Setra unveils SEK 120 million ($14 million) improvements at the Skinneskatteberg sawmill in Västmanland, Sweden

Mar 31, 2009. /Lesprom Network/. Setra and energy and technical services company Dalkia unveiled the result of investments totalling SEK 120 million ($14 million) at the Skinneskatteberg sawmill in Västmanland in central Sweden. The investments have resulted in a modern sawlog sorting unit with an X-ray scanner, an eco-friendly biofuel boiler and increased drying capacity, as Setra Group AB informed Lesprom Network. Over the past year, Setra and Dalkia have been engaged in a process of modernising Setra’s redwood sawmill in Skinneskatteberg. A total of SEK 120 million ($14 million) has been invested to create a facility that will be able to meet future requirements in terms of efficiency and environmental sustainability. “The new sawlog sorting unit is equipped with an X-ray scanner that makes it possible to obtain detailed measurements of both the exterior of a sawlog as well as its interior properties. This enables quality grading to be more accurate and the utilisation of every sawlog to be optimised. Since the sawlogs are sorted according to their intended use, e.g. joinery, sawing can be customised right from the start of the production process,” says Kent Torwald, President and CEO of Setra Group. The sawlog sorting unit was delivered by Tähkä Oy, the X-ray scanner by RemaControl and the drying unit by Valutec AB. Dalkia has built a new, efficient and eco-friendly biofuel boiler. The biofuel boiler burns bark, chips and sawdust to cost effectively deliver a product that is free from carbon dioxide for the sawmill’s wood dryers and heating systems. Dalkia will be responsible for the boiler’s operation and maintenance in a long-term energy delivery partnership. “Meeting the increased hot water supply needs has been a prerequisite in order to increase drying capacity and implement other initiatives to raise standards at the sawmill. It is very exciting for us to be a partner in this project, because reducing environmental impact and improving operational efficiency are so closely linked,” says Philippe Charles, President and CEO of Dalkia Nordic. Setra, Sweden’s largest wood products company, offers wood-based products and solutions to the building materials trade and industrial customers.