MÜHLBÖCK drying systems are tailored to the specific individual situation at the customer’s. They deliver perfect drying results, setting standards in terms of energy efficiency and economics.
Interview with Richard Mühlböck, Managing Director of Mühlböck Holztrocknungsanlagen.
Please give us a brief description of your company and its activities. What are the main areas of activity of Mühlböck Holztrocknungsanlagen?
Richard Mühlböck: We have been pioneers in energy-saving timber drying technology for over 40 years now. Our highly efficient heat recovery systems can save up to 50 % of the energy required for drying wood. For our customers in the wood processing industry, this means enormous cost savings for the necessary wood drying process. Despite its niche market, our company has thus developed into an important player in the wood industry with a high international market share. Today, Mühlböck is an international leader in this field. More than 13,000 Mühlböck systems are in operation worldwide. Our family-run company is also a respected employer in the region and is currently building its second production site in Eberschwang in Upper Austria.
What does the range of products and services look like?
R.M: My father, Kurt Mühlböck, started out in 1982 with the construction of drying kilns. Thanks to constant innovation and further development, our company now has a unique technical position on the market. Over the years, our energy-efficient technology has been integrated into all common wood drying variants. Today, we can offer our customers highly efficient drying kilns in several designs, as well as channel dryers in which enormous quantities of sawn timber can be dried in an energy-saving manner. A few years ago, we also revolutionised belt dryer technology with our heat recovery systems. This means that sawmill by-products can now also be dried in an energy-efficient manner. This is essential for the cost-effective provision of biomass energy, such as pellets. Our numerous current belt dryer projects prove that we have hit the zeitgeist with this technology.
What are the most innovative products and services that are marketed?
R.M: Many years ago, we committed ourselves to increasing the efficiency of our wood drying technology and developed a system that saves thermal and electrical kilowatt hours. This lead in research and development is particularly helpful to us today. The central component of our technology lies in our innovative heat recovery systems. With the 1306 PRO drying system, for example, we at Mühlböck Holztrocknungsanlagen have developed a system that is already superior to all previous systems in terms of both energy savings and drying quality. Up to 25 % of thermal energy can be saved. With our 1003 PREMIUM drying system, we have gone even further and raised our entire Mühlböck range to the highest level of energy efficiency.
As a closed process, the 1003 PREMIUM system keeps the heated air completely within the drying system itself. All drying zones are connected to one another via the heat recovery system. This ensures that the thermal energy used in the post-dryers is channelled to the pre-dryers where it can be reused. Our Mühlböck type 1003 system utilises almost 100 % of this previously unused exhaust air and does not waste any energy in the process. Whether in drying kilns, channel drying systems or belt dryers for drying sawdust and wood chips, the 1003 PREMIUM drying system from Mühlböck can achieve energy savings of up to 50 % and an amortisation period of less than one year to a maximum of three years.
What else can you tell us about your products and services?
R.M: The current market situation of a weak economy and high energy and operating costs is currently very challenging for many companies in the wood industry. It was precisely this situation that motivated us to look for a quick and effective solution for easily integrating our heat recovery solutions into customers’ existing systems in order to help them quickly reduce their production costs. With the newly developed drying chamber upgrade, we have now created a unique solution in the industry that allows existing older drying chambers to be brought up to an optimum energy-saving level quickly, cost-effectively and in a resource-saving manner. The respective housing of an existing drying system continues to be used, but the entire upper technology unit is converted to a high-performance Mühlböck heat recovery system. The costs remain manageable, but the system performance increases to a new level in terms of capacity and energy efficiency.
What can you tell us about general market trends in your sector?
R.M: The wood industry has always stood for sustainability and the careful use of naturally renewable resources. But especially now – at a time as ecological building materials and sustainable energy sources are becoming increasingly important – it is our task in the industry to pay more attention to these values. In particular, energy-intensive processes need to be focused on. Wood drying is one of them. We at Mühlböck are now demonstrating with our innovative technology how energy saving and resource conservation in timber drying can be achieved at the highest level. In times of high energy prices and a focus on climate-friendly technology, our innovative heat recovery systems enable us to make the energy-intensive process of wood drying more sustainable and efficient. In doing so, we are helping companies to effectively save costs and resources and also protect the environment and climate – our technology is thereby addressing several key global trends in our markets.
What are your expectations for the rest of 2024?
R.M: Even though the market situation is currently very challenging and tense, many companies are investing in new systems right now, as retrofits and installations of new systems can be carried out more quickly and efficiently during periods of low production. We are also advising our many customers to bring forward new investments now – because a new recovery in the high-performance timber industry in Europe is also inevitable due to the relevance of wood as a material and energy source. Our Romanian customers are welcome to contact our Romanian sales partner Cravcitech SRL in Bod (Jud. Braşov) or contact our Mühlböck headquarters in Upper Austria directly.