Voith has brought to market a new screen element for the screw press. SplitScreen is the first screen element consisting of a supporting structure and a screen plate, enabling maintenance and inspection time to be significantly reduced compared with conventional cylindrical screen baskets. In addition, investment costs over the lifetime of the screw press are much lower than for conventional screen elements.

SplitScreen comprises a split supporting body with two removable screen plates instead of one cylindrical basket. This design enables direct access to the individual screw press components without having to dismantle it completely. Whereas with previous technologies the entire press screw including screen baskets had to be lifted out using an indoor crane to get to the cylindrical screen elements, SplitScreen allows the top half of the SplitScreen to be disconnected after lifting the hood to check the condition of the plate. If the screen plate, which is a wearing part, does actually need to be replaced the lower half can also simply be turned to the top. This then gives easy access to exchange the upper and lower screen plates. At the same time this makes the press screw accessible for inspection.

With SplitScreen, the time necessary for replacing a screen element is only three to four hours instead of the average 24 to 48 hours that were previously needed. Moreover, procurement costs can be cut up to 40 percent per year after first installation, as in the event of wear only the screen plate and not the entire SplitScreen has to be changed. The large, open design of the screen area also helps improve the dewatering efficiency of the screw press.

SplitScreen is a standard feature of Voith's new InfiltraScrewpress. All conventional screen elements of Voith’s Thune screw press as well as screw presses from other manufacturers can be converted to SplitScreen.

The new screen element has already been successfully installed more than a dozen times worldwide and has also been retrofitted to conventional screw presses six times to date. The product is proving effective in the field and customers that have installed SplitScreen are very satisfied with its performance.

SplitScreen is a component of Voith’s BlueLine product range that has been developed for stock preparation. BlueLine products are known for their low consumption of energy, fibers and water.

Voith Paper is a division of the Voith Group and the leading partner to and pioneer in the paper industry. Through constant innovations, Voith Paper is optimizing the paper manufacturing process, focusing on developing resource-saving products to reduce the use of energy, water, and fibers. Furthermore, Voith Paper offers a broad service portfolio for all sections of the paper manufacturing process.

Voith sets standards in the markets of energy, oil & gas, paper, raw materials and transport & automotive. Founded in 1867, Voith today has more than 39,000 employees, sales of €5.3 billion and locations in more than 50 countries, making it one of the largest family-owned companies in Europe.