July 2021: New Paradigms
By Jim Thompson
As the post-Covid world unfolds, there is a feeling of new paradigms in the air. It is pervasive--not just in the pulp and paper world, but everywhere.
Things seem to be moving faster and expectations are that tasks can be completed quicker.
When it comes to paper mill design, the principles of the Light Green Machine Institute fall right in line with this.
As far as I know, right now, the record construction time for a recycled containerboard mill stands at about 18 months from ground-breaking to paper-on-the-reel. This, of course, depends on a highly skilled and experienced team and the cooperation of many suppliers and contractors.
But here is where LGMI principles can come in play big time: if you don't need it, you don't have to buy it and you don't have to install it. LGMI is about critically examining old ways and eliminating things we don't need.
The industry is so entrenched in the "we've always done it that way thinking" that it is hard to break the cycle. But we will because we question everything and dig to find a better way.
Jim Thompson
jim.thompson@ipulpmedia.com
