Panel & Joinery Production

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CONTENTS Features

& JOINERY

PRODUCTION January/February Issue 2010 Published by:

Telephone/Fax: E-mail: Website: Publisher: Designer: Printer:

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Reproduction of articles: All material appearing in Panel & Joinery Production is strictly copyright, and all rights are reserved.

No part of the publication may be copied or transmitted in any form whatsoever, including photocopying, without the prior permission of the publishers.

SCM’s circular saws are the only saws on the market with a cutting capacity of up to 140mm with a 400mm sawblade – full story page 12.

Publishers’ note: The editorial opinions expressed in Panel & Joinery Production are not necessarily those of the publishers, who shall be under no liability with respect to any article published herein.

Distribution: Panel & Joinery Production is published six times a year and circulated to designers, individual purchasers and specifiers who are manufacturing within the wood-based panel, board and solid wood industry in the UK and Ireland. Annual subscription is at the following rates, which include postage: UK & N. Ireland Mainland Europe Elsewhere

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CONTENTS 2 3 4-5 6 8 10-11 12 13 14-15 17 22 25 26 28

News Crown’s New Jewels Are Pair of KUKA Robots Why Robots are Good for Wood Joinery Solutions from Holzmann Maschinen Millennium Door Systems Buy Second Striebig Saw A Winning Combination – The Holzma HKL 380 CombiLine

FEATURES New SCM TecnoMax S400 WS Sliding Table Panel Saw World’s Largest Vertical Beam Saw From Elcon IWM Launches New Distribution Agreement Combilift Is The Right Move For Howarth Timber Dustraction In The Exhibition Spotlight At Coventry

3-5 7-13 22-24 25-26 IBC

Robotics Saws Woodwaste – Extraction CNC Routers Website Directory

Machining Centre Solutions From Heian AXYZ Routers In Tune And On Time At Sound Leisure Membrane Press Adhesive From Chemique See our website and interactive magazine www.p-j-production.com

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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NEWS Latest Paul Jennings joins Biesse UK as Joinery Process Manager

Nightingale who having worked with Biesse for 3 ½ years in the Panel Processing Sector, has turned his past skills and experience back to the Joinery Sector, covering his “home” territory of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, and Northamptonshire.

With the great upsurge in demand for Wooden Windows, the industry is realizing that choosing a Biesse solution is the right business decision.

For more information: Tel: 01327 300 366 Email: info@biesse.co.uk

At Biesse Inside, October 2009, Biesse announced a new aim. To be amongst the market leaders for windows and doors in Europe, and to do so through completion of its range of machinery for manufacturing all types of European Windows and Doors.

In line with recent strategic initiatives to present hi-tech solutions that permit customers to cut production costs but have higher quality products, Biesse have appointed Paul Jennings as Joinery Process Manager for the UK. Paul has spent his entire career to date in the woodworking industry; having served a Wood Machinist apprenticeship is qualified and has worked as an Industrial Engineer and Production Manager. Initially, Paul gained sales experience in tooling sales, and in more recent years Paul has been highly successful in the sales of CNC machine centres for Windows and Doors. Having spent the last five years with SCM as their Sales Manager for Solid Wood Machinery, Paul was ready to step up to a new challenge.

Biesse has been developing a range of machines specifically tailored to the requirements of the joinery industry, including high performance machining centres, as well as CNC routers. New range of machines for Joinery from Biesse will produce with more efficiency and greater economy, all types of British joinery including Windows, Doors and Stairs.

In line with this new commitment to the Joinery Sector a new Sales Net is being formed. Already in place is Paul

2 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

Softwood Forecast Hints at Recovery The Timber Trade Federation has released its 2010 Softwood Forecast, which predicts that the UK softwood market will begin to recover in 2010 on an annual basis.

The UK softwood market has declined by around a quarter since the end of 2007, the result of some of the worst market trading conditions in recent memory. However, the TTF is now predicting that the worst may be over with a growth of 4% estimated by the end of 2010.

Daltons Open Days Daltons present their Open Days – February 17th – 18th With emphasis on ‘Panel Processing’ Panel Sawing (Vertical & Horizontal), Edgebanding and CNC Machining.

Tel: 0115 986 5201 Email: sales@daltonsmachines.com www.daltonsmachines.com

First High Profile Case to Be Brought Under the US Lacey Act The Timber Trade Federation (TTF) has confirmed that the first high profile case to be brought under the US Lacey Act is underway.

The Act was amended to include timber last year after a long standing campaign by

leading environmental group Environmental Investigation Agency.

Federal Agents from the US Fish and Wildlife Service and local police seized wood, guitars, computers and boxes of files from Gibson Guitar’s premises.

The US guitar manufacturer is being investigated for violating the US Lacey Act by importing endangered species of rosewood from Madagascar.

Diary Dates 2010 ZOW 2010 February 8th – 11th Bad Salzuflen – Germany Contact: Survey Marketing Tel: 0049 521 9653372 Woodworking Ireland 2010 March 25th - 27th National Show Centre Cloghran, Ireland Contact: Nelton Exhibitions Tel: 01474 536535 Technodomus 2010 April 20th – 24th Rimini Fiera, Italy Tel: 0039 0541 744313 Xylexpo 2010 May 4th – 18th Milan, Italy Email: info@xylexpo.com IWF 2010 August 25th – 28th Atlanta, USA Tel: 00404 693 833 W10 – Working with Wood October 3rd – 6th NEC Birmingham Tel: 01629 530 998 Email: info@w10exhibition.com www.w10exhibition.co.uk SICAM 2010 October 20th – 23rd Pordeone, Italy Tel: 0039 (0) 272 194452

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HANDLING Robotics

Crown’s New Jewels Are Pair of KUKA Robots A long-established UK furniture manufacturer believes more British businesses should be using higher levels of automation after successfully boosting its efficiency with a pair of KUKA robots.

Crown Products, based in Herne Bay, Kent, has transformed two repetitive and time-consuming processes into slick, highperformance operations that have not only helped productivity but also further improved the working environment for staff.

One of the KUKA KR16 robots is being used to put shelf edging material on to a range of kitchen corner cabinet panels which typically weigh around 10kg. The robot is equipped with a distance measuring sensor for identifying the correct size of melamine panel for processing.

The KR16 performs a series of tasks which begins with the transfer of the panel to a jig where it is centred before being placed on to a gluing station where the edging strip is applied and pressed into place.

The robot then manoeuvres the panel to a set of cutting blades for trimming the edges and completes the operation by passing the finished panel over a strip of sand paper.

The second KUKA KR16 robot is undertaking a quality control function by rapidly inspecting the depth and location of drill holes on kitchen panels. It carries out the operation in 20-30 seconds compared with several minutes under the previous manual method.

Both cells were installed and programmed by Martin Head, Crown’s manufacturing manager, after he completed a KUKA training course. In partnership with KUKA, he was keen to

A KUKA KR16 robot performing a series of tasks including the transfer of panels to a jig to a gluing station for edging

develop a high level of understanding about robotics in order to produce a bespoke automation solution for the business.

“My main objective for this project was to automate the most complex process, which involved the application of the edging material on to the panels, so that it would mean more straightforward applications could be considered in the future. I think KUKA robots are brilliant. They are very easy to operate and simple to program.

KUKA has provided good training, technical and after-sales support and was very committed to working with Crown to develop the right solution,” commented Martin.

“The introduction of these robots means members of staff have been transferred to other more skilled positions elsewhere in the factory. This project demonstrates how easy it is to efficiently and reliably transform arduous and repetitive processes,

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highlighting the fact that more UK manufacturers should be using robotic automation to gain a competitive advantage,” he added.

Crown Products, established for more than 60 years, manufactures kitchen and bedroom furniture under the Imperial brand for distributors in the UK and some parts of Europe. It has an annual turnover in excess of £20million and employs around 90 staff.

For more details on KUKA robots and automated production solutions, visit the KUKA website at www.kuka.co.uk or email sales@kuka.co.uk.

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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NEWS HANDLING Robotics

Why Robots are Good for Wood Robots are a common sight in production environments across the world, handling everything from packaging through to car manufacture. In these applications, end users are seeing a raft of benefits, covering everything from faster production through to enhanced profitability from improved product quality.

Unlike many of the materials regularly used within automated manufacturing processes, such as plastics and metals, wood features natural flaws, such as knots, wormholes, back pockets and other inconsistencies which can often render a product as waste. With advances in robotic technology, particularly in the

area of intelligent movement control, these hurdles have steadily been overcome, enabling robots to be utilised across a broadening spectrum of applications.

The following are some of the key applications where robots are increasingly being utilised by manufacturers of wooden products.

Materials handling and assembly applications Achieving fast assembly and packaging without sacrificing quality and consistency is desirable to any manufacturer looking to maximise production output.

Today’s robots can provide not just the speed, but also the positioning accuracy

Handling is just one of the many robotic functions on offer from ABB

4 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

and flexibility needed to successfully and correctly handle a vast range of wooden products of all shapes and sizes. Typical products being handled by robots include doors, doorframes, flat pack furniture, window frames, flooring and other wooden construction materials.

Increasingly, these types of products are also being joined by more delicate products which were previously considered unsuitable for robotic handling.

As an example of what can be achieved where robots are put to work, Svedplan, a Swedish furniture producer, has increased production by 45 per cent by installing a team of eight ABB robots for packing and palletising flat pack furniture. The automated production line now prepares over 10 to 15 boxes compared to the previous six to 10 boxes per hour on the manual line, giving Svedplan a return on its investment within just three years.

The ability for one control module to now control up to four robots also means significant space savings can be achieved, freeing up space for extra lines or other production activities.

Ensuring a high quality finish every time No matter what the industry, the quality and appearance of a product is always critical to its saleability. Given the notorious characteristics of wood, in particular the problems associated with achieving a consistent finish, this is a particularly important focus for manufacturers within the wood

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HANDLING Robotics

industries.

The ability of robots to deliver a high quality finish has long been demonstrated in the automotive industry, where continuous developments in painting technology are ensuring uniform painting and finishing in mass vehicle production lines.

This same technology is now able to be applied to wooden products as well, whether for powder, solvent or waterborne paint processes. Unlike the variable finishing traditionally associated with manual spraying processes, robotic spraying delivers a constant, high quality finish irrespective of the size or shape of an object. With the accuracy delivered by robotic intelligence, objects can also be painted much more quickly, resulting in faster cycle times and reducing the labour intensive nature of painting processes.

By accurately controlling the spraying process, robotic technology also eliminates the material consumption and costs associated with overspraying.

For manufacturers who mass-produce products, an automated finishing system helps further reduce the time spent applying coats of paint or finish to products. Using a conveyor belt system, items can be moved into individual work areas for sanding, cleaning and finishing via automated spray guns held in an enclosed environment or spray cabin.

The product or material can then be resubmitted to the assembly line for successive coats or finishes if required.

Eye for detail For the inconsistencies of a material like wood, an eye for detail is of utmost importance. To date, this has always been an area where manual workers have

traditionally been able to outperform robotic systems.

With recent advances, however, it no longer needs to be the responsibility of manual workers to visually inspect each product, as robots can visually inspect and even route designs into wood panels.

ABB’s own Machining Force Control (FC) software, for example, brings a new level of intelligence for painting, sanding, routing, cleaning and varnishing applications. The software enables the robot to automatically adapt to the consistency and surface contours of the materials to be processed.

Effectively allowing the robot to ‘sense’ its environment and the work piece, the technology brings a new dimension to the use of robotic technology in wood production and finishing processes.

In particular, the technology is ideal for finishing or assembly operations that often require a sense of “feel” such as assembling a wooden window frame, polishing the edges of a wooden table top or routing designs in wooden panels. The software also provides improved process results and product quality along with higher productivity, reduce programming times, shorter cycle times and lower costs.

As wood features natural flaws, manufacturers should ideally also implement a vision system to help cope with changing environments such as lighting, reflections and objects touching.

Vision software traditionally uses a robust vision system based on a single camera, capable of precisely locating parts in 2D, 2.5D and 3D space. Vision Guided Robotic technology (VGR) enables the automation of operations that previously required human intervention,

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thus eliminating the need for expensive fixturing, pre-arranging and placing of parts.

Summary – good for wood, good for wood producers With companies across the world acknowledging the power of robots to improve productivity, profitability and encouraging long-term sustainability, the perceived risks previously associated with their introduction are steadily being eliminated.

These proven benefits, coupled with new levels of service and support being offered by robot manufacturers, such as ABB’s Remote Service scheme, mean that robots should be seriously considered by any wood producer looking for the all-important competitive edge.

For more information: Tel: 01908 350300 www.abb.co.uk

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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NEWS PROFILE Company Profile

Joinery Solutions from HolzMann Maschinen Since the formation of HolzMann Maschinen GmbH the company has been totally committed to supplying high quality woodworking machinery and workshop equipment, tools and accessories at competitive prices. This commitment to price, quality and service is reflected in the comprehensive range of machinery for the woodworking industries, coupled together with a full range of hand tools, ancillary equipment and accessories for the workshop. The full range of machinery has proved immensely popular with small companies and the owner/user who will often make a comparison to alternative machinery costing far more.

Over the years the trade mark of Holzmann Maschinen has been recognised as a major supplier of woodworking machinery. Saws, spindle moulders, panel saws, planers and thicknessers are well known on the market. The ranges of machinery starts with a series of surface planers and combined planer/thicknessers with working widths of 250, 305, 410 and 530 mm and a series of thicknessing machines with standard working widths of 400, 530, 630 and 700 mm on the DHM 630P with electrical height adjustments.

A range of FS series spindle moulders with heavy duty ground cast iron tables are available with fixed and tilting spindles, sliding table attachments and on the FS300-SFP an exchangeable MT4 spindle unit with 6 spindle speeds.

The panel saw series starts with the compact TS315VF machine with a 2600 mm sliding table, the next in line is the FKS series 315VF available with 2600 and 3200 mm sliding table and the series 350VP-3200 with 350 mm diameter blade and independent motor for the scoring blade. The heavy duty 400VP-3200 with 400 mm blade and parallel overhead safety guard is fitted with an individual drive motor for the scoring blade and parallel

6 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

fence with fine product range to suite adjustment. All panel large and small saws are fitted with business alike. In the manual adjustments small workshop, a for the rise and fall sanding machine and tilting of the must deliver the blades. same high The Holzmann quality sanding range of machinery results as the high includes a full range volume machinery. It has of hydraulic Single to do this with a more The Expert SPB 1300 wide daylight Gluing and compact, energy efficient belt sander Veneering presses with single design at a realistic price daylight openings of 330mm, 350mm and that will keep the customer happy.

450mm. The presses are available to order Holzmann produce three ranges of Wide for use as a cold press or as heated presses Belt Sanders: Standard, Special and the using the following heating mediums: Expert. All models feature a solid electrically heated, heated by hot water via engineered construction and utilises the factory heating system or heated from similar technology, with the options an integrated heating boiler supplied with available, each machine can be the press. manufactured to the customer’s The presses are constructed from heavy requirements. duty steel sections for the press frame and The Standard series is an entry level structure together with strong fabricated machine designed for the small to midplatens. An integrated hydraulic power sized business user. There are four pack with either 4 or 6 hydraulic cylinders machines in the range with a working on the HP20/HP60 and 8 hydraulic width of 430 mm and 630 mm, the cylinders on the HP70/HP80 ensure machine is available with the a sanding evenly distributed pressure to the platen roller or sanding pad configuration. The together with a rack and pinion guidance machine is ideal for the calibration of solid system to ensure alignment of the moving wood, frames and glued wooden panels as platen. With platen sizes of 2200 X 1100 well as MDF, particle-board and plywood. mm and 2500 X 1250 mm, the platen area Fine sanding is performed by means of an is easily accessible from all sides of the air-cushioned sanding pad. Although the machine. The Press is equipped with an Standard series of sander is an entry level ergonomically designed operation panel machine it is strong and technically with user friendly controls. As an option advanced, and utilises similar technology to the press can be supplied with a PLC the Special and Expert models. control unit for the automatic control of The Special series is a small sanding hydraulic pressure, pressing time, heating machine with an open side construction, time and the opening and closing times of designed for companies manufacturing the press. door frames and window frames; there are All Holzmann presses have exchangeable eight machines in the range with a working aluminium platen cover plates for the width of 300 mm and 400 mm. The platen pressing area of the press. machines are available with a sanding Holzmann has long recognised the combination of rubberised contact roller or requirements of the smaller woodworking air-cushioned sanding pad. The following companies and workshops, offering a configurations are available: single-head

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PROFILE Company Profile roller only or pad only, or the twin head an electronically controlled segmented aircombination with double roller or roller cushioned sanding pad for precision and pad. sanding of panels with a thickness variation The Expert series of Sanders is designed and for flat irregular shaped panels. Precise for the professional digital timing user, delivering ensures all edges of maximum output the panel are and a perfect quality sanded leaving a surface finish. The crisp square edge. machines are The available with a comprehensive sanding range of Holzmann The HolzMann HP-60 Hydraulic Press combination of machinery also rubberised contact roller and/or airincludes: Wood Turning Lathes/Copy cushioned sanding pad, the Expert range Lathes, Power Feeds, Bandsaws, Table has twelve machines in the range with a Saws, Flip over Mitre Saws Mortising working width of 630 mm, 910 mm, 1100 Machines, 4 sided planer/moulders, belt mm and 1300 mm. The machines can be and edge sanding machines with configured as a single headed machine or a tilting/oscillating heads. Also available is a twin headed machine, with the following series of special Combination- Universal configurations: roller only, pad only, roller + machines combining five machining roller, roller +pad. The Expert range can operations in one compact size machine also be supplied with a vacuum table and (ideal for the small joinery workshop).

HolzMann also supply a small extraction unit with 1-4 filtration/dust collection bags for small/medium machines and joinery workshops.

Some of the smaller machines are available for operation on 230V for use on domestic power supplies.

With the above ranges of classical Woodworking Machines, Presses, Sanders and workshop tools and accessories, Holzmann are able to offer customers machines to match their budget and exact requirements with the knowledge that they will be purchasing one of the best machines with the latest technology from their European distribution network.

UK Agent Holztechnik Machinery Services Ltd For further details or information: Tel: 0800 112 3928 www.holztechnik-machinery.co.uk or www.holzmann-maschinen.at

SCM’s Latest Sigma Impact Beam Saw Especially designed for small and medium-sized furniture and panel processing companies, the new ‘SCM’ SIGMA IMPACT 107 Panel Beam Saw can machine chipboard, laminates, MDF, wood and wood-based panels and plastics in maximum working dimensions of up to 4500mm long and 4300mm wide.

SCM’s vast experience in beam saws guarantees rapid and precise axis movement of up to 135metres/min on the saw blade carriage and up to 75metres/min on the rear panel pusher. Ideal ergonomics for the operator are provided by the remote control panel. The machines cyclical speed is ensured by empowered automatic detection standards featuring panel length, width and thickness photocells.

The machine is also fitted with an immediate saw blade changeover system with a pneumatic selector that enables the blade to be changed quickly and without using keys, spanners or having to unscrew

tools. The saw blade also has a self-learning upstroke feature that consists of a bar which automatically reads the height of the pack and calibrates the height of the saw blade accordingly. The saw can be also be incorporated in ‘Netline’ production cells.

The SIGMA IMPACT 107 panel saw has a new design and a robust structure. And its shape and framework have been carefully designed to ensure any vibrations are absorbed by the ground on which the machine sits, thus further improving the cutting quality of the machine.

The ‘WINCUT’ operator interface, which is part of the standard SIGMA IMPACT 107 supply kit has completely new graphics.

The new version of ‘WINCUT’ that can be opened by simply clicking on its userfriendly icon, is indispensable for efficient machine operation, as it makes the panel

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saw commands simple and easy-tounderstand even for less experienced operators.

SCM’s Model Sigma Impact Auto Panel Saw

For further information please contact: Tel: 0115 9770044 Fax: 0115 9770946 Email: scmgroupuk@scmgroup.com www.scmgb.co.uk

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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INSTALLATION Wall Saws

Millennium Door Systems Buys Second Striebig Saw Specialist bespoke fire door manufacturer, Millennium Door Systems, has added a second Striebig Control vertical panel saw to spearhead a boost in production.

Both saws are the 6224 version, the largest in the Control range, which cuts panels up to 5300mm in length. They are used to cut bought-in door blanks to size before lipping and to cut pre-veneered boards at the company’s purpose-built factory in Birmingham.

The latest Control features four-sided trimming. This push-button facility allows the bottom trim cut to be carried out automatically without the panel having to be lifted or turned once it has been placed on the bed.

Both saws, supplied by Striebig’s sole UK agent, T.M. Machinery Sales, are equipped with a scribing blade to prevent break-out when cutting the pre-veneered boards.

The Control, which has an accuracy of 1/10 mm, represents the cutting edge in vertical panel saw technology. It delivers a perfectly square cut every time, doing away with the need to manually sand and trim edges after cutting.

The saw’s sophisticated design allows it to be operated via an ergonomic control panel, leaving time for the next batch of work to be prepared. Much of the cutting operation is automated; the saw head is power fed, and the feed speed is controlled to ensure the quality of the cut is maintained.

Numerous automatic procedures carried out by the press of a button include locking and releasing the saw beam, setting the horizontal cutting height, plunging and swivelling the motor, locking the support rollers during sawing and fine saw blade

8 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

adjustment.

Millennium Door Systems is the manufacturing arm of the Midland Building Products (MBP) Group. The solid chipboard core and solid timber special size fire doors it produces are sold on by group companies, chiefly for office and warehouse use.

Its 44mm thick doors are fire rated to FD30 (30 minutes) and 54mm thick versions to FD60 (60 minutes). They are produced in sizes from 250 to 1,300mm wide, in heights of up to 3m, and can have a veneer, plywood or paint finish.

The first Striebig, bought in 2004 to replace a flatbed table saw, led to an immediate increase in production.

Millennium Door Systems’ production director Jim Manning said he talked to a lot of people in the industry before buying the first Control. “The message came back that Striebig offered the best saw there was.

Although there are cheaper alternatives it was well worth paying the extra as it’s still cutting as accurately today as it was five years ago.

“The new saw has allowed us to increase production to around 150 doors a day. The alternative would have been to have put on a second shift, with all the complications that would entail.”

Millennium Door Systems believes in introducing as much mechanisation as possible, so a vacuum lift device is used with each saw which removes manual handling of door blanks when loading and unloading.

“The saws are an absolutely crucial part of our operations,” said Jim Manning.

“They are very robustly made and contain tough drives which cope well with the volume of heavy doors they have to handle.

The two Striebig Control vertical panel saws in use at Millennium Door Systems.

An optional four-sided trimming device was supplied with the latest Striebig Control Vertical panel saw

As well as delivering a totally accurate and clean cut, which was not the case with our table saw, they take up minimal space in the factory.”

For more information: Tel: 0116 271 7155 Email: sales@tmservices.co.uk www.tmpartnership.co.uk

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INSTALLATION Beam Saws

The Oldest and The Newest Schelling Saws Schelling UK’s Andy Hepworth paid a visit to ABI UK Ltd In December to see both one of the newest and, as far as Schelling are aware, the oldest Schelling beam saw in operation in the UK! ABI are a long established company, privately owned, who have been building luxury leisure homes since 1971. The second largest producer of leisure homes in the country, ABI employ over 300 personnel and operate from a site extending some 16 acres on the outskirts of the attractive market town of Beverley in East Yorkshire. ABI manufacture to order and market their homes through distributors and holiday parks all over the UK and in Europe.

Andy was met by Chris Patterson, ABI’s Machine Shop Manager, who is responsible for the production of components and fittings used in the assembly of the holiday homes. Chris advises that they are the busiest they have been for 18 months and indeed recently, components for no less than 165 homes were completed in the machine shop in just one week.

ABI purchased a Schelling fh6 which was installed in the Machine Shop in July 2008. It has a 135mm saw blade projection

L-R Chris Patterson ABI’s machine shop manager and Phil Clackstone, ABI’s cabinet workshop manager in front of one of the luxury leisure built

by ABI UK Ltd

and the main saw motor is 21 kw. It is enhanced by a separate push-off carriage at the in-feed which allows simultaneous cutting and loading thereby guaranteeing considerable increase in output.

This fh6 has double strip aligners, before and after the saw line, that remain on the material even while cutting which creates the highest angular accuracy, plus no additional processing time needs to be taken. Another feature is the scissor clamps which push out material past the saw line right onto the turn table making it unnecessary for the operator to reach inside the cutting area. The machine also has a turntable with side movement to allow easy handling of both large and small parts.

ABI chose to have the Schelling HPO optimisation programme and the MCS control with automatic function monitoring system that optimises all machine movements to achieve higher output.

Chris, who has been with ABI for over 25 years, expressed appreciation of the build quality of Schelling saws and commented that the robust construction of the fh6 ensured the ‘rolls royce’ of cutting. He felt that the clamps increased safety of operation and the turntable had made handling easier. The operatives found the fh6 user-friendly and installation of this saw had increased quality and speed of production.

Chris then took Andy to see the Schelling FU 430 which ABI use in the hardwood department. This smaller simpler machine is in the old Schelling livery and from the manual, which ABI still fortunately have, it was discovered that the machine was built in 1972 and as far as it could be ascertained has been in use at ABI since 1974! It’s a front-loader, non-programmable and is in use every day. Maintenance is carried out in-house and ABI plan to keep it cutting as long as it keeps going!

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ABI purchased a new Schelling Fh6 in July 2008, which guarantees considerable increase in output

This Schelling Fu430 beam saw was installed in the machine shop in 1974 and is in full use every day

Phil Clackstone, ABI’s Cabinet Workshop Manager, then joined the tour and advised that “I can tell when piece of wood has been cut by a Schelling saw as the cut is of the highest quality’”.

Schelling UK are most grateful for the hospitality shown during their visit to ABI UK Ltd and would like to wish them well in 2010.

For further information: Tel: 01937 586340 Email: info@schelling.co.uk

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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INSTALLATION Wall Saws

A Winning Combination – The Holzma HKL 380 combiLine Designed for industrial batch-size 1 production, the new Holzma HKL 380 combiLine brings the proven angular saw technology of the HKL 380 profiLine together with a router unit on the rip saw. This powerful package offers production flexibility whilst reducing storage area and stocks.

One of the most highly efficient saws in the batch-size 1 sector, it provides speed and economy with Holzma reliability.

“This new machine,” explains Simon Brooks, sales and marketing director for Homag UK, “enables cutting and routing

to be done in one pass. It still cuts panels to size using the saw, but the addition of the integrated routing unit means most recuts can be dealt with automatically.

This saves significant amounts of time and money in order-related production.

“Usually batch-size 1 and high speed are a contradiction in terms. The combiLine changes that and yet the familiar features of high-speed precision cutting – low waste, low energy consumption and low tool costs – remain unchanged.

“This really is one more step on the way to a ‘lights-out’ cutting centre. There are very few constraints in the choice of

Combiline router and saw

10 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

cutting pattern and the need for manual work steps has been considerably reduced.

Book cutting is no problem either; the 95mm saw blade projection and automatic feeding system allow total flexibility.”

The angular and dimensional accuracy, a renowned feature of Holzma saws, is maintained because the special linear guide of the saw has no problem withstanding the great forces that occur during transverse routing. In addition, the new adjustable cutting line ensures that cuts are chip-free and precise. Moving the entire support allows the cutting gap to be opened only as wide as necessary. For the usual cutting process it remains very narrow, however, it opens to the width of the router during the routing process.

This ensures first class results because the material is always optimally supported.

“As we have come to expect from Holzma,” continues Brooks, “health and safety are always at the forefront in the design of the machines. A dedicated extraction system on the router unit and an on-board extraction hood on the pressure beam, combine with the proven saw carriage extraction system to whisk away the increased amount of dust produced from routing and sawing.

“In terms of trim and waste, that is all handled automatically. Excess material falls via waste flaps onto a removal belt, keeping the machine clear of unwanted matter.”

Attention to detail is a celebrated Holzma trait and it shows again in the design of the combiLine. As always, the

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INSTALLATION Beam Saws

panel or panels are held in place by clamps and the pressure beam. During transverse routing, however, the pressure beam is minimally raised so that the panel is not damaged when it is moved.

To maximise the performance of the machine, the latest Cut Rite optimisation software creates cutting patterns that are especially adapted to the new saw, optimising them according to the criterion of time or waste.

Simon Brooks again, “No matter what size of business you operate, you are making a serious investment buying a new machine so it is very important to get the exact configuration for your requirements. This is where the Homag Group simulation software is a real benefit. Prior to you making the purchase

to deliver the benefits you expect, concludes Simon.”

Designed and produced by Holzma, the largest manufacturer of panel-sizing saws and systems in the world, the combiLine is one of a product line that includes single and angular saws with manual or automatic feed. As the world leader in horizontal panel-sizing technology, Holzma provides custom system solutions. The spectrum of options ranges from small systems with a panel throughput of 3m3 per hour to large industrial systems with automatic feed and stacking systems and a throughput for more than 100 m3 per hour.

Starting with the smallest horizontal beam saw in the range, the HPP 230, customers can choose from a host of

front (e.g. Econolift) and the rear; a range of destacking systems (e.g. Ergomat and Liftomat) and many other supplementary systems, such as conveyors and lift tables, to provide exactly what is needed by each individual set up. For completely integrated handling systems Holzma teams up with sister company Bargstedt, specialists in intelligent storage concepts.

The Holzma HKL 380 top of the 3 series range

decision, the simulation software assimilates accurate, very realistic calculations of performance, based on customer-specific data.

“On the basis of these results, Holzma specialists are able to recommend the ideal system configuration tailored to your specific needs. This gives you the added confidence that your investment is going

machines including the compact and powerful HPP 350 and 380 up to the 5 Series for those demanding high performance, speed, precision and flexibility.

In addition to solutions for machinery and software, Holzma offers a variety of handling systems. These include feed systems designed for feeding from the

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For more information: Tel: +44 (0)1332 856500 Fax: +44 (0)1332 856400 Email: info@homag-uk.co.uk www.homag-uk.co.uk

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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INSTALLATION Circular Saws

New Year Machining Capacity from SCM SCM's Circular Saws are the only Saws blade and the tool holder spindle. on the Market with a Cutting Capacity Thanks to this latest feature, SCM's of up to 140mm with a 400mm Sawblade Circular Saws will allow the performing of Starting from January 2010, SCM's additional machining capacity, exactly the Circular Saws (ranges Nova, Class and same as on the higher range machines.

L'Invincibile) with a 400mm SCM is the only manufacturer on the diameter sawblade, will provide a market capable of assuring a "real" cutting capacity of 140mm with cutting capacity of 140mm with a the blade at 0 degrees and 97mm blade diameter of 400mm. with the blade tilting at 45 Only on SCM's Circular Saws, the degrees. maximum cutting capacity SCM begins the New is guaranteed in normal Year offering an working conditions with additional 10mm the scoring blade mounted cutting capacity at 0 and ready for operation. degrees and 5mm at 45 This means it is degrees, and all this unnecessary to stop with an unchanged machining in order to Tilting of 400mm Diameter Sawblades diameter of both the unlock the scoring blade.

Attention to such particulars as the above and to the real needs of end users, ensures that the SCM products are always up-todate and rich in new and the latest technical solutions.

The models of the machines which will be equipped with the new solution are:SI300S NOVA with a kit to install 400mm diameter blade as an option, SI400 NOVA, SI400E NOVA, SI400EP NOVA, SI400 CLASS, SI400EP CLASS, SI4000 L'INVINCIBILE and SI6000 L'INVINCIBILE. For further information: Tel: 0115 9770044 Fax: 0115 9770946 Email: scmgroupuk@scmgroup.com www.scmgb.co.uk

New SCM TecnoMax S400 WS Sliding Table Panel Saw The S400 WS is the new SCM TecnoMax Sliding Table Panel Saw for the small to medium-sized workshop requiring panel sizing and breakdown and has been designed to offer the best price / performance ratio on the Worldwide market today.

The constructive philosophy of the S400 WS, winning already with the previous models within its range, has been exceeded by some new and innovative technical solutions.

The saw unit can hold a 400mm

SCM’s new TecnoMax S400 panel saw showing main and scoring blade

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diameter saw blade. In this way, the maximum blade projection from the table is a generous 130mm. The unit is mounted on a ribbed structure fully manufactured from cast iron, which provides great sturdiness and solidity.

The structure that sustains the saw blades slides vertically on two dovetailshaped guide ways, for maximum precision and stability during the lifting of the unit.

Tilting of the unit is performed on lateral steel supports.

Blade lifting rise and fall and tilt are performed by fixed hand wheels. On request, the S400 WS can be equipped with powered movements, for a better ease-ofuse for the operator.

The saw unit is provided with a scoring unit with an independent motor, adjustable from the outside of the machine without the need of tools, for precise and fast positioning without any movement. The unit can be provided, upon request, with 2 main blade rotating speeds.

Great precision and straight cuts with the

sliding table which slides on prismatic, hardened and ground guide ways are obtained, fixed without using any glue, whose thickness could affect the sliding and cause inaccurate cutting.

The panels are easily loaded thanks to a large dimensioned squaring frame with an idle roller at its extremity. It is possible to square 3200 x 3200mm panels and easily make angled cuts up to 45degrees, even on both frame sides, using the telescopic fence with 2 reversible stops.

The parallel fence slides smoothly on a 40 mm diameter round bar and it is adjustable through a rack, granting micrometric precision.

For further information please contact: Tel: 0115 9770044 Fax: 0115 9770946 Email: scmgroupuk@scmgroup.com www.scmgb.co.uk

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INSTALLATION Wall Saws

World’s Largest Vertical Beam Saw from Elcon One of the leading manufacturers of housing in Switzerland now employs the world’s largest Vertical Beam Saw, the Elcon Advance2Quadra, with a height of almost 4 metres and a length of approx 10 metres. This completely automatic and fully programmable cutting system for walls of pre-fab housing was installed in the summer.

Wood is a natural base material for house building in Switzerland. Zimmerei Kühni AG is a leading manufacturer of large prefabricated houses, with wood as the main element. Within the fully renewed production layout the need existed to process rough walls to final end sizes in one operation. The demands that this sets to the sawing machine turned out to be able to be realised only with the Advance2Quadra model from Elcon.

The recent developments that have further revolutionised working with Vertical Panel Saws are combined in the newest model Advance2Quadra, the world’s first Vertical Automatic Beam Saw. This version contains a free programmable system for cutting to size rough panels directly into final sizes. The operator controls the full cycle of saw positioning, panel positioning and the sizing over both axis, including trimming the bottom and the side, by pressing only one button.

At the production site of the Swiss housing manufacturer the rough walls are placed on the machine with a crane and are clamped at the top with four reinforced Advance clamps. Subsequently these walls, up to a thickness of 60 mm, are lifted entirely and cut clean at the bottom and the sides. For cutting to size both the vertical and the horizontal positioning of the wall is controlled by the machine and is linked to the controls of the saw unit and the vertical guidance beam. For the feeding of the production process glued solid wood panels up to 40 mm thickness are cut to size directly into final dimensions without any manipulation in between.

The operator can control the full use of the machine via the touchscreen. Elcon was the first to develop and introduce touchscreen technology for Vertical Panel Saws. With this innovation the operator sees on his screen only those buttons that are needed at that moment for actions to execute. Other buttons only become visible at the moment that they become relevant.

In this way the possibility of making a mistake is very small and even if a failure appears the screens display where it is located.

The cut-to-size programmes that Kühni AG use are entered on a separate PC and sent to the machine through the local company network. Thus the operator does not have to bother with either the adjustment of the sizes or with the handling of the material. He can control the full cut-to-size programme by pressing just one button.

Elcon despatch another large capacity Vertical Saw from their factory in Leimuiden, Holland

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Giant Elcon Panel Saw with Advance clamping installed in Switzerland

Elcon Saws are available from sole UK distributor Daltons: Tel: 0115 986 5201 Email: sales@daltonsmachines.com www.daltonsmachines.com

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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NEWS PROFILE Company Profile IWM Launches New Distribution Agreement for Busellato and Casadei in Conjunction with RW Machines It might feel like a difficult time in the wood and panel industry for some right now but among those putting a typically positive spin on things is Ian Brown, MD of the newly formed International Woodworking Machines Ltd., who alongside RW Machines has just launched a new distribution relationship with top-weight Italian machine makers Busellato and Casadei.

The launch was held in-house from November 25th to 27th last year, at the RW showroom at Morley, in Leeds, which will now become a joint facility.

The new Busellato-Casadei link-up underscores a move by IWM in conjunction with RW to develop the solid timber joinery side of the business alongside panel processing, within which RW has been a prime independent mover for the past 30 years. Says Ian: “Yes, there’s a recession; yes, some industry sectors have been hit worse than others; but let’s not allow that to cloud our longer term judgement.

“If anyone doubts the breadth and scope of potential once the housing market kicks back in, shall we say in 2010?, then they are missing some key indicators of the size that market will represent. Given governmentpublished figures on new homes, I am confident that some pretty major opportunities are going to arise out of

From l-r Claudio Cortese (Busellato), Kelvin Wilkins (Northern Agent) and David ThompsonRowland (MD of RW Machines Ltd)

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The latest JET Optima 5 axis work-centre model was shown for the first time in the UK at the recent IWM in-house launch in Leeds

Britain’s currently sleeping housing programme and that the building industry in turn is going to stimulate major demands, both in timber and panel manufacturing.

“And let’s not also lose sight of the fact that there are some other pretty major things happening in this country that are neither governed nor restricted by market driven trends. How about the Olympic Games, just for a start?”

IWM is to sell through a network of regional agent outlets throughout the UK and including Scotland and Ireland; many are already up and running.

All will share the administrative and showroom facilities of RW Machines in Bicester and in Leeds where the Busellato and Casadei brands will be on permanent display.

The pedigrees of both Ian Brown and David Thompson-Rowland are well known in their respective fields and driving servicing and technical support for the new alliance is RW Machines’

man on the ground Steve Ambler, who is Busellato factory-trained and has worked with RW these past two decades.

Steve heads up a team of five engineers who between them will represent a national support package with well-proven skills and reliability, a resource on which David is happy to hang his hat at any time.

The Busellato product is also not short on provenance. David reckons it’s the best range of affordable CNC technology for solid timber processing from any single source in the world. And this most Italian of brands is right on the money for both versatility and speed in the manufacture of constructional joinery parts for window frames, doors, staircases ... and a whole range of the elements that Britain’s builders are going to need in quantity as soon as the market begins to move.

Casadei has also been well established in the UK for many years prior to IWM’s involvement and shares a close technology partnership with Busellato; the operational

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PROFILE Company Profile software of both marques is closely integrated and infinitely compatible. The latest JET Optima 5 x axis work-centre model, which was shown for the first time in the UK at the recent IWM in-house show in Leeds, is quoted by the manufacturer as having been ‘designed for the production of furniture parts and interior doors ... a new compact machine which maintains the high performance standards of the larger Busellato models’. David ThompsonRowland himself sums up the new JET Optima as: ‘a very good investment for joinery craftsmen’.

The JET concept - the game-plan rather than the model - is the result of Busellato’s 30 years of experience in manufacturing CNC work-centres. Both heads and work beds are easily configurable to meet wideranging customer-specific needs and represent maximum working flexibility across wide-ranging applications. There is a very broad programme of dedicated devices and software applications built into the Busellato proposition which will consequently flow from the combined new IWM sales and well-proven RW Machines technical support resource.

Casadei Macchine combines solid tradition with equally well-proven technological progress. Today’s extensive range dates back to the immediate post war years when the first woodworking machines bearing the Casadei name rolled

Ian Brown – MD of the newly formed International Woodworking Machines Ltd

The RW Machines showroom at Morley in Leeds will now be a shared facility with the new IWM company and will show a range of Busellato and Casadei models

out of the Rimini factory and began an engineering tradition based around massive and constant investment in research, technology, human resources and design.

This combination is represented today by a sophisticated range of dedicated speciality machines including everything from wide belt sanders and planer/thicknessers to moulders - everything from automatic throughfeed to tilting arbor spindle models.

All are parts of a joinery machine range that is highly respected across 90 countries around the world.

Claudio Cortese, European Sales Director at Busellato, attended the Leeds in-house launch in November and was delighted with the new RW/IWM set-up - it was RW Group who represented the Italian company two decades ago.

“It was more difficult back then,” says David, “to draw defining lines between the CNC technology of flat bed routing, which we already had in place with Anderson, and the emerging work-centre concept for structural joinery.

“Anderson was - and remains - a very important part of RW Machines but the technology addresses a very different marketplace in panels rather than solid timber processing. But the latter is the expertise of Ian Brown, who has more than 34 years in the sector behind the formation of the new IWM company.

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“At RW we had already begun selling Reinhardt cross cut timber saw systems, with some very impressive successes in the UK up and running, when I met up with my old pal Max Boba, who is sales director at Busellato in Pisaro, in the summer of last year. Ian Brown was there too and it’s as a result of that discussion that International Woodworking Machines was established with exclusive distribution agreements ratified for the UK marketplace” Claudio Cortese said of the new IWM setup: "This is an important step forward for us in what is a key international market. IWM will work for us almost like a subsidiary, because the people here share the technical excellence and service philosophy that are central to that of the Busellato and Casadei group of companies.

"Almost half our range is completely new and gives us a fast-track path into new markets. Through IWM, we can offer a complete end-to-end range in the UK, serving large enterprises as well as today's smaller, and now very much more agile, specialist shops. We can grow with our customers, offering the right technology and outstanding service at every step."

For further information: Tel: 07944 108747 Email: ibrown@iwmachines.co.uk

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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NEWS PROFILE Presses

Joos Presses from Homag UK Joos, the specialist German press manufacturer, has been designing and building presses for more than 80 years. During this time, they have been responsible for a whole series of technical innovations in flat panel bonding for applying veneers or laminates to various substrates including chipboard, MDF plywood and other similar materials. Today, Joos remains one of the leading brands in the world for woodworking presses and their long standing partnership with Homag UK Ltd has brought many successes over the last two decades with a wide range of their equipment working very satisfactorily, across the UK and The Republic of Ireland.

Joos-Quality-Press HP From the visual aspect, you could be forgiven for thinking that a press, is a press, is a press. Underneath the skin, however, things are very different. The company’s most popular press, the Joos-Quality-Press HP boasts a host of features that have set the machine apart from the competition.

At the heart of the press is the hydraulic unit. Joos mounts this securely in the middle of the lower part of the press to exclude any possibility of damage to the motor, pump and other aggregates. The motor, valves and two-stage high-pressure pump are maintenance free, whilst the oversized hydraulic oil tank avoids any excessive heating and consequently aging of the oil.

Even when incorrectly loaded, Joos presses offer maximum operating safety.

With the unique Joos design, the pistons are not bolted to the pressing table, but instead dynamically act on a planed connecting surface under the table. A column guide prevents the platen from titling or being displaced.

The table design of a press is critical to delivering first class veneering. Firstly, the high pressures have to be distributed with absolute uniformity over the whole table.

Secondly, the steam that is produced during the veneering process, has to escape out of

16 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

the pressing material. To achieve this, Joos has developed an open table construction with special fibre plates.

First class veneering also requires a reliable heating system. Joos has linked with the leading manufacturer of heating platens, to offer two alternative solutions.

Electric heating platens are attractive because of their very short warming-up and regeneration phases, thus guaranteeing the greatest possible flexibility in production.

These heating systems are available with operating temperatures of up to 110°C or 130°C. Safety is of paramount importance and Joos has developed the exclusive A.B.S. Safety System. Micro sensors in this Joos invention immediately detect incorrectly loaded or forgotten parts, preventing costly damage to the pressing table, the valuable hydraulics and the heating platens.

The Joos DLP 200 Throughfeed Press The Joos Throughfeed Presses have multiple applications and, with a small

against the solid bottom part of the press.

Rotating belts load and unload the press simultaneously, and the machine opens automatically on completion of the pressing process. The special table construction makes it possible for the conveyor belts inside the press to rotate around the lower heating platen, therefore protecting them from soiling and damage.

Like the Joos-Quality-Press, the DLP features the A.B.S. Safety System increasing the life and operating safety of the machine.

A number of peripheral devices are available to improve productivity, including glue spreaders, brushing machines and cutter-disc conveyors. These not only make the work easier but also improve the product quality whilst simultaneously reducing the cycle times.

With full after-sales support from Homag UK, customers investing in a Joos press can be certain not only of a consistent and high quality product from the presses, but also long-term service support.

The Joos-Quality-Press HP

footprint, they can reduce throughput times by up to 60 percent. The strong pressing table is dynamically mounted on the cylinders. During the closing process, the pressing table moves downwards and presses the cantilevered heating platen

For further information: Tel: +44 (0)1332 856500 Fax: +44 (0)1332 856400 Email: info@homag-uk.co.uk www.homag-uk.co.uk

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PROFILE Handling

Combilift Is the Right Move for Howarth Timber The Rochdale branch of Howarth Timber and Building Supplies has replaced a conventional sideloader with a 4-way Combilift forklift and is benefiting from increased storage capacity, more efficient handling procedures and safer operations.

“We carry a complete range of building supplies from drainage pipes to roof tiles” says General Manager Paul Barton, “and as such we need a versatile forklift capable of handling various sizes of loads, from light pallets of insulation material to 6m long, 3.5 tonne packs of timber. This is also a very busy site where quick customer service is a must, and the Combilift’s manoeuvrability and ease of use enables operatives to locate and load orders with the minimum of delay.”

Howarth Timber Group is the UK’s largest privately owned timber company, operating a network of 33 timber and building supplies branches throughout England. Due to the large amount of stock carried at the Rochdale branch, space saving storage is also an issue, and the Combilift’s multi-directional capability has enabled more stock per square metre to be accommodated. Paul and his drivers found the sideloader to be large and cumbersome, and its high platform prevented the use of lower level storage, whereas the very low platform height of the diesel powered C4000 Combilift model has freed up considerable extra space near the base of the cantilever racking.

The site has been operational since February 2008, and was taken over from a company dealing purely in timber. The change to mixed stock required a rethink of storage configurations, and Howarth Timber took advantage of Combilift’s free warehouse layout service: the company supplied detailed drawings advising, in this

case, on guided aisle operation in parts of the yard as well as in the various undercover storage areas. This has enabled aisle-widths to be cut to the absolute minimum, for maximum use of the space available. As the Combilift’s turning circle is so tight (it can turn on its axis) previous “dead” space needed for the sideloader to manoeuvre has also been used to store more products.

Combilift Ltd supplies a wide range of attachments according to individual customer requirements, and Howarth’s truck has been fitted with hydraulic fork positioners, which are operated from inside the cab. According to driver Stuart Darcy, these are particularly useful when dealing with the mixed sizes of loads he typically handles: “I can put a pallet into racking, and then reposition the forks to pick up a long load of plasterboard or doors without leaving the cab. This is quick and very convenient.”

The Combilift is also used for offloading incoming deliveries and reloading consignments for immediate customer delivery. The excellent all round visibility from the cab and its relatively compact dimensions compared to the old sideloader make it a very safe machine to operate on premises constantly populated by the visiting public.

Combilift 4-way forklifts are all designed and built in Monaghan, Ireland, where the company also has its HQ and R&D facility.

The current Combilift range now encompasses at least fifteen base models with capacities ranging from 2.5 – 14 tonnes, with LPG, diesel or AC electric power available. Combilift has won numerous awards for its products since the company was established in 1998, and there are now over 10,000 units in operation around the world.

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The Combilift has enabled aisle-widths to be cut to the absolute minimum for maximum use of the space available

The Combilift is also used for off loading incoming deliveries and reloading consignments for immediate customer delivery

For more information: Tel UK: 07815 314 990 Email: info@combilift.com www.combilift.com

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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NEWS FEATURE Installation

RW Machines – Closing Sales in Ireland Byrne O'Loughlin - or BOL Design - in Dublin is in the brand display business which, according to CEO and founding director Barry O’Loughlin, should definitely not be confused with shopfitting. It’s a distinction that has led to the development of a very special relationship with RW Machines who have just installed some new technology at the BOL Design factory that is not easily sourced, says Barry, from more conventional suppliers of wood and panel processing machinery.

BOL’s is a high speed, high pressure environment where deadlines are tight, quality is critical and colours and finishes are often non-standard. It’s the agility, versatility and speed that new machines from RW will give Barry O’Loughlin that has fostered and nurtured what he describes as a ‘very close 20 year working relationship’ with RW’s David ThompsonRowland - a relationship based both on efficiency and trust.

BOL Design is a full-service, end-to-end display systems business that counts some very big brand names among its clients names like Nokia, Nestlé, Coca Cola, Cuisine de France, Lindt, Flora, CountryDeli, Smirnoff, DuBarry Shoes, Kelloggs, and Meteor Phones (which is a big mobile operator in Ireland) among many, many

MD Barry O’Loughlin at the controls of his new Vector edgebander for shapes

others. The multi-disciplined team of

18 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

professional designers at BOL deals direct with the client’s brand teams rather than with their promotional agencies.

Brand managers walk in with a strategy and BOL creates display solutions that preserve and build on work already done by advertising agencies, with their campaigns and promotions, and which so much point of sale (PoS) material fails to support adequately ... even, says Barry, actually destroys.

It's vital, he stresses, that in-store displays are as good or better than the shop fittings, decor and ambience that surrounds them because when it does its job effectively, by being the visitor focal point in the store, it’s BOL retail displays that actually close the sales.

The factory on Dublin’s Baldoyle Industrial Estate hosts some of Ireland's most advanced manufacturing technology in support of visualisation, prototyping, manufacture, printing, engraving and delivery. General printing and foil wrapping are vital to BOL output and all elements are done in-house on machines supplied by RW; brand managers value the fact that Barry’s team has complete control over every aspect of a project.

The BOL Design team is also entirely inhouse and it includes CAD designers, engineers, machine operators, printers and assemblers and installers. Designers operate machines because it focuses minds on designing display solutions that can be machined efficiently as well as be effective on the sales floor. The more knowledge designers have of the machines, Barry believes, the more they can get from them; as he stresses: “We have a lot of brain power here."

Foil wrapping provides a classic example of the teamwork between BOL Design and RW Machines. Gloss foils have a unique way of highlighting displays and are therefore increasingly useful from the

RW Machines’ Anderson Stratos Pro at BOL brings pop-up jig positioning for complete precision.

designer’s standpoint; but gloss foils are also tricky to handle from a machine application point of view and they do not take paint well. But working in conjunction with David Thompson-Rowland and the RW Machines team, BOL’s technicians have developed new ways of working that have made gloss wraps as easy to apply as matt.

New paint coatings and techniques have also been identified that work equally well with gloss or matt foil materials.

So as a shop floor display specialist, BOL has a lot to live up to and relies heavily, according to Barry, on suppliers like RW who are able to provide such capable machines plus “the brilliant back-up services” that support them. He is talking of back-up that focuses not just on cutting edge new technologies but also on long-serving workhorses that Barry has had on his factory floor for years - like their RWsupplied BREMA vertical drilling system which has been working non-stop since 1991, has been reconditioned 3 times and is currently up for its 4th makeover!

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FEATURE Installation New technology from RW now on the floor includes a Ruijie laser cutter which is adding hugely to the versatility and creativity mix with mad new shapes for amazing displays. These include industry standard structures like self-service pick'n'mix bins alongside entirely new display concepts, all designed and made inhouse. As the team gets used to their new Ruijie they will be using it to ‘engrave’ highly detailed decorative line images into PoS materials and systems to give their brand customers more and more display options supported by graphics and printed by laser, inkjet and silk-screen.

The Ruijie is designed to get the best possible graphic effects from wood and wood-based panel materials, including double-sided coloured boards, glass, ivory or bone, leather, marble and other stone materials plus labels of all shapes and sizes.

It introduces skills to the factory floor at BOL like complex letter and pattern engraving and will handle a range of plastic faced boards for a huge spread of applications, including signage, on an XY working table size of 1000 x 600mm at an engraving speed of 18,000mm/m and working down to a minimum image size of 1.5mm with reposition accuracy of 0.01mm.

A Vector edgebander from RW also gives Barry and his customers lots of new competitive advantage when it comes to edge-finishing shapes. The customer quest for standout, funky new PoS designs in stores introduces demands for weird shapes and sizes that are difficult to copy or emulate and which Barry knows other manufacturers can’t match for the sort of flexibility that

his Vector from New Zealand now gives him in production terms.

Vector Revolution is a double sided machine with a single edgebanding head that works a piece on one side of the table while a finished piece is being taken off and replaced at the other. Vacuum clamping pods can be positioned at any point on the table to accommodate wide ranging sizes and shapes and can also accommodate very large single display pieces along its length.

Once the head has made contact with the work-piece, it simply follows the edge it is working until it returns to the point at which it started – and then it concludes the cycle with a perfect butt joint. Shape is not a limiting factor because the Vector will edge finish a wide range of internal and external radii fully automatically using high quality PVC materials up to 2mm in thickness, further raising quality standards significantly.

With no programming involved, the Vector Revolution will work continuously throughout any given shift with only a single operator required to load the work table at one end and to take off finished pieces at the other. The Vector requires only a single start point to be identified and a simple on-screen push button command – any member of the BOL Design team can use the machine whenever they need to.

A set of pop-up location pins in the work table of their new Anderson Stratos Pro CNC router from RW also makes it easier for BOL operatives to locate work on the machine table and to promote accuracy in positioning and clamping for precision working of single panels in all sizes and shapes. Sixteen vertical plus two-way horizontal spindles

An Orma membrane press from RW is handling plastic moulded displays at Byrne O’Louglin in Dublin

Also from RW - for laser cutting display messages and systems is this new Ruijie system from China

for drilling and an automatic 10 position tool changer generates huge flexibility and a high speed software bus can be incorporated to speed and simplify cad-cam programming.

Barry O’Loughlin believes that panel processors in his line of country must always be more reactive, proactive and agile in response to ever-changing customer demands, just as suppliers like RW Machines have also to match those customer needs. Brands like Nestlé and Coca Cola need their display designers and manufacturers to be versatile, reliable and accurate; Barry even goes so far as to stress that no less than the Irish market's share of millions of euros of advertising revenue is on the line here.

For more information: Tel: 01869 244943 Email: sales@rwmachines.co.uk www.rwmachines.co.uk

This display bin at Byrne O’Loughlin is one of many for confectionery maker Nestlé

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2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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NEWS PROFILE Joinery Machinery

Joinery Solutions from the Homag Group The joinery market highlights the business advantages of partnering with Homag. The Group’s specialist companies offer a wide range of equipment for joinery businesses - CNC machines from Homag and Weeke, sanders from Bütfering, edgebanders from Brandt and Homag, Torwegge’s frame lines, veneer presses and market leading software such as woodWOP, woodStairs and woodWindows.

CNC Specialists A wide range of CNC routers are available from both Homag and Weeke for door, window and stair production. Models

are available in three, four and five axis formats with various table lengths offered from 3 metres up to 7.2 metres and the Homag Group offers both matrix table and sliding console solutions to suit all applications.

A huge advantage to Homag CNC customers is the user friendly Group software – Woodwop. Now available as version 6.0, this software drives every CNC machine from the Homag range and is supplied as standard for the machine itself and for offline programming. Existing users have found that in most cases, this powerful software eliminates the need for additional third party software and can even

be used to program 5-axis machines for typical joinery requirements such as lock case cut-outs or newel post machining.

To tailor the CNC machines to each joinery company’s specific needs, Homag offers a wide range of optional equipment to choose from. These include large toolchangers – capable of holding cutterblocks for mortice and tenon joints; router spindles – ranging up to 18.5kw for heavy duty solid wood machining at speed; LED and laser positioning systems – for quick set ups and the Homag Group’s Powerclamp systems for securely holding single part components for six sided machining.

A full range of edgebanding machinery is available from both Homag and Brandt

20 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

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PROFILE Joinery Machinery

Homag’s Powerclamp systems for securely holding part components for six sided machining

Edgebanding at its Best A full range of edgebanding machinery is available from both Homag and Brandt for applying solid wood strips of up to 25mm, veneer edges from the coil and also PVC edges if required. All models suitable for joinery production can be equipped with PUR gluing systems, heavy duty pressure zones, large end trimming saws and powerful top and bottom trimming units as standard.

Other options are available, such as premilling units, grooving units, chamfer and radius processing units, rebating units, profiling units and even sanding units to match individual customer requirements.

A working thickness of 60mm comes as a standard feature, with the opportunity to increase this to 90mm on certain models.

Specialist Door Machinery Specifically for the larger door manufacturers, Homag Group member Torwegge, offers an interesting range of machinery. Models include the new Torwegge ZKT300 frame processing

machine which can produce up to 200 bespoke door frames in an eight hour shift.

This unique CNC controlled machine is able to process both ends of the door frame at the same time, thus improving efficiency.

Torwegge also manufactures throughfeed machines for processing doors on both long edges for lock and hinge cut-outs.

This machine is able to process bespoke doors at the impressive rate of one door per minute. The machine is also available as a throughfeed option for door frame production to machine out for lock keeps, hinges and fixing holes on a bespoke frame by frame basis.

A Smooth Operator Bütfering compliments the joinery portfolio with a range of wide-belt sanding machines including entry level single headed models for small businesses, through to twin and triple headed machines, and even top and bottom lines for the larger users. With working widths from 950mm to 1650mm, Bütfering sanders are designed for calibration

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sanding, finish sanding with segmented pads and lacquer sanding (de-nibbing).

A Great Finisher As the UK agents for Cefla finishing systems, Homag UK offers a complete range of painting and lacquering systems from this high quality manufacturer. These systems are designed for all types of joinery products including doors, windows and stairs, with models such as automatic spraying lines, roller coaters, curtain coaters and hanging lines for frame products. These finishing systems can be seamlessly linked with lacquer sanding systems from the Bütfering range to create complete finishing systems.

For more information: Tel: +44 (0)1332 856500 Fax: +44 (0)1332 856400 Email: info@homag-uk.co.uk www.homag-uk.co.uk

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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WOODWASTE NEWS Dust Extraction

Dustraction in the Exhibition Spotlight in Coventry A new dust extraction layout has been installed by Dustraction to serve a wide range of traditional joinery and woodbased panel working machinery on the shop floor of a new factory for premier exhibition and event organisers Melville in Coventry. The layout is based around a Dustrax No 27 BB Series filter plant to allow for future expansion by adding further filter chambers, bagging base extensions and by increasing the fan power.

Just as well, as it turns out, because Alan Durant at Melvilles reports that, recession or no recession, Melville’s exhibition and events programme is indeed already expanding with four new benches coming on stream at the turn of the year. Dustraction’s system was deliberately over specified, he says, because of the high volume of MDF dust that is generated; four or five packs of MDF a month makes for a lot of Health & Safety hazards if the waste is not quickly and effectively dealt with.

Melville Exhibition & Event Services is one of the UK’s leading suppliers in the sector with offices in Birmingham, London, Manchester, Glasgow and Abu Dhabi from which they provide the full spectrum of support services. These include stand design

A lot of solid timber joinery, chipboard and MFCs are processed at Melvilles in the manufacture of their customer’s display systems

22 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

and build, electrical installations (including theatrical lighting), graphics, logistics, furniture hire, floor coverings, venue services, data and registration and floor planning services.

Many of the world’s best-known exhibitions feature on the operating schedules of Melville including the UK’s largest show - the NEC Spring Fair - and also the British Int. Motor Show, Clothes Show Live and the print, publishing and media show IPEX. Melville have won a record number of AEO (Association of Exhibition Organisers) awards for their creative, organisational and service work; they include Best Shell Scheme – 2002 & 2006, Best Graphics – 2002, Contractor Employee of the Year – 2006, and Industry Personality of the Year – 2003 & 2005. And for 2008 Melville has been nominated for a further six category awards.

Alan Durant says that contractors coming into the new factory of Melvilles at the NEC all agree that it’s the nicest, cleanest, happiest and therefore most productive - working environment they visit. Fine dust is a no-no says Alan; if it’s in the atmosphere it’s a serious fire and health hazard and if it’s on the shop floor it makes it so slippery it becomes dangerous - non-slip coatings notwithstanding. Fine dust underfoot means that shop floor workers are compromised in terms of their performance levels and visiting customers go away unimpressed - in a recession, no-one needs that!

And it’s not just MDF that Melvilles use in the manufacture of their often complex display systems - a lot of solid timber joinery together with chipboard and MFCs are also deployed. It adds up to seven or eight large collection bags of waste with everything double bagged and hermetically sealed to ensure complete capture for effective disposal.

In this working environment, no hand brushes or brooms are used by staff because, in addition to the machines, every bench is also served by hand-held suction cleaners, all serviced by the Dustrax 5xsection No 27 BB modular woodwaste filter.

Because of the explosive nature of the dust,

A sight glass is incorporated into the doors of the bagging unit to monitor levels of waste to the collection bags

A dust-free shop floor is essential at Melvilles

the filter chamber is mounted onto an enclosed bagging hopper to discharge waste directly into the collection bags. Each of these is retained on bagging spigots with quickrelease toggle-action sealing strips to ensure quick, easy and clean removal of all harmful waste from the site. The fully enclosed bagging base has hinged doors for easy access and each also has a sight glass for an accurate visual indication of collection levels.

Steve Matuska at Dustraction says: “Melville is one of those customers everybody wants: they know exactly what they need in terms of a result, they don’t compromise on specification and they insist on the job being right in all aspects and at all times. But they also placed full trust in Dustraction as their own specialist supplier - and everybody does a good job in circumstances like those!”

For further information: Tel: 0116 271 3212 Fax: 0116 271 3215 Email: steve.matuska@dustraction.co.uk

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WOODWASTE Dust Extraction

Extraction System gives Higher Quality and Lower Fuel Bills anticipated increased production of wood waste. To minimise disruption and maintain production Dust Pollution Systems connected the extraction ducting as each machine was installed, finally connecting the internal works to the previously installed exterior filters. The system had a capacity of 15,000 CFM system using two 40 hp fan sets and three modular chain filters. Clean air could then The sophisticated and advanced extraction system installed at SB either be discharged to Joinery by Dust Pollution Systems atmosphere or returned to the factory as weather conditions dictated. At Pollution Systems installed a separate this stage wood waste was transferred to enclosed internal spray room and an trailers for subsequent removal. attached drying and curing bay. The air for Prior to its relocation, SB Joinery had this is obtained by filtering the existing operated from relatively modest premises process air, which is additionally heated to and product finishing had been outsourced. reduce process times.

However, as the new site was nearly six After 18 months operating at it's new times this size SB Joinery decided to bring location SB was able quantify the amount its finishing in-house. As part of an of wood waste produced and at this point, extended second phase Dust Pollution as a final phase, Dust Pollution Systems Systems installed three dry-back spray acquired a second-hand wood fired Boiler booths. This needed an additional 36,000 and 35 m3 storage silo this was fully CFM of extraction capability. So that low refurbished and installed. This is linked to factory air speed could be maintained, the existing pipe work from the oil-fired warm clean process air was system. The wood furnace is now the re-introduced. In order to primary heat source and the previous oil provide this, an 1.7 million btu system is designed to augment heating oil fired furnace was installed when extreme conditions exist or at system as gas was not available on start up, the two heat sources operate and site. Although wood waste was combine automatically. still being produced and could have been used, SB Joinery was still uncertain at this stage as to the exact volume that they could rely on.

With the introduction of a new product line requiring a For more information please contact: hi-gloss finish a suitable Tel: 01494 462 333 finishing system was sought. www.dustpollution.co.uk A separate enclosed internal spray room with an attached drying and curing bay installed by Dust Pollution Systems To meet this need Dust

The bringing on-stream of a wood burning furnace at Hampshire based SB Joinery, brought to a conclusion a sophisticated and advanced extraction facility that Dust Pollution Systems has been working on for over 18 months. This holistic plant removes wood waste; supplies clean process air to three spray booths, provides double filtered air to an enclosed spray and finishing room and also heats the company's premises. Additionally it has minimised the company's carbon footprint, reduced energy consumption and enhanced component finish.

Dust Pollution Systems, UK's leader in the design and installation of wood waste extraction, waste to heat and process air systems, started work over eighteen months ago after being appointed by SB Joinery. SB Joinery, manufacture bespoke replacement window frames and joinery systems for builders and developers. Their reputation for quality and accuracy meant that larger premises were required to give them scope to meet current demand and for future expansion.

The first phase was the installation of an extraction system designed to meet the

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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WOODWASTE NEWS Dust Extraction

Dustraction Helps Oadby School React to New COSHH Regulations of wood and panel machinery and a new Community Development Officer is helping to promote opportunities for adult learning and is also developing business links from within the curriculum.

Machines on-site include a bandsaw, a lathe disc sander, a tilting arbor bench saw and a belt sander, all for use in the design and making by students of everything from chess and other complex board games to ‘moving’ animal figures and bird boxes.

Dustraction has installed a Static pressure tests were taken at each machine hood at Manor High new LCC Dustrax 15M School to establish the pressure range requirement and to ensure that correct flow levels are achieved and maintained filter unit together with new ducting as needed after a COSHH LEV reExisting ductwork was re-used wherever test to ensure compliance of possible at Manor High School and individual machine hoods and additional Class A standard ducting was the installation as necessary of also used to facilitate the remodeling of the pressure gauges to monitor Design Technology Department in a move extraction performance machine to separate and isolate IT from wood and by machine. panel working functions. Dustraction’s new Individual gauges at each extraction layout is of ‘aerodynamic design’ machine hood allow constant and individual suction ducts join the main monitoring to establish the ducting run at acute new angle joins on correct pressure range and to tapered sections for a rigid and effective, ensure that indicated flows are vibration-free installation overall. achieved and maintained.

Dustraction’s gauges are ideal instruments for the purpose with faces printed with simple red and For more information: green markings to provide an Tel: 0116 271 3212 easy-to-read measurement of Fax: 0116 271 3215 Dustraction’s gauges are the ideal instruments with faces Email: steve.matuska@dustraction.co.uk printed in simple red and green markings providing an easy- extraction performance that can to-read flow measurement be easily maintained.

Manor High School in Oadby, home town of Dustraction, is a well integrated multi-cultural school whose most recent OFSTED Report December 07 - awarded an outstanding grade overall. The school has won the Healthy Schools Award which is one of the driving forces behind dealing with new COSHH regulations in conjunction with Dustraction - to further improve monitoring of LEV (Local Exhaust Ventilation) at individual wood and panel working machine hoods in the school’s Design Technology Department, which is itself being moved and re-organised.

Manor High School gained specialist Technology School status in partnership with a local college in April 2007 which has helped generate additional funding to develop an alternative curriculum for less academic pupils. The Design Technology department is working with IT and a range

24 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

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PROFILE Machining Centres

Machining Centre Solutions from Heian Heian Corporation of Japan is renowned the world over as one of the leading manufacturers of a comprehensive range of high performance, precision heavy duty CNC Routers and Machining Centres with up to 10 Axis. Firmly established for over 70 years with their comprehensive range of CNC machinery, over 7000 CNC Routers and Machining Centres have been installed worldwide.

Production has seen an unbroken record of growth every year, and Heian is proud to have supplied some of the worlds leading manufacturers.

Having made the worlds first circular cutting NC Router in April 1969, the range of machinery has expanded since then to encompass CNC machinery of enormous variety, size and complexity. The key features of Heian are quality, reliability, and high performance. The machinery design and development has concentrated on producing ever more versatile, flexible, machining centres, combining routing, automatic tool changing, boring units, sawing and moulding. All Heian Machines are fitted with Toshiba/Fanuc Inverters and Fanuc CNC Controllers, "one of the most reliable CNC controllers in the world ", therefore Machine Flexibility, Reliability and Repeatability with high quality and precision machining is guaranteed with all Heian CNC Machinery.

Major developments in machine, tooling and CAM technology are making High Speed Routing (HSR) a reality for furniture manufacturers. With HSR technology it’s possible to route considerably faster and produce highly accurate contours with an excellent surface finish. This new machining approach will reduce lead times, optimize batch sizes and stock.

Hein’s EG, ER, SR, NC, HR, ZR and UR models are capable of rapid feeds of 60 to 80 m/min respectively and 40 m/min maximum cutting feeds without loss of

definition or surface finish. Customers have the choice of single or twin table models, with table sizes from 1,500 X 800 mm to the popular 2,600 X 1,600 mm or 3,100 mm and upwards.

Purchasing a CNC Machining Centre is a critical decision for most companies, Heian have designed and manufactured 5/6 axis machines and machining centres for many industries to include: Aerospace and Automobile industries, woodworking/furniture manufacturing industries, Plastics and Composite industries, Light metals and Mould tool Die manufacturing and engineering.

Five/six axis machining centres are available with positioning speeds of up to 80M/min, and the fixed parallel beam with one or two vacuum clamping tables or the moving Gantry style with fixed tables. Both models of

routing/drilling tools to be stored on board together with saw and machining aggregates. Some models of machines can be equipped with piggy back router spindles, piggy back boring units and multi-spindle flexible boring systems with vertical and horizontal boring spindles set at 32 mm centres.

The gantry style machining centres feature a low level machining table on a rugged frame enabling all classical routing processes to be carried out. All 5-axis machines are equipped with the universal spindle motor with the option of temperature controlled liquid cooling for the spindle motor and the option of BT.35, BT.40 or HSK 63 tool holder system with a further option of tool coolant by air or liquid cooling if required. The 5-axis machining capability and rigid construction ensure extremely demanding free-form machining is possible.

Machines can also be manufactured to include a 10 axis machine with two universal spindle motors with the Fanuc multi path control system. Special machines can be manufactured for all types of industries to include: wood based musical instruments, sports equipment, shotgun and rifle gun stocks with special rotary indexing units.

The NG 151 MC 3165 machining centre

machines are available with single or twin headed spindle motor configurations with spindle motors of 7.5 - 30 KW 18,000 or 24,000 rpm with an infinitely adjustable speed with automatic tool changer carousels to take 8, 12, 16 or 24 tools enabling a full compliment of

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UK AGENT: – HOLZTECHNIK MACHINERY SERVICES LTD For more information: Tel: 0800 112 3928 Email: holzmachineryuk@btconnect.com www.holztechnik-machinery.co.uk www.heiancorp.com

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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PROFILE NEWS CNC Routers

AXYZ Routers in Tune and on Time at Sound Leisure High-performance CNC routing solutions from AXYZ International are said to be playing a pivotal role in meeting the diverse production requirements of Leeds-based Sound Leisure. Established in 1978, the company is a major manufacturer of jukeboxes and associated audio equipment for the leisure industry as well as producing computerised amusement games primarily for the domestic market. The 80,000 square feet facility includes 55,000 square feet of factory space and houses a workforce in excess of 120, including over 50 highly skilled and specifically focussed workers engaged in the manufacturing programme.

To meet its multi-faceted production requirements, Sound Leisure has set up dedicated woodworking, metalworking, vacuum forming and plastic fabrication, paint spray and electrical wiring departments. These are supplemented with mechanical and cabinet design and

The AXYZ routers processing a wood composite panel used for the jukebox cabinets supplied by Sound Leisure

26 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

electronic design departments supporting the wide range of both static and animated products. Chief Development Engineer at the company, Phil Patterson commented: ‘The fusion of all of these disparate but complementary design and manufacturing disciplines enables us to provide a onestop-shop facility for our customers and we take pride in the fact that we can make virtually anything for the niche markets in which we specialise.’

Central to the smooth running and reliability of the manufacturing programme at Sound Leisure has been the installation of two high-performance AXYZ 4008 routers featuring the AXYZ ATC (Automatic Tool Change) facility.

These are supported by a smaller AXYZ Millennium router with quick-release spindle that is used for the processing of components for the finished products. For the two larger routers used in the main cabinet production, AXYZ Tool Path has proved a simple and adequate software solution; while the Millennium router used for more sophisticated work relies on the multi-faceted ArtCAM program from DELCAM. A preferred solution for the processing of wood and wood composites, the AXYZ 4008 router has an effective work area of 2,440mm (length) x 1,466mm (width). At Sound Leisure, the optional Automatic Tool Change facility provides an easy and more convenient way of handling jobs requiring multiple tooling functions via an eight-position carousel-style system. There are 16 individual cutting tools available on the system, with tools one to eight accessed automatically with no operator intervention and tools nine to 16 inserted into the spindle manually as required.

Apart from the AXYZ Tool Path interface software that is compatible with DXF, HPGL and G-Code file formats, other key design features of the AXYZ 4008 router include a DNC drip feed interface for processing large 3D files, a machine

controller with over 75 operatorprogrammable functions, extended Z-axis height and multiple spindle options (including quick-release tooling). To further extend the router’s capabilities, multiple gantries can be incorporated.

There is also an extruded vacuum chamber with an integral ‘T’ slot clamping system, high-speed and high-torque drive motors and high-tolerance Star brand linear ways and bearings. The processing length of the router can be configured to accommodate different production requirements in increments of 600mm.

On the technical support and after-sales service provided by AXYZ International, Phil Patterson referred to this succinctly as ‘excellent’. When asked to describe how the AXYZ routing technology installed had helped speed up production with a commensurate increase in profitability and future growth expectations at Sound Leisure, Phil concluded: ‘The accuracy and interchangeable nature of the routers and the speed of production, from the drawing board to the finished product, means we can deliver our specialised products within a time frame of hours and days rather than weeks as in the past when we employed jigs and pin routing methods of production.’

The products of Sound Leisure are sold worldwide to the leisure and domestic markets via premier retail outlets like Harrods. In itself, this testifies to their high quality, a characteristic enhanced by the AXYZ routing solutions that have been installed and that are likely to be upgraded to meet changes in the company’s production requirements.

For further information on AXYZ routing solutions: Tel:01902 375 600 www.axyz.co.uk

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FEATURE Installations SCM 5-Axis Accord CNC Installed at E Kendall & Sons Ltd Tucked away behind a row of houses in the delightful market town of Easingwold, North Yorkshire, between York and Thirsk, is a thriving hi-tech family business manufacturing top-ofthe-range furniture and speaker cabinets.

E Kendall and Sons Ltd was established in 1900 as wheelwrights, manufacturing cart wheels for the many local farmers. The business has diversified over the following years, manufacturing joinery, shop-fittings, dove-tailed drawers and other components.

Edward Kendall has now retired, but his son, Phil Kendall, Managing Director, is a very “Hands On” owner and enjoys a close working relationship with his customers, transforming their orders into products to be manufactured in their compact but hi-tech facility.

Already running two 3-axis SCM CNC Machining Centres, a 10 year old twin-head Record 220 and an Actionline Record 110 AL, Phil Kendall decided about 6 months ago to investigate the market for a 5-axis CNC that he thought was essential for the ranges of high class speaker cabinets that they were continually being asked to manufacture.

One of their customers is Meridian Audio, a world leader in the design and manufacture of state-of-the-art audio and video home entertainment systems. The speaker cabinets are manufactured in many varying shapes and specifications and are composed of high density Birch Plywood, laminated with thin sheets of aluminium to give a super-stiff and resin-damped speaker that is perfectly vibration and resonance free. The new CNC had to accommodate the cabinets and be capable of machining the various materials very accurately and faster than previous methods utilised.

Phil Kendall comments “We supply our customers with fully completed cabinets for them to fit their own equipment, sourcing and supplying the raw materials, laminating them on a press, machining the blanks, subassembly and then machining them on the CNC’s before final assembly of the cabinets.

Our business totally revolves around the CNC’s, and as we now employ only 8 people,

it is essential the CNC Machining Centres perform to their ultimate capacity.”

“Six months ago, as we realised our work and orders was becoming more complex, it became obvious that we needed a 5-axis machine. I looked at numerous Italian and German suppliers and finally decided upon the SCM Accord 40 PRISMA, as it met all our specification requirements, table size, head configuration and had SCM’s extensive experience in 5-axis machines behind it. It also provided real value for money. It was installed in August 2009.”

The Accord 40 PRISMA has a 3600 x 1560mm multi-function aluminium work table, ideal for machining and nesting fullsize sheets of MFC, MDF, Plywood, etc., and also for locating jigs that are often necessary when machining shaped components and assemblies.

With the powerful Prisma K 5-axis Routing Head, an F18 vertical and horizontal Drilling Unit, 24-Station Rapid Automatic Tool Changer, a supplementary 10-Station Rack Tool Changer and a 500 mc/hour high volume vacuum system, the Accord 40 PRISMA has met all of Phil Kendall’s expectations.

Continuing, Phil Kendall states “We are very pleased with the new Accord PRISMA. With the 5-axis routing head, we have managed to reduce machining times and cycles on certain curved items by 65% compared to machining on our 3-axis machines. The programmable dust hood that surrounds the routing head is very effective as some machines do not even offer this feature on them.”

Phil Kendall programs the CNC’s using AlphaCam and Solid Works. The latter actually assisted in E Kendall & Sons Ltd receiving work from their customers as designs can be sent in Solid Works for converting into programs to go directly to the CNC. The 3 SCM CNC’s have enabled E Kendall & Sons Ltd to reduce their overheads and employ less operatives but at the same time increase turnover and stay ahead of their competitors and, with the 5-axis installation, new orders are continually being received.”

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The Prisma 5-Axis routing head on the Accord

The Accord 40 5-Axis at E Kendall

All 3 CNC’s have been networked to the office and with the machine’s PC controls. In addition, all tools are interchangeable between the machines, giving considerable savings on tooling costs.

Concluding, Phil Kendall comments “We are very pleased with our new 5-axis machine and would like to thank SCM’s Area Sales Manager, Ian McCarthy, and Craig Cairns of SCM’s local Distributor, JMJ Machinery for all their help and assistance. Over the years we have built up a good relationship with SCM’s Nottingham-based Service Division and we know they are only a phone call away should we encounter a problem.”

For more information: Contacts: E. Kendall & Sons: Tel: 01347 821489 Email: philipkendall@hotmail.co.uk SCM Group (UK) Ltd: Tel: 0115 9770044 /Fax: 0115 9770946 Email: scmgroupuk@scmgroup.com www.scmgb.co.uk

2010 JANUARY/FEBRUARY Panel & Joinery Production

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PROFILE NEWS Adhesives

Membrane Press Adhesives from Chemique Chemique Adhesives and Sealants would like to introduce their range of Membrane Press Adhesives specially developed for the production of vinyl wrapped doors.

This range of single component, cross linking adhesives offer improved productivity, reduced pressing times and greater heat resistance. The glue line can be reactivated after several days giving greater production flexibility. Chemique’s membrane press adhesives also produce an

28 Panel & Joinery Production JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010

excellent surface finish on high gloss foils.

The Protak Membrane Press adhesives range satisfies the performance requirements for durability of surface and adhesion of BS6222 Part 3 1999 “Domestic Kitchen Equipment” as tested by FIRA. “Protak membrane press adhesives have a variety of different grades to suit a wide range of customer applications, from kitchen doors to bathroom cabinets as well as office furniture and display boards,” states Stuart Francis, Sales Director.

The Protak range of products also includes hot melts and PVAs that have all been formulated to offer the woodworking and furniture industries a complete adhesive package.

For more information: Tel: 01922 459321 Email: enquiries@chemique.co.uk www.protakadhesives.co.uk

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Panel & Joinery Production lists the major manufacturers and suppliers to the UK woodworking industry under easy-to-find product headings. If you think that your company should be included in this list, please contact us immediately.

YOUR WEBSITE CAN BE SEEN BY OVER 5,000 READERS OF PANEL & JOINERY PRODUCTION MAGAZINE IN THE UK & IRELAND AND WORLDWIDE ON OUR WEBSITE WWW.P-J-PRODUCTION.COM

To book your entry: Tel/Fax: 020 8366 3331 e-mail: ernie@p-j-production.com

Brackets (Furniture Fittings)

Panel Saws (Sliding Table)

Dudley Tool Presswork & Engineering Co. Ltd

Holz-Her Great Britain Ltd

Spray Booth & Finishing Facilities

www.dudley-tool.co.uk

www.holzher-gb.co.uk

Hi-Tec Spray Ltd

SCM Group UK Ltd

CNC Machinery Holz-Her Great Britain Ltd www.holzher-gb.co.uk SCM Group UK Ltd www.scmgb.co.uk

Design & Manufacturing Classic Joinery Software

www.hitecspray.co.uk

www.scmgb.co.uk O’Meara, J&C Ltd www.ukpanelsaws.co.uk

Spray Paintings & Adhesive Equipment

Panel Saws (Vertical)

Hi-Tec Spray Ltd www.hitecspray.co.uk

Holz-Her Great Britain Ltd www.holzher-gb.co.uk Striebig www.tmpartnership.co.uk

www.cjsoftware.co.uk

Timber & Panel Products Distributor James Latham Ltd www.lathamtimber.co.uk

Panel Handling Dust Control Systems

Allwood Machinery Essex Ltd (inc Interwood)

Tooling

WoodWaste Control Engineering Ltd

www.interwood.co.uk

www.w-w-c.co.uk

SCM Group UK Ltd

ATA Engineering Process www.ataeng.com

www.scmgb.co.uk

Edgebanders Allwood Machinery Essex Ltd (inc Interwood) www.interwood.co.uk

Presses Allwood Machinery Ltd (inc Interwood)

Throughfeed Drills SCM Group UK Ltd www.scmgb.co.uk

www.interwood.co.uk

Veneering Equipment

www.holzher-gb.co.uk

Routers (CNC)

SCM Group UK Ltd

Allwood Machinery Essex Ltd (inc Interwood) www.interwood.co.uk

ATA Engineering Processes

www.scmgb.co.uk

www.ataeng.com

Trimbridge Ltd

Woodworking Machinery

Holz-Her Great Britain Ltd

www.trimbridge.com

www.holzher-gb.co.uk

Biesse Group UK www.biesse.co.uk

Holz-Her Great Britain Ltd

SCM Group UK Ltd

Machining Centres (CNC) Holz-Her Great Britain Ltd www.holzher-gb.co.uk SCM Group Ltd www.scmgb.co.uk

Manufacturing Software 20-20 Technologies

www.scmgb.co.uk

Routers (CNC - 5 Axis) MAKA Machinery UK Ltd www.maka.com

Sanders (Speed) Allwood Machinery Ltd (inc Interwood) www.interwood.co.uk

www.2020technologies.com

Panel Saws (Beam) Allwood Machinery Essex Ltd (inc Interwood) www.interwood.co.uk Holz-Her Great Britain Ltd www.holzher-gb.co.uk SCM Group UK Ltd www.scmgb.co.uk Schelling UK Ltd www.schelling.co.uk

Sanders (Wide Belt) Boere Machinefabriek www.boere.nl

Felder Group UK – FORMAT 4 www.format-4.co.uk

Woodworking Machinery (New & Used) Allwood Machinery Essex Ltd (inc Interwood) www.interwood.co.uk A.L. Dalton Ltd www.daltonsmachines.com Uniwood Ltd T/A Camco www.uniwood.co.uk

Kundig Ltd www.kundig.co.uk

Software Space 3D www.space3d.uk.com

Wood Burning Equipment Talbott’s Biomass Energy Systems www.talbotts.co.uk WoodWaste Control Engineering Ltd www.w-w-c.co.uk

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(!&# ,><37/<< -+7 3=< /003-3/7-B 9;8.>-=387 ,/ 369;8?/. ><= +<4 8>; /A9/;3/7-/. <+5/< =/+6 2/;/ += $-2/55371 & +7. @/ -+7 /7<>;/ B8> 1/= =2/ ,/<= <85>=387 08; B8>; -869+7B ">+53=B +-->;+-B <9//. ;/53+,353=B +7. </;?3-/ +;/ 3698;=+7= 0+-=8;< =8 6+4/ B8>; -869+7B <>--/<<0>5 87D= 5884 +7B 0>;=2/; $-2/55371 2+< 18= @2+= B8> 7//.

2; 8=537/ 7/A= .+B 9+;=< ./53?/;B =85/;+7-/ 66 530/=36/ 1>+;+7=// + >73:>/ B/+; @+;;+7=B 87 1>3./ <B<=/6 $3695B =2/ ,/<= 08; ,/+6 <+@< -87=+-= $

$-2/55371 & 363=/. &73= $+7.,/-4 '+B '/=2/;,B '/<= (8;4<23;/ $ %/5

+A

3708 <-2/55371 -8 >4 @@@ <-2/55371 -8 >4