Recently, the general manager of Bøn Biobrensel, Johan Olö, received a request for a new type of service for the biomass company. An energy recovery operator in Eastern Norway found it necessary to replace some worn-out overhead cranes, and needed temporary assistance for supplying the incinerators in the offtaker facility. Normally this would result in an 8 to 10-week shutdown with serious economic repercussions.
Johan Olö, which normally provides services within chips and bark production, took the challenge head-on. Soon his team had a line rigged that could temporarily take over the supply of waste to the boilers in the plant.
“After a bit of planning, we installed a 40-metre-long conveyor belt from the neighboring plot, where we also used a grinder, a wheel loader and an excavator for the supply of secondary fuels to the facility. The machines are partly our own and partly hired, but we have also developed and adapted the equipment ourselves so that everything works optimally for feeding the boilers,” says Johan Olö.
“Our partners gave us access to customized parts at very short notice, which made us able to complete the supply line in a very short time. This includes, among other things, a control system that has been integrated with the plant's own system. Now the supply is automatic and has worked without challenges around-the-clock for several weeks, says Johan Olö.
A mobile and temporary supply line like this works well for projects lasting from 2-3 weeks, explains Olö.
“For a service like this to function well, we need to be able to respond quickly. This project shows us that we can rigg a system of this complexity fast, and be profitable for the operator even in shorter projects. We have experts both in our team and among our partners, allowing us to take on similar or even bigger projects in the future, says Olö.
The managing director of Bøn Biobrensel believes that there is also a bigger international market for these acute and temporary services.
“These types of production challenges are far from unusual and also occur within other kinds of industries. That is why this experience is something we want to make use of, and bring similar services to other European markets in the future,” concludes general manager of Bøn Biobrensel, Johan Olö.
