the problem
Paper mills operate under constant pressure.
One injury is unacceptable.
One unexpected shutdown can backup production for weeks.
One defective shipment can hurt the reputation of a mill.
Many mills rely on human-based quality control, legacy technology, and after-the-fact reporting to minimize these events.
But with that: defects are discovered too late. Safety near misses go unreported, and root causes are never found.
This leaves operation teams fighting multiple fires at once: keeping production running while trying to diagnose failures that should never have occurred in the first place while ensuring the highest worker place safety possible.
Event Capture Systems (ECS) exists to change that.
the mission
Our mission is to protect the people and product of paper mills across the industry by intermixing end-to-end quality control technology with best-in-class, on-premise safety systems.
ECS eliminates injuries, waste, downtime, and the shipment of defective products by continuously detecting safety risks and quality defects across the entire production chain of paper mills.
By delivering actionable, real-time data, ECS enables teams to stop problems at the source instead of reacting to costly consequences downstream.
In short, we help paper mills keep promises.
Here’s how ECS is involved within each stage of the paper making process:
Raw Material & Chip Handling
Quality issues often begin before production starts.
ECS Chip Classification monitors incoming wood chip quality using camera-based inspection and classification systems that identify size, shape, and contamination in real time. Real-time quality control of bark removal ensures that usable fiber for making paper is not sent to the waste stream.
ECS Workplace Safety monitors danger zones in chip handling and conveyor areas to reduce risk of injury.
So while poor raw material is flagged before it propagates downstream, edge-based safety systems detect unsafe worker-machine interactions in handling areas, reducing injury risk in some of the most hazardous zones of the mill.
Paper Machine
As the sheet forms, ECS Web Inspection & Event Capture Systems continuously monitor for sheet quality issues such as holes, wrinkles, edge defects, and other surface anomalies.
These technologies work in tandem such that the cause of sheet defects can be traced upstream to determine their origin.
Edge Defect Inspection allows for a fast and cost-effective deployment of inspection that concentrates on the sheet edge.
These sheet edges often go unnoticed and left undiagnosed, which can lead to significant downstream production loss. Automated edge crack inspection monitors every inch of the edge 24/7. ECS creates a roll map of defects that allows the converting team to slow or jog through defect zones so rolls remain convertible.
With that, our SmartFlex™ system allows mills to modernize their legacy cameras and lighting to deliver state-of-the-art machine-vision performance without replacing their existing infrastructure.
Winding & Converting
Finished Product & Shipping
At the final stage, ECS provides roll quality control & traceability to ensure no defective products leave the plant.
Roll Quality Control data and Event Capture video link each finished roll back to its production history. Historical roll maps tie finished rolls back to their origin. Root causes are corrected instead of repeated.
Plantwide Workplace Safety & Operations
Across the entire mill, ECS monitors worker-machine interactions to reduce unsafe behavior and prevent injuries.
ECS Workplace Safety uses AI edge-based cameras and AI analytics to detect red-zone violations and unsafe interactions in real time. Thermal IR systems monitor high-risk areas for early indicators of ignition.
Edge-based cameras, sensors, and AI analytics operate continuously, providing visibility human-based quality control cannot. That gives us the ability to solve the safety iceberg by capturing near misses, unsafe behavior, and context that would otherwise go unseen.
the TECHNOLOGY
ECS systems are built for the problems paper mills face.
Systems are integrated directly with plant controls using PLCs and industrial protocols for real-time alerts and actions.
Dashboards and historical data support root-cause analysis, continuous improvement, and audit readiness.
Our ECS safety and compliance program is delivered on the edge with a secondary system that constantly monitors, learns, and improves to your specific conditions every second of the day.
And every deployment is supported with on-site assessments, training, proof-of-concept validation, and 24/7/365 service so that every system and camera is operating as it should be.
the OUTCOME
ECS protects the entire investment chain of the paper making process. The employees, client relationships, and operations.
We remove human-based quality control where possible and prevent defective products from reaching customers while helping maintain the integrity of each machine on the production line.
Waste and downtime are reduced through early detection of problems and faster response time.
Teams gain the data needed to eliminate recurring defects, maintain a safe working environment, and stabilize operations.
But most importantly, ECS is a technology partner that serves as an extension of a paper mill. Ready for every bit of pressure that comes their way.
That’s what we do.
