The Schoellershammer paper mill has accomplished a logistical masterstroke. New access roads, a storage area for recovered paper, a power plant, water treatment facility, roll storage facility and the building for the paper machine were built in just 18 months, during which time Voith was producing the new paper machine itself. Assembly began in April 2016 and the PM was commissioned at the beginning of December. In January the machine produced 10,000 metric tons of marketable paper. Schoellershammer Managing Director Armin Vetter is delighted by the prompt execution of the project and commends the collaboration with Voith: 'From the very first sales negotiation through to commissioning we worked together in a spirit of fairness and partnership. Voith was committed to our goals and developed solutions to meet our needs.'

The Schoellershammer PM 6 is one of the first paper machines from the new Voith XcelLine and is designed for packaging papers in the basis weight range 80 – 120 g/m2. 'We planned the PM 6 as a complement to our PM 5, which we will use in future exclusively for basis weights from 110 g/m2 and up. We will shift all light paper grades to the PM 6 and can then make the best use of both machines,' explains Vetter. Schoellershammer is aiming to produce an annual total of 500,000 metric tons packaging paper on both machines.

In response to the question of why the company opted for Voith to supply the technology, Vetter mentioned two reasons: 'It was important for us to get a full-line supplier on board who could deliver everything from a single source, from the conveyor system for the recovered paper to the winder. In addition, we have a very strong focus on energy efficiency. We aim to set new standards and become the benchmark for packaging paper in Germany. Voith submitted a convincing package in the shape of BlueLine for the stock preparation and the new XcelLine paper machine.'

The Schoellershammer PM 6 features a MasterJet Pro G with ModuleJet. For the PM 6, the proven Voith headbox was fitted with flexible lamellas for the first time for and is therefore readily accessible for cleaning and maintenance. The operating window is also extended as a result. For the former, Schoellershammer opted for the DuoFormer Base II due to its excellent dewatering capacity, and could therefore dispense with suction couch rolls. The press is a Voith DuoCentri-NipcoFlex. The dryer section consists of a pre-dryer and after-dryer section with a SpeedSizer film applicator. For reeling up jumbo rolls with a diameter of up to 3.8 meters, the company opted for a MasterReel MR 125 with an EcoChange T, as it ensures very reliable spool changing. Also included is a VariFlex two-drum winder with Voith Gecko automatic gluing system for start and end gluing.

The stock preparation unit uses the Voith BlueLine products IntensaPulper, IntensaMaXX pulper detrashing machine, IntegraScreen screening machine and two HiCon disk filters. When combined, the BlueLine machines ensure energy efficiency and sparing use of resources. The initial clothing with forming wires, press felts and dryer fabrics were also supplied by Voith.