How did Nicolas-Louis Robert’s 1798 machine change papermaking?

Before the invention of the paper machine, papermaking was a manual process limited by the size of the frame and mold a person could lift from a vat of stock, resulting in paper being produced one sheet at a time.1

In 1798, Nicolas-Louis Robert revolutionized this process by constructing a machine that utilized a moving screen belt. This invention allowed for the continuous flow of pulp, enabling the production of paper in unbroken, continuous sheets rather than individual pieces. The machine delivered this wet sheet to a pair of squeeze rolls for processing.12

While Robert’s invention provided the foundational concept, it did not become a practical, commercial reality until it was further developed and improved in England. These refinements led to the Fourdrinier machine, which became the standard for producing continuous webs of paper and marked the beginning of the mechanization of the paper industry.134