The pulp & paper and wood products industries operate in some of the most mechanically demanding and environmentally intense production environments in the world. With massive rotating machinery, such as refiners, debarkers, chippers, conveyors, dryers, and presses, any shaft misalignment can quickly escalate into catastrophic damage, unplanned downtime, and production losses.
Hamar Laser’s X-Series™ Laser Shaft Alignment Systems are engineered to tackle these challenges head-on. Designed for durability, precision, and ease of use, X-Series systems dramatically reduce alignment time and increase machinery reliability in harsh mill environments, where dust, heat, moisture, and vibration are daily realities.
Problem: A high-volume softwood sawmill struggled with repeated bearing failures in their chipper drive systems. Manual alignment was slow, inconsistent, and frequently resulted in downtime during peak production periods.
Solution: The mill invested in the X-660 X-Series™ Laser Shaft Alignment System and trained its maintenance team to perform proactive alignments across key rotating assets.
Reduced alignment time by
over 70%
Bearing failure rate decreased by
60%
Energy consumption on main chipper motors dropped by
8%
Extended maintenance intervals by
4-6 months
Reduced emergency shutdowns during critical throughput periods
The ruggedness of our X-Series™ systems makes them ideal for mills where debris, high loads, and extreme operational stress are common. Our wireless alignment heads are built to withstand IP67-rated conditions, meaning they’re resistant to water and dust ingress, while the Easy-Guide™ software helps even less experienced technicians achieve precise alignments with confidence.
In the pulp & paper and wood products industries, misalignment isn’t just a maintenance issue, it’s a production risk. Hamar Laser’s X-Series™ helps mills maximize uptime, reduce energy costs, and preserve valuable mechanical assets, all while delivering fast, accurate alignments under harsh industrial conditions.
Assumptions for this example: You have a 480 volt motor drawing 40 amps and operating 8400 hours/year. The Power Factor is .85. Electricity costs $0.06/kWhr. Also assume that the amp draw is measured before and after the alignment and it is found that there is a 1 amp difference.
kW =V* A*PF*1.732/1000
kW =480V* 1A*.85*1.732/1000
kW =.706 = power savings
Savings ($) = operating hours * kW savings * kW cost
Savings ($) = 8400 * .706 * $0.06/kWhr
Savings ($) = 8400 * .706 * $0.06/kWhr
Savings ($) = 355.82
If your plant has 80 similar motors, and if only half of them had the same amount of savings, it would total $355.82 * .5 = $14,232!
The coupling icons next to the data displays show the direction of the misalignment at the coupling and update as you move or shim the motor! You can also zoom in on the coupling to show them in the live display area of the screen.
