New press for the Tolko site in High Prairie

Dieffenbacher has been contracted by Tolko Industries Ltd. to supply the core components of a “Cebro” OSB line for the High Prairie plant in the Canadian province of Alberta. On May 20, 2022, a major fire in the press shop had damaged the Dieffenbacher twelve-daylight press commissioned by Tolko in 1995, as well as most of the upstream and downstream trades, to such an extent that it amounted to a total loss. As a replacement, Tolko has now ordered, among other things, a modern continuous press of the “CPS+” type from the plant specialist.

The scope of supply for the reconstruction of the Tolko plant in High Prairie also includes the forming station and the forming train as well as the raw plate transport system. In line with the “Cebro” smart plant concept, the press exhaust air purification system and intelligent shop air management will improve the sustainability of the plant by ensuring clean air inside and outside the production shop. The new “Evoris” digitalization solution and the “MyDieffenbacher” digital service platform will also help to make the new plant a “smart plant” in the truest sense of the word.

“We were thrilled that Dieffenbaccher was on hand so quickly to help us after the fire,” reports Fred Chinn, Vice President Strand-Based Business at Tolko. “Once everything is rebuilt, our High Prairie location will be even more efficient than before,” he adds. Tolko predicts the new plant will produce its first slab before the end of 2023. After commissioning, it is then expected to produce up to 734,000 m³ of OSB per year.