The company which started out to supply machinery to the particleboard manufacturing industry 26 years ago is still very much at the forefront of wood preparation equipment in that industry.
Pal has specialised in recent years in the preparation of recycled wood and is well-qualified to do so, coming from the country that uses the most recycled wood in Europe.
However, a major new product launched by the company last year took it into the OSB industry seriously for the first time.
The Quadradyn screen was a development of the Dynascreen roll screen which Pal has produced for some years for the particleboard and MDF industries, but took this technology to a new level.
The company claims that the accurate screening of the Quadradyn promotes maximum use of resources, good classification of strands and reduces resin consumption, as well as providing a consistently available screen area which does not become clogged. It was intended to substitute for the large rotary drum screens normally used in the OSB industry.
The first two Quadradyn systems were sold to Huber for its massive OSB mill in Broken Bow Oklahoma in the US, and these are reported to be running successfully since the mill started up earlier this year.
That has been followed by a contract to supply the screens to the latest huge OSB mill to be built by Slocan/Louisiana-Pacific as a joint venture in British Columbia.
Fabio Chiara, sales and customer relations manager for Pal, says that the company has also received a number of enquiries for Quadradyn from European companies as well as North America.
Meanwhile, back in Europe, and particleboard, Pal is currently involved in all the new lines being built in Spain, says Mr Chiara.
For the Starwood particleboard line in Turkey, it has supplied roll screens and sifters for the green end and screens and a sifter for the dry area. This equipment was being delivered in June for anticipated startup of the mill later this year.
“For the future, I see positive signs, especially in North America in OSB but I see the biggest increase in particleboard activity being in China,says Mr Chiara. “Particleboard is cheaper and more suitable for some applications in furniture and it offers the possibility to easily use recycled wood. This is at a time when the authorities are reportedly concerned about the removal of too much plantation poplar from flood prevention areas and a possible shortage of rice, due to government encouragement to farmers to plant trees. We have several enquiries from China right now.”
Mr Chiara reported that Pal had sold several urban waste lines to Japan earlier this year and has received orders for upgrading plants in Indonesia and Thailand. Notable in Thailand is the former STA particleboard line now owned by M P Particleboard. Asia Panel has also ordered a new screening line.
In Australia, Pal is now delivering roll screens for the green end and dry screening and sifting to CHH for its Mount Gambier Lakeside and White Avenue lines.
