Conveying System for Wood Dust

General Description

Situated in the heart of America, Pan Pacific Products, Inc. stands as North America’s leading manufacturer of fiberboard stiles and rails. Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) components serve as essential building blocks for door construction, with stiles forming the vertical outer framework and rails creating the horizontal top and bottom sections. When assembled with intermediate panels, these components create the appearance of solid wood construction.

Pan Pacific Products has up to 1,000 tons per day of green pine chips delivered by truck. The chips are then discharged onto an incline belt conveyor, pass through a magnet, and then go to a chip washing system that removes foreign materials before the chips are stored. Washed chips are then pumped into the refining system before going to a drying process. The forming and pressing processes follow the drying stage. The final stages of the process are sanding and cutting the boards to size to meet customers’ specifications. Pan Pacific Products manufactures the widest possible density and thickness range anywhere in the world.

Since moving to its new plant location, the facility has undergone tremendous modifications and upgrades. For the most recent upgrade, the plant wanted to replace two aging screw feeders with several leakage issues due to poor sealing and worn components causing housekeeping and maintenance nightmares. Wood dust from various cutting and sanding processes is collected in a pair of silos for storage. From the silos, screw feeders meter the dust for loading into trucks for disposal or repurposed for use in a variety of consumer products.

Wood Dust is Generated from Fiberboard Manufacturing Process

Design Parameters

Product Type: Wood Dust
Material Density: 6 to 10 Lbs. per Cubic Foot
Capacity: 500 Cubic feet per Hour
Duty: Intermittent

KWS Advantages

The KWS engineering team understands the unique challenges of conveying fibrous materials and the importance of maintaining consistent material flow in MDF production processes. KWS engineers conducted a site visit to take detailed measurements to ensure the new conveying system would fit exactly in place of the existing equipment. KWS engineers worked closely with the general contractor selected for installation throughout the entire process. Together with plant engineers, we were able to make minor adjustments and enhancements to the conveying systems’ design to ensure downtime of the plant would be minimized during the installation.

KWS Special Features

KWS equipped Pan Pacific Products’ conveyors with Nord right angle helical bevel gear drives, providing exceptional torque transmission and operational reliability. These drives offer superior efficiency, reduced maintenance requirements, and extended service life in the demanding wood products environment. The right-angle configuration optimizes space utilization while delivering consistent power transmission for reliable material handling. This drive configuration eliminates the antiquated chain and sprocket drive.

Understanding the importance of dust control in wood products manufacturing, KWS provides dust-tight conveyor housings and connections. KWS provided covers bolted on tight spacing and mechanical shaft seals. These design features help Pan Pacific Products maintain clean working conditions, comply with environmental regulations, and protect equipment from abrasive dust infiltration.

For this project, KWS incorporated CEMA (Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association) standard components, ensuring compatibility, reliability, and simplified maintenance. CEMA standards guarantee that replacement parts are readily available and that equipment performance meets industry-established benchmarks for safety and efficiency.