The Mid-South is one of the most active forestry and forest products manufacturing regions in the country. Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee all have significant pulp mill, paper mill, and wood products operations. These facilities run some of the most demanding steam systems and process controls in any industry. Memphis Control Center has supported pulp, paper, and industrial process facilities across the Mid-South since 1967.
Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee sit in the heart of the Southern forest products belt — one of the most productive timber and forest manufacturing regions in the world. Major operations across the region include pulp mills, integrated paper mills, containerboard plants, lumber mills, OSB (oriented strand board) plants, and wood panel manufacturing.
The Mid-South has major pulp and paper operations from established companies including International Paper, Georgia-Pacific, Domtar (which now includes the former Resolute Forest Products operations), Evergreen Packaging, and Green Bay Packaging. Georgia-Pacific's Alabama River Cellulose mill in Monroe County, Alabama has been described as one of the largest pulp operations in North America. International Paper operates mills throughout the region. Domtar operates facilities including the former Resolute mill in Grenada, Mississippi and a facility in Charleston, Tennessee.
Pulp and paper mills run some of the most demanding steam and process control environments in any industry. Recovery boilers, lime kilns, digesters, and paper machine systems all depend on precise controls and instrumentation. Memphis Control Center has been supplying boiler controls, high-pressure gaskets, instrumentation, and industrial controls components to the Mid-South's forest products industry since 1967.
From recovery boiler controls to kiln instrumentation and paper machine steam systems — the full scope of controls service we support in forest products facilities.
The recovery boiler is the heart of a kraft pulp mill — recovering pulping chemicals and generating steam simultaneously. It is also among the most hazardous pieces of industrial equipment in existence, with specific NFPA 85 Chapter 7 requirements and strict smelt-water explosion prevention protocols.
Paper mills run multiple boiler types — power boilers burning bark, hog fuel, and wood waste, and utility boilers for steam distribution. All require reliable burner controls, low water cutoffs, and instrumentation.
Lime kilns convert lime mud (calcium carbonate, CaCO₃) into quicklime (calcium oxide, CaO) by calcining at high temperatures — closing the chemical recovery loop in the kraft process. Kiln temperature control, combustion management, and process instrumentation are critical for efficient lime conversion and recovery cycle performance.
Continuous digesters and batch digesters cook wood chips with white liquor at controlled temperature and pressure. Black liquor evaporators concentrate the spent liquor before firing in the recovery boiler. Both require precise instrumentation.
Paper mills run on distributed control systems managing continuous processes. We support parts supply and service coordination for major control system platforms used in the forest products industry.
Lumber kilns dry green lumber to target moisture content for grading and end use. Temperature uniformity and humidity control inside the kiln directly affect product quality. Wood products plants also use conveyors and handling systems with VFDs.
Pulp and paper facilities operate under a regulatory framework that directly affects how boiler, combustion, and process controls are designed, maintained, and documented.
| Standard / Regulation | Authority | Relevance to Controls & Instrumentation | Key Implication |
|---|---|---|---|
| NFPA 85 Chapter 7 | NFPA | Specific requirements for recovery boiler burner management systems — including smelt-water explosion prevention procedures, emergency shutdown requirements, and purge interlocks. Recovery boilers have unique hazards not addressed by the general boiler chapters of NFPA 85 | Recovery boiler BMS design and operation must comply with NFPA 85 Chapter 7 specifically — this is more stringent than general industrial boiler requirements |
| NFPA 85 (General) | NFPA | Boiler and Combustion Systems Hazards Code governs BMS design for auxiliary and power boilers — purge requirements, flame safeguard systems, master fuel trip conditions | All boiler BMS systems at paper mills must comply with NFPA 85; controls must fail-safe |
| State Boiler Inspection Laws | State DOL / Inspectors | All five states require annual inspection of power boilers. Paper mill boilers typically operate at higher pressures than commercial boilers — high-pressure inspection certificates must be current | Operating a paper mill boiler without a current inspection certificate can result in a shutdown order |
| EPA MACT (Subpart S) | EPA | National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for pulp and paper production (40 CFR Part 63 Subpart S) — covers emissions from digesters, evaporators, recovery boilers, and lime kilns | Process controls that affect emissions from these sources must be maintained to support MACT compliance |
| OSHA PSM — 29 CFR 1910.119 | OSHA | Process Safety Management may apply if the mill handles highly hazardous chemicals above threshold quantities — common in mills using chlorine dioxide, methanol, or other listed chemicals in the pulping process | Instrumentation and controls on PSM-covered processes must meet mechanical integrity requirements |
| BLRBAC | Industry / Insurance | Black Liquor Recovery Boiler Advisory Committee guidelines are industry best practices for recovery boiler safety — including emergency shutdown (ESD) procedures that insurance carriers frequently require | BLRBAC emergency shutdown requirements affect recovery boiler control system design and documentation |
Recovery boiler warning: The introduction of water into a recovery boiler smelt bed can cause a smelt-water explosion — one of the most dangerous events in the pulp and paper industry. BLRBAC emergency shutdown procedures and NFPA 85 Chapter 7 emergency provisions exist specifically to prevent this scenario. Never bypass or jumper out recovery boiler safety interlocks. Always follow the mill's written emergency shutdown procedure when water contamination of the smelt bed is suspected.
Note: This table is a general reference. Specific requirements for your facility depend on your processes, permit conditions, and applicable regulations. Always coordinate controls and instrumentation work with your mill's process safety team and applicable regulatory contacts. Memphis Control Center supports the parts and service coordination side — we are not pulp and paper process safety consultants.
The most common boiler and controls issues we support in pulp, paper, and wood products facilities — causes and where to start.
Reference for mill maintenance and instrumentation teams. Always follow your mill's LOTO and permit-to-work procedures. Recovery boiler work requires authorization from the shift supervisor and compliance with mill ESD procedures.
Our technical guides cover boiler controls and steam system components commonly found in paper mill and forest products boiler rooms.
KDM fault codes, lockout diagnosis, flame amplifier selection for wood-fired and gas-fired boilers
Series 94/194 (250 psi) and 750B series for high-pressure paper mill boilers
Series 450, 1000, 2000 for high-pressure paper mill power boiler applications
Paper mills operate large-scale cogeneration — same controls expertise applies
We support controls and boiler service for pulp, paper, and wood products facilities throughout the following areas. The Mid-South forest products industry is concentrated in several key clusters.
Key forest products clusters in our service area: Crossett AR (Georgia-Pacific — major pulp and paper operations) and Ashdown AR (Domtar), Monroeville AL area (Georgia-Pacific Alabama River Cellulose), Vicksburg/Grenada MS (International Paper and Domtar), and Charleston TN (Domtar). Bogalusa LA has a long history of paper mill operations. Campti LA (International Paper) is closing in 2025.
Tell us your facility type, what's happening, and where you are. Recovery boiler or auxiliary boiler down — we move fast.
Memphis Control Center has been supporting pulp, paper, and forest products facilities across Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana since 1967. Tell us what you need — we understand the environment and we'll get you taken care of.
For emergencies, outside of business hours, call #901-604-7069
