The Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award 2009 granted to Mr. Jan Hill

Published May 7, 2009 15.00.00 +2 GMT

The award will be presented to Mr. Hill on June 3, 2009, at the International Mechanical Pulping Conference in Sundsvall, Sweden.

Mr. Hill graduated from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH, Stockholm) in 1969 as a M.Sc. in Engineering Physics. He started his career at the Swedish Pulp and Paper Research Institute (STFI) as Section Manager, Physics. After nine years, he moved to SCA Control System for a position as Executive Vice President and Technical Director. In 1985, he started to work as consultant in his own company. He was appointed to his present position as Technical Manager at Norske Skog in 2001.

Mr. Hill has worked in the field of mechanical pulping during his whole professional career. He was a pioneer in the early development of the first on-line mechanical pulp quality control systems, which were based on optical measurements of fiber dimensions in pulp flows (PQM). He used fundamental fiber and pulp properties from these kinds of on-line equipments to develop control systems for both groundwood and TMP processes. The basic principles for mechanical pulp quality control that were used then are still valid in today’s on-line control systems.

Mr. Hill has always been in the forefront of supporting development and early introduction of new measuring techniques for refiner control on mill scale. His extensive knowledge of the fundamental mechanisms of the mechanical pulping processes and interest in implementation of R&D findings on mill scale have also given rise to his commitment to training of mill operators and supervisors.

The process simulators of his own design are key educational aids for visualizing and optimizing TMP processes. His efforts have been of utmost importance in the development of mechanical pulping, both with respect to research and implementation.

The Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award Foundation, responsible for appointing the winner of the award, was established in 1985 to commemorate Dr. Asplund’s contribution to the pulp and paper industry worldwide. The award was established to promote the development of new technology of the manufacture of high-yield pulp in refiners and is awarded to a person or persons in recognition of outstanding achievement in the research and development of mechanical pulping technology. The award consists of a gold medal and an honorarium of SEK 25,000.

The award was made possible through a donation from the Sunds Defibrator Company, currently part of Metso Corporation, to the foundation in 1985. The Chairman of the board of Directors of the Foundation is Professor Hans Höglund, Mid Sweden University.

Metso is a global supplier of sustainable technology and services for mining, construction, power generation, automation, recycling and the pulp and paper industries. Metso has about 28,000 employees in more than 50 countries. www.metso.com

For further information, please contact: Mats Ullmar General Manager RTD, Mechanical Fiber, Metso Tel. +46 60 16 50 00 mats.ullmar@metso.com

Ulf Hellberg Senior Vice President, Mechanical Fiber, Metso Tel. +46 60 16 50 00 ulf.hellberg@metso.com