The sawmill industry is an electricity-intensive business, where the drying of sawn timber accounts for the greatest need for electricity. The price of electricity is also today more than 2-5 times higher than three years ago, which puts pressure on the sawmill companies financially. At the same time, the quality requirements for delivered timber are increasing with the CLT trend, increased use of beech, oak, and other hard woods. The effects of increased inflation and other events in the world also increase the pressure on sawmills' competitiveness. The solution is switching to a dynamic drying process and thus 25-60% less electricity costs, 2-10% reduced heating, 5-20% shorter drying time and, not least, significantly higher quality. If you convert the effects into money, it can mean €200,000 per year, as in this typical example for three 230 m3 drying kilns.
“Due to rising electricity prices, we have decided to invest in a more environmentally friendly control of our drying process for solid oak. With the patented dynamic drying process from Alent Dynamic, we have reduced electricity consumption on average by 50-55%. At the same time, we now have a faster drying process, which in turn increases production capacity. With all these advantages, we can count on a quick return on investment” says Waldemar Kleniewski, Owner of KLENIEWSKI TARTAK, Poland.
The approach of the patented dynamic drying process is to add heat and running fans in intervals, which saves a lot of electricity. The drying cycles of the drying kilns can also be synchronized with each other to avoid electricity consumption peaks, which lowers the electricity cost even further.
According to many observers, the electricity price will continue to be at a high level in the coming years. It is the price of electricity that is the decisive factor that makes more and more sawmills switch to dynamic drying process right now. Already after a few months with the new drying process, they notice a significantly better quality of the dried wood. Fewer cracks, less deformation and discoloration further increase their competitiveness.
“After the implementation of the dynamic drying process from Alent Dynamic in 5 drying kilns at one of our sawmills, we could immediately see the promised benefits. End cracks are no longer a problem for us and twists and discoloration have also improved significantly. We notice considerable electricity savings and are happy about a more environmentally friendly drying process. The transition was very simple and quick in all chambers” says Ueli Lädrach, head of operations and production at OLWO AG, Worb, Schweiz.
OLWO has currently introduced a dynamic drying process at two more sawmills.
