"Staying on schedule is one of our key values, regardless of the size of the project," says Kari Kivimäki, Project Manager in Insta Automation that was in charge of the instrumentation of Metsä Fibre's new bioproduct mill in Äänekoski. According to him, key to the successful completion of a project are correctly allocated resources, the need of which is flexibly assessed during the project, and storage management best practices, which enable the project to continue without interruptions.
"In big projects, we must be able to allocate sufficient competencies and resources to the installation work. At Äänekoski, we continuously monitored the situation and brought in new employees when the situation demanded it. At the highest peak, we had 92 guys at work," says Kivimäki.
According to Kivimäki, the ability to also reduce the number of installation personnel when required brings added flexibility. "It's important that the company in charge of instrumentation be simultaneously engaged in other projects, so that employees can be moved from one project to another as required by the major project. Insta is one of the very few Finnish operators with the ability to use such an agile operating model."
"I would always recommend that the customer ensure that personnel resources can be flexibly increased or reduced as required."- Kari Kivimäki, Insta Automation Oy
Early on in the Äänekoski project, special attention was paid to the management of the large on-site instrumentation organization. In addition to the technicians and the site supervisor, there were four instrumentation supervisors, an assistant, a warehouse employee, and a full-time HSE supervisor operating on site. In addition, Insta's Main Office in Tampere helped with other material procurements, etc.
"In such a large project, we must carefully consider the whole from beginning to end. Thanks to our experience, we were able to solve problems linked to, for example, storage space flexibly in tandem with the on-site organization, the Insta Main Office, and our material suppliers. Due to limited storage space, it was not possible to store any extra installation equipment or materials on the installation site. On site, we only had access to exactly the equipment that we needed, nothing else. Success in this was guaranteed by careful planning and close cooperation," Kivimäki says.
In fact, the different parties to the project were so successful that the factory in Äänekoski was commissioned on schedule. "We are proud that the audits and commissioning proceeded in accordance with the requirements and timetables set by the customer and the equipment manufacturer."
"An instrumentation project of this scale has not been executed in Finland in years!"- Kari Kivimäki, Insta Automation Oy
In total, Insta Automation's project in Äänekoski lasted 1.5 years.
Photo: Sami Karppinen
What is it all about?
At EUR 1.2 billion, the bioproduct mill of the Metsä Group is the all-time largest investment in the history of the Finnish forest industry. The progressive bioproduct mill concept is first of its kind in the world. In addition to high-grade pulp, the mill produces a wide range of other bioproducts, such as pine oil, turpentine, biocomposites and biogas, product gas, and sulfuric acid. The mill was built by Metsä Fibre Oy, a member of Metsä Group. You can find more information on Metsä Group's bioproduct mill at www.bioproductmill.com
Insta Automation Oy is a solution provider and life cycle partner in electrical automation. Insta Automation was in charge of almost all instrumentation installations at the bioproduct mill in Äänekoski. The installation included all cabling and connections, as well as equipment and field box installations. Insta Automation was also responsible for circuit testing.
Kari Kivimäki
Senior Project Manager firstname.lastname@insta.fi
