At Metsä Fibre’s bioproduct factory in Kemi, we carried out seven different infrastructure and earthworks projects as well as the on-site casting of cooling water towers. Kreate’s contract was part of Metsä Fibre’s 1.5 billion euro bioproduct factory investment, which is the largest investment in the history of the Finnish forest industry.
Our earthworks included earth cutting and the construction of piling platforms and a stormwater network in the factory area; filling in water bodies; the construction of a new access road and culvert bridges; and the implementation of groundwater lowering in the chip tunnel area. In addition, our contracts included the area work in Pajusaari and Sahasaari with pipelines, roads and lifting areas as well as lighting mast foundations. The construction site was geotechnically demanding, as the base soil was soft; the groundwater in the area was close to the ground surface; and part of the excavation work extended into the area of old fillings in the factory area.
Regarding cooling water towers, we are responsible for things such as the concrete foundation work and the casting of the nearly 4,000 m3 pile slab in the water tower area.
The construction took place in the current factory area, and had to take into account Metsä Group’s two factories located in the area: the current pulp mill and the cardboard mill.
Ever since the bidding phase of the contract, Kreate had been actively developing alternative solutions together with the customer. The solutions succeeded in reducing the technical and safety risks related to the work and speeding up the execution of the work phases.
The starting point for the design of the Kemi bioproduct factory was freedom from fossil fuels and 250 per cent electricity self-sufficiency. In a similar environmentally friendly spirit, options were also developed for earthworks. We promoted the use of recycled materials in our part of the contract, for example by proposing the use of OKTO insulation in the filter layer. OKTO insulation made from industrial by-products makes it unnecessary to use of natural rock materials. It offers excellent load-bearing capacity and thermal insulation, which in turn speeds up construction in winter conditions.
In addition, together with the customer, Kreate innovated the implementation method of deep pumping wells intended for lowering the groundwater.
