MM Gernsbach relies on Valmet Black Belt for its efficient dewatering properties
Valmet Black Belt shoe press belts are known for their high quality and long lifetime. At MM Gernsbach mill in Germany, Valmet Black Belt has reached a running time of over 700 days while keeping its excellent dewatering capacity
Mayr-Meinhof Karton AG (MM) is a global leader in consumer packaging, offering cardboard, folding boxboard, kraft papers, uncoated fine papers, leaflets and labels. At their mill in Gernsbach in southwestern Germany, the company produces 280,000 tonnes of recycled cardboard each year. When it comes to shoe press belts, MM Gernsbach relies on Valmet’s expertise.
Matthieu Boisson, Head of Production at MM Gernsbach, says that the most important characteristics for a good shoe press belt are efficient dewatering and long lifetime. He has been very satisfied with Valmet Black Belt.
“With Valmet we have been able to increase the running time of the shoe press belt from around six months to over two years, with potential to even more. The belt quality and its dewatering performance have remained stable, thus contributing positively to the overall papermaking process and end-product quality,” Matthieu Boisson says.
Customers value Valmet’s technical support
In addition to offering high-performing shoe press belts, Valmet continuously supports their customers with technical advice both remotely and on site. Alone finding the optimal product for each shoe press position requires extensive expertise in the paper making process and thorough understanding of the customer’s machine line.
“The shoe press belt design is always optimized based on the mill’s specific requirements, leading to optimal performance and lifetime. For the Gernsbach mill, we selected a Valmet Black Belt design with high density grooves, which provides excellent wear and impact resistance, leading to significant improvement in the belt's lifetime. To make sure our products perform as expected, we have supported the customer with the installation and offered additional hands-on training for the crew. Our regular follow-up support includes shut down services as well as running observations combined with felt measurement and data analysis,” says Alfred Caseli, Product Sales Manager at Valmet.
In the future, Matthieu Boisson expects the shoe press belts to run for even longer than two years. To reach the target, Valmet continues to provide high-quality shoe press belts to MM Gernsbach as well as intensive customer care.
“The cooperation with Valmet has been very good, and we value the on-site support Valmet offers to further optimize the performance of the shoe press belt and our process,” Matthieu Boisson says.
Alfred Caseli emphasizes that success is always about good cooperation between the customer and supplier, and about the trust that has been built over the years.
On Valmet’s behalf, I want to thank the entire Gernsbach team for the excellent work and the constant will to improve further. The best results can be achieved by combining a high-quality product with the professional way of operating the machine. It’s teamwork that makes the difference, he says.
