Research & Development

in the long term

Valon Kone began systematic development work on debarkers in the 1950s, and by the 1970s a decision was made to focus on the development and manufacturing of rotor debarkers. Focusing on just one product has allowed large-scale and long-term development, and through it, our worldwide success.

Customers play a key role in R&D

As a leader in the debarking technology, we invest a significant part of our turnover into debarker R&D. An important part of this work is continuous and close cooperation with customers to optimize their raw material and maximize the productivity. This has laid the foundations for new product families as well as the development of existing products. We design effective and reliable solutions for customers, so that even in the planning stage of the machine debarker, the life cycle costs are taken into account.

One of our strengths is finding customer-specific solutions for different needs in the sawmills and plywood factories, and this is supported by a very wide range of products. Our VK5000 & 8000 series is the latest outcome of a completely new machine family, which includes innovations for higher capacity, lower bark content, and higher reducing speed.

Priorities for the future development work

Our main focus on R&D at Valon Kone has shifted during the last several years from the tool geometry and hydraulics/pneumatics into the development of debarker controlling. Feed speeds at sawmills are still increasing and demands for minimum log damage results in more accurate control.

Environment friendly solutions and safety issues will become even more important in the future. This has already been taken into consideration at VK and the oil collecting system for the rotor can be obtained in some machine models. In addition, remote monitoring and IoT will play a more significant role in debarking technology in the future.

We have developed significant research and development cooperation with universities and high-schools, and we are glad to provide an internship or a possibility for diploma work for a few students yearly. For further questions, please contact our R&D Director.