ABB upgrades management system of Arauco pulp and paper mill in Chile

2021: Management Upgrade Plans

ABB announced on April 26, 2021 that it is modernizing the management system of the Arauco pulp and paper mill in Chile.

Upgrading the Arauco Licancel Pulp and Paper Mill will increase the speed and reliability of the equipment and increase its flexibility for remote operations.

Arauco will continue to work with the ABB Ability System 800xA Distributed Management System (DCS) and extend its application to be used as the basis for all operations in the plant. This will be done in two main stages: upgrading the existing 800xA system to version 6.1 and upgrading the communication, network and controllers by moving from the old DCS Infi 90 systems to communication modules and endpoints.

Switching to an ABB Ethernet network will make the management system more flexible, increase its reliability, and enable remote operation.

This will support Arauco's plans to improve the process at its Licancel plant with a production volume of 154 thousand tons of unbleached kraft pulp (UKP) located in the Likanten region of Maule. Arauco promotes sustainable forest management and renewable energy throughout the country through local research and technology development to achieve these goals.

After a thorough process study, ABB teams will start working with Arauco staff on-site to complete the upgrade and commissioning of the system. As a result, the company will receive a complete system migration and a platform ready for further extensions and upgrades in the future.

This modernization marks a departure from the technologies that have been used since the 1990s, said Jorge Mesa, manager of the Licancel, Arauco plant. - The presence of this improved distributed management system and applications will allow us in Licancel to better cope with projects of additional technological development and achieve the best production performance.

{{quote 'The latest version of 6.1 of ABB Ability 800xA offers the benefits of increased safety, performance and interaction, "said Julio Arellano, head of ABB's service team in the extractive and pulp and paper industries in Chile. - Operators will be able to quickly detect and respond to malfunctions using tools and protocols on equipment with a graphical interface. Compared to the previous infrastructure, there will be fewer uncertainties in the management system. This will allow Arauco employees to focus on what they do best.

This project builds on our long-standing relationship with Arauco for pulp production and wood processing. The resumption of cooperation with Licancel demonstrates the high quality of the initial system, which served the enterprise for more than two decades. Arauco has given us not only the technology involved but also the integration process.}}