AMETEK Surface Vision Solves Production Defects in Paper Mill Leading to Improved Customer Satisfaction and Significant Cost Savings
- Published: May 13, 2025
Leading provider of surface inspection systems, AMETEK Surface Vision, has helped White Birch Paper, a large Canadian manufacturer of specialty and paperboard products, to improve customer satisfaction and reduce claim rates through the reliable identification of dark defects at its Stadacona Mill.
The Stadacona Mill is based in Quebec City, Canada. It produces over 250,000 metric tons of high-quality newsprint, commercial paper, recycled kraft paper and paperboard products per year.
To address the challenges of increasing customer claims and decreased satisfaction due to dark defects, the mill sought a reliable solution to enhance product quality and reduce paper waste and rejects.
Volker Koelmel, Global Industry Manager for Paper at AMETEK Surface Vision said, “The General Manager of the Stadacona mill approached us as they already had a SmartAdvisor system installed on a different production line, so it made sense for the mill to install something that would work in harmony. We recommended the SmartAdvisor two-camera system with inspection mode to identify the root cause of process upsets.
“The results are impressive; Stadacona estimates that implementing SmartAdvisor has saved around $500k in expenses, due to reduced customer complaints, paper loss and rejects.”
The SmartAdvisor’s two-camera system with inspection mode is a flexible, scalable solution that delivers reliable defect detection, statistical reports and maintenance notifications. This versatile, easy-to-use vision system provides high-speed, multi-dimensional video monitoring and process analysis.
Guy Trottier, General Manager Paperboard Products and Product Development Manager, Stadacona added: “The AMETEK Surface Vision SmartAdvisor system with inspection mode is an incredibly useful tool for our operations and quality teams. We can now fully document the quality of our paperboard products and refer to the production data whenever necessary.
“By simultaneously improving production quality and reducing the number of complaints and related expenses, SmartAdvisor has generated a return on investment in a very short period of time. It has also strengthened relations with new and existing customers.”
With a wealth of experience in the paper industry, AMETEK Surface Vision provides customized, modular solutions to paper producers around the world. Expert knowledge ensures the right mix of lighting, cameras and other hardware for accurate real-time inspection. Advanced detection and classification software ensure unparalleled, automatic identification and visualization of defects.
Read the full case study here. For more information about SmartAdvisor click here.
