Frequently Asked Questions

What percentage of recycled wood can be used for the production of panels?

  • Nowadays it is possible to use 100% recycled wood in the production of particle board panels;
  • Anyway some manufacturers use a mix of virgin wood and recycled wood.

Should the existing plant be modified in order to install the plant dedicated to wood cleaning?

  • The existing production line will not be changed and does not require any modification;
  • Our wood treatment plant will be separately integrated in the storage area.

Does a cleaning plant work in wet or dry environment?

  • The plant operates through dry cleaning, so as to keep the original wood moisture unchanged, and not to increase it;
  • We do not use big or complex water washing systems, as they imply considerable difficulties for plants located in cold regions, and they would need expensive purification and treatment plants;
  • We equip the system with an independent small water tank that needs no maintenance.

Is the wood quality important in the MDF panel production?

  • Yes, it is important to use wood of middle/high quality;
  • It is necessary to remember that MDF panels are made of wood fibres, and to produce fibres it is vital to have good quality of recycled wood (chips, CNC machines residues, pallets, electrical cables coils, crates, etc…).

How much does a wood cleaning treatment plant cost?

  • It depends on the quality of the available scrap wood;
  • It depends on the throughput of the cleaning plant;
  • It depends on the kind of supply, because some parts of the plant can be built by local companies located near the plant;
  • Only after considering the above information, INSTALMEC will study the plant configuration and proceed with its quotation.

What throughput should a plant have to be cost effective?

  • In this case too, it depends on the level of contamination of the recycled wood, as it influences the choice of the machines of the plant;
  • Considering our experience, we can consider cost effective a plant whose capacity is 50-70 m3/h or 6,5 – 9,0 t/h bd of recycled wood;
  • Many plants work continuously 10-12 hours, when electricity is cheaper. They produce enough material to allow the panel Plant to work for 24 hours.

How much power does a recycling wood plant use?

  • Instalmec installations are designed to limit the consumption of energy; a typical plant uses approximately 7,0 kW ton/h;

What cleaning results can you get from a typical plant?

  • Instalmec plants reach an up to 98% cleaning efficiency.

What about maintenance?

  • The plant has been designed to reduce its maintenance to the minimum. It is realized in a tower system: the material moves from top to bottom thanks to gravity, and this reduces drastically the use of mechanical conveyors, which we know require quite a lot of maintenance;
  • Instalmec machines do not need special maintenance as there are no nets, sieves, and deposit of material that affect the efficiency of the operation. Our goal has been designing machines which avoid any possible leakage of dust or material generated during handling;
  • The only maintenance required is the typical lubrication and periodical checks.

How many operators does a Plant need?

  • There is no need to have a full time operator on the machine as the system is completely automatic, and controlled by various sensors;
  • The entire system is managed by a PLC which shows a graphical view of the plant and of all its machines, motors and sensors, pointing out relevant values. In case of emergency the management of the alarms will be realized automatically by the software, following the operative procedures;
  • It is necessary to have a full time operator only in case of wood grinding – both to check the line feeding and the grinding process.

How is the recycled wood classified?

  • Class A I
    Natural recycled wood, might be mechanically processed. It must not be contaminated with any material other than wood.
  • Class A II
    Glued, varnished, glossy or treated recycled wood. It is void of organic halogens glues and of protective impregnating varnishes for wood.
  • Class A III
    Recycled wood with presence of organic halogens in the coating, void of protective impregnating varnishes for wood.
  • Classe A IV
    Wood containing impregnating varnishes, as railway sleepers and other recycled wood that considering its contamination does not belong to the above classes.

What written above is a summary of the most frequent questions we are asked.
A Team of experts is always at your disposal for any question you might have.