The Arjo Wiggins paper mill shut down in 2014, but a few dedicated workers stayed at the site to look after it, hopeful that one day the mill would be bought and put back into use. The workers kept things running and maintained, and tried their best to ensure the site was secure. They had done quite a good job with the main mill which was covered in CCTV cameras, which we saw were monitored from the security hut, and unfortunately we didn't get in there. That's all just modern paper machines in a huge tin hut anyway, and sadly all the older parts of the machinery have mainly been removed. We had a good look through the older parts of the site, which are now either empty or used as storage for what can only be described as a load of old tat.
The site's power station was the most interesting bit. It was also a bit nerve-racking, because it was running! @darbians and I had a quick whizz around in there, which resulted in some terrible shots, so I decided to pop back in early one morning on a subsequent trip with @SpiderMonkey to get some better shots. It was just as scary, but I was a bit more pleased with my shots second time around.
More recently it has turned out the workers efforts in maintaining the place have paid off. The site has been sold and will soon be put back into use.
Exterior of the newer part of the mill
The older parts which look so promising, but sadly are not full of the epic they should be
Inside the power house
Electro Mecanique 1732 KW Turbo Alternator
This was the oldest of the two turbines
Siemens 4000 KW Turbo Alternator
This turbine was bigger and a bit newer
The Siemens turbine was running when we visited
This panel was showing a problem and sounding an alarm when we first arrived, but someone had been in to reset it when we returned later!
The gas burner that replaced the old coal boilers
Some bits of equipment remained in the old bits, but not much
I think these mash up paper for recycling
An old, empty warehouse
The site's power station was the most interesting bit. It was also a bit nerve-racking, because it was running! @darbians and I had a quick whizz around in there, which resulted in some terrible shots, so I decided to pop back in early one morning on a subsequent trip with @SpiderMonkey to get some better shots. It was just as scary, but I was a bit more pleased with my shots second time around.
More recently it has turned out the workers efforts in maintaining the place have paid off. The site has been sold and will soon be put back into use.
Exterior of the newer part of the mill
The older parts which look so promising, but sadly are not full of the epic they should be
Inside the power house
Electro Mecanique 1732 KW Turbo Alternator
This was the oldest of the two turbines
Siemens 4000 KW Turbo Alternator
This turbine was bigger and a bit newer
The Siemens turbine was running when we visited
This panel was showing a problem and sounding an alarm when we first arrived, but someone had been in to reset it when we returned later!
The gas burner that replaced the old coal boilers
Some bits of equipment remained in the old bits, but not much
I think these mash up paper for recycling
An old, empty warehouse
