Dieffenbacher to set another milestone

 Thursday, July 13, 2023

German companies WESER Industrie- und Anlagentechnik GmbH, an engineering, procurement and construction specialist, and Dieffenbacher, a leading manufacturer of press systems and complete production plants for the wood-based panels industry, are collaborating with the Egyptian EPC contractor MT Mixers to supply a unique, innovative and eco-friendly plant for the manufacture of high- and medium-density fiberboard (HDF/MDF) from date palm fronds to Egypt’s National Service Projects Organization (NSPO). The facility is being built in the Toshka region and is scheduled to produce its first board in the fall of 2025.

WESER has the responsibility to act as a general contractor for the turnkey project, which will approximately cover an area of 400,000 m². The MAIER chipping line, which consists of an MAIER Drum Chipper with an extra-large infeed cross-section specifically designed for high-volume material, a feeding belt conveyor, a vibration dosing table and an integrated MAIER Rechipper, is the first component of the Dieffenbacher scope of supply for the entire plant project. The raw board handling, the refiner, dryer and air grader, the forming line and station, the glue preparation and dosing, the CPS+ continuous press with Press Emission Control System, the sanding line, the strapping line and the pneumatic systems are all included within this. Dieffenbacher will also handle the automation and electrics of the plant.

The contract also includes a 29 MW energy system consisting of a solid- fuel fired steam boiler and a thermal oil heater. “This is the first time since the acquisition of the former BERTSCHenergy in January 2023 that we have integrated a Dieffenbacher Energy solution into a project of our Wood business unit,” explains Stefan Zipf, head of the Wood business unit at Dieffenbacher. “Our Austrian and German energy experts from Bludenz and Eppingen have worked closely together to provide NSPO with a customized solution perfectly suited to the special requirements of burning palm waste.” Stefan added further.

Adjacent to a 40,000-acre date farm, the new plant will use date palm fronds to produce around 125,000 m³ of MDF/HDF per year. “This will make the factory a one-of-kind in the world,” says WESER’s managing director Ahmed Amrou. “Usually, palm fronds are considered farm waste. In this case, however, instead of wood, which is hard to get in this region anyway, they will be used to produce high-quality MDF/HDF boards that can be utilized for flooring or by the furniture industry, for example. The production facility is a valuable contribution to more sustainable farming in the area,” Ahmed concluded.

The plant will also bring 500 new jobs, which is intended to strengthen the local economy in the Toshka area. Work on the Egypt construction site started in April 2023 after the NSPO, WESER, and Dieffenbacher contract was signed.

Tags: Ahmed Amrou, Anlagentechnik GmbH, CPS+ continuous press, Dieffenbacher, drum chipper, eco-friendly plant, HDF/MDF, leading manufacturer, MAIER chipping line, MAIER Rechipper, NSPO, Press Emission Control System, press systems, production plants, Stefan Zipf, Toshka region, WESER, WESER Industrie