Wallnas Timber invests in two Valutec batch kilns at Sagen, Sweden, facility for improved flexibility, ability to offer more dried products; stainless steel kilns to provide capacity of 35,000 cubic meters/year, feature IE5 motors for lower energy use

Swedish Wallnäs Timber AB is a family-owned sawmill, dating back to 1896, strongly niched towards heavy lumber and thicker timber dimensions. Now they are investing in two batch kilns from Valutec to be able to offer more dried products in thick dimensions.

"With the new kilns, we become more flexible and will be able to offer more dried products and thereby get a higher value exchange from each log," says Ralf Rosberg, CEO of Wallnäs Timber.

Wallnäs Timber only saws thick dimensions and the main part of the product range is sorted directly by customer. The sawmill has noticed a demand for more products and felt a need to become more flexible in its production.

"Today the trend certainly goes towards continuous kilns., But when you, like Wallnäs, saw many dimensions in smaller batches, the flexible batch kiln is the obvious choice," says Joakim Berglund, Valutec sales manager.

The two batch kilns Wallnäs Timber invested in have an annual capacity of approx. 35,000 cubic metres. Like all Valutec dryers, they are built in stainless steel for maximum lifespan and come with modern IE5 motors, which both have a longer life and lower energy consumption than industry standard IE2 and IE3 motors. To further reduce energy consumption, Wallnäs Timber has chosen extra insulation for the dryers. The delivery also includes Valutec's control system for wood drying "Valmatics 4.0". The kilns are fed through, which means that the logistics will be less demanding, for example the dryers can be run over the weekend without staffing.

"We have good experience from previous projects with Valutec and they offer a good and secure overall solution. Valutec is development-focused, and we appreciate that. A good example of this is the "Spot price control" in Valmatics 4.0, which was developed in connection with electricity prices skyrocketing in Scandinavia last autumn. Thanks to it, we were able to save many dollars in electricity consumption at Wallnäs," says Ralf.

More sustainable production
For Wallnäs, it is important to be part of the green transition and the investment in two Valutec kilns means, in addition to more flexible production, that an older, less energy-efficient dryer can be taken out of operation.

 "Just like all sawmills, we contribute to the transition by enabling an increased use of wood. But we also work a lot on how our sawmill can make a difference. Valutec dryers have developed safety solutions and are energy efficient thanks to extra insulation, modern IE5 motors and efficient control. It will contribute to us having a more sustainable production," says Ralf.

Assembly of the kilns will begin this summer and they are expected to be commissioned in November this year.

"We have had a good collaboration with Wallnäs for a long time and I feel honored and proud that we can continue to be part of their journey", concludes Joakim.

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