Editor’s note: Woodworking Network Senior Editor Karen Koenig was among a group of U.S. journalists and videographers invited by the Polish Investment & Trade Agency for a firsthand look at the country’s furniture manufacturing industry. Here’s one of the companies on the tour.

High-tech, high-speed production is a hallmark of Intermeble, a Sompolno, Poland-based, family-owned manufacturer of RTA home furnishings. Inside the 70,000-square-meter (753,473-square-foot) facility, tens of thousands of laminated panels are processed daily to produce wardrobes and bedroom furniture, TV stands, desks, casegoods, shelving units, and other products for a global market.

Intermeble has had a global presence since 2001, noted Monika Matuszak, Sales and Business Development manager, and currently exports to more than 40 countries, including Germany, Great Britain, Denmark, Bulgaria, and the United States. The company is projected to achieve 10 percent growth this year through domestic and international sales, she added. In addition to its relationships with furniture suppliers, Intermeble exhibits worldwide at furniture shows, including High Point Market.

Inside the factory
Intermeble attributes its continuous, sustainable growth to its partnership relations, responsible management, and investments in the latest technologies. The company also credits its more than 500 skilled workers, half of which are women, for its success. 

New products are designed and developed in-house, and the company can also mass-customize existing furniture lines. The factory is set up for two types of production runs based on the volume required, noted Tomasz Szymański, a member of the ownership family.

Intermeble sources the decorative panels with the capability to also laminate in-house; Egger, Kronospan, and Swiss Krono are among its suppliers. The company recently invested in a new Homag fully automated cutting line capable of cutting 18 panels simultaneously. Four stations automatically feed into the SawTeq Profiline and Holzma saws, cutting first lengthwise, then crosswise, before moving to the unloading station. The company also has an IMA Schelling cutting system, same concept but slightly more compact, said Szymański, with the capacity to cut 10 trucks of board every shift.

The high production doesn’t stop there. Four lines of IMA Schelling edgebanders are arranged for processing all four sides with one operator. According to Szymański, the company can edgeband up to 25,000 panels per shift, depending on the size of the panels.

Other workhorses in the factory include a Biesse Winner feeding and stacking system used in conjunction with Biesse drilling systems, a Homag compact feeding and stacking station, plus a bank of Homag CNC routers.

Robots for material handling are in use throughout the production floor, including the packaging lines, which Szymański said is still “very labor-intensive at the moment, but we’re talking with a company regarding optimizing the process.” 

The company is also looking into upgrading some of its processes to incorporate AI in the near future to further distance itself from competitors, he added.

Sustainability is also a hallmark of the furniture producer. In addition to reducing its carbon footprint and using sustainable materials, including woods certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), it also holds Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audits (SMETA) of its environmental practices and business ethics. 

All efforts combined, Szymański said, have Intermbele well-positioned for the future.  For more on Intermeble visit Intermeble.pl  or watch a video of its products below.

Read more on the Polish furniture industry and company tours.