports Asia Symbol's goal of reducing CO2 emissions from paper production and promoting the joint development of local upstream and downstream industries. The start-up has laid a solid foundation for future cooperation and development between the two parties, which aim to further deepen their collaboration in the fields of technological innovation and sustainable development.