Robuschi centrifugal pumps in the paper mill

Recard has been designing, building and installing systems for the paper industry for many years. When it came to the Pratolungo paper mill in Tuscany, it chose the centrifugal pumps made by its trusted partner of more than 30 years: Robuschi.

With around 80 employees, most of them engineers, Recard has been designing complete systems for tissue paper production for 55 years - "from the raw material to the big rolls", as Managing Director Mauro Michelini explains. Recard was founded in 1962 in the heart of the Tuscan paper producing area, and has always worked for that sector, becoming one of the leading companies in the field of technologies for the production and transformation of tissue paper. We're designers, builders and installers, and we produce most of the tissue machine itself, purchasing the remaining system components from reliable suppliers like Robuschi of the Gardner Denver Group. We always include Robuschi components in our designs because of the faith we have in that brand, the top quality products it offers us, and the long-standing relationship based on collaboration and trust."

That collaboration between the two companies began over 35 years ago, and has never been broken. Product quality, skilled technicians and a good aftersales service are the characteristics that Recard has always found in Robuschi. "We choose their centrifugal pumps in particular, trusting in their proven experience. Each time, we let the Robuschi technicians know the destination of the pump, and its head and capacity data on the basis of the plant engineering requirements we need to meet, and they expertly suggest the type of pump most suited to that specific case."

The Pratolungo Paper Mill

One of the projects handled by Recard is an important installation at the Pratolungo Paper Mill in Pescia, in the province of Pistoia. The plant is part of the Industrie Celtex group that makes tissue and non-woven products for professional cleaning and hygiene. Celtex manages the entire production chain, its 4 plants covering the whole process from paper production right through to transformation. "The Pratolungo plant produces about 60 tonnes of paper for hygienic use every day, using both cellulose and recycled paper as a raw material. Its main output is paper of 15-18-20 grammes per square metre."

"Our work covered all the design and subsequent building of the whole system, including the installation of centrifugal pumps for conveying service liquids for the paste preparation area of the mill." A total of 16 open-impeller and closed-impeller pumps based on Robuschi technology, including 9 RACN models and 6 RCN - RCNS models of varying sizes of the PROMIX range, and 1 RNS pump of the PROCHEM range.

Recard designed the entire paper mill system. "In particular we simplified the plant engineering aspect, making it highly technological with solutions that guarantee savings both on installation and energy consumption." This technical innovation was further enhanced by the efficiency of Robuschi pumps. "We call this technology Easy Crescent", says Michelini. "It's a new way of conceiving the installation of a system for small and medium level production, from 50 to 80 tonnes of paper per day. It's much faster, easier and less expensive to build, with the added advantage that the tissue machine is also easier to run." Apart from the Pescia site, Recard has also installed the Easy Crescent concept in two other Italian plants and two abroad as well. The first was launched in Italy in 2002, and also used Robuschi pumps.

By applying this solution in the Pratolungo project, Recard was able to eliminate a vacuum pump that consumed about 200 kilowatts. "We managed to guarantee the same production volume, improving the life cycle of the machine and keeping the same quantity and characteristics of the paper but with a series of benefits: a reduction of the initial cost of the building work needed for installation, energy savings, and greater ease of use (in turn meaning lower operating costs and less maintenance). The system has been up and running for at least 4 years. It's efficient and the customer is fully satisfied."

The value of reliability

There were various reasons behind the decision to adopt Robuschi technology, says the Recard Managing Director: "the quality of the pumps, the fact that it's an Italian product, and the long-term trust and collaboration that binds us to Robuschi - a guarantee that we can pass on to our customers." The components of a system have to be 100% reliable, but that's not enough: "we have to guarantee our customers the necessary product maintenance throughout the working life of the system, so we need a partner who can provide the required skills, supply the spare parts and, when necessary, intervene promptly. And Robuschi has another advantage in Italy: expert, reliable local dealers who are always on hand to provide a first-class aftersales service. That's real added value."

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