Germany's Gutex produces first fibers with new Andritz fiber preparation system at Eschbach wood fiber insulation board plant, advancing its eco-friendly production

Oliver Bauch, Plant Manager, GUTEX, says: “The new line will perfectly support the environmentally friendly production approach for our ecological insulation board products. Thanks to the excellent cooperation and the great effort of the whole ANDRITZ team we were able to produce first fibers even ahead of schedule.”

Michael Rupp, Vice President for Panelboard Systems, ANDRITZ, adds: “We are proud that GUTEX again chose to collaborate with us and that we had the opportunity to provide them with our complete front-end technology.”

The scope of supply comprised a complete fiber preparation line, including a debarking and chipping line as well as the steel structure, piping material and installation work. The highly efficient system processes softwood chips as raw material and features the following technological highlights:

• ANDRITZ RotaBarker debarking system and horizontally fed HHQ-Chipper for consistently good chip quality at high production rates
• Fully automatic chip storage system with reclaiming and screening equipment
• High-consistency pressurized refining system to obtain high fiber quality and low specific energy consumption
• Steam Recovery System (SRS) for efficient recovery of surplus steam and greater thermal efficiency of the fiber preparation system

GUTEX is one of Europe’s pioneers in ecological insulation solutions. The family business based in the German Black Forest started making wood fiber insulation products back in 1932. In 2006, GUTEX was the first company to start producing wood fiberboard insulation with a homogeneous raw density profile using an innovative drying process. This technique allows GUTEX to manufacture single-layer wood fiber insulation board up to 240 mm thick and with significant quality advantages.

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ANDRITZ GROUP
International technology group ANDRITZ offers a broad portfolio of innovative plants, equipment, systems, services and digital solutions for a wide range of industries and end markets. Sustainability is an integral part of the company’s business strategy and corporate culture. With its extensive portfolio of sustainable products and solutions, ANDRITZ aims to make the greatest possible contribution to a sustainable future and help its customers achieve their sustainability goals. ANDRITZ is a global market leader in all four of its business areas – Pulp & Paper, Metals, Hydro and Separation. Technological leadership and global presence are cornerstones of the group’s strategy, which is focused on long-term profitable growth. The publicly listed group has around 29,900 employees and over 280 locations in more than 40 countries.

ANDRITZ PULP & PAPER
ANDRITZ Pulp & Paper provides sustainable technology, automation, and service solutions for the production of all types of pulp, paper, board and tissue. The technologies and services focus on increased production efficiency, lower overall operating costs as well as innovative decarbonization strategies and autonomous plant operation.

The product portfolio also includes boilers for power generation, flue gas cleaning systems, various nonwoven technologies, and panelboard (MDF) production systems. With waste-to-value recycling, shredding and energy solutions, waste and by-product streams from production are converted into valuable secondary raw materials as well as into sustainable resources for energy generation. State-of-the-art IIoT technologies as part of Metris digitalization solutions complete the comprehensive product offering.