FREIBURG, GERMANY -- More than 70 companies from 15  countries were briefed about innovative system technology and current  trends in solid wood processing during Weinig's Solid Wood Days Oct. 12 and 13. The event was held at the Ohnemus Co. in  Kappel-Grafenhausen near Freiburg.

Ohnemus has developed steadily  from a hardwood sawmill and trading company to become the manufacturer of  high-quality sorted solid wood panels and represents the modern company  that has secured sustained competitiveness through consistent adaptation  to the market. With its refinement of cut pieces, Ohnemus was able to  develop an interesting clientele for staircases, furniture and interior  fittings.

The concept of the Solid Wood Days combined an insight  into running production at one of Weinig's partners with a comprehensive  section for presentations. The focus was on increasing added value.  Optimisation of cutting to size of widths and lengths, wood optimisation  through the introduction of scanners, wood saved using planing machines  and intelligent gluing systems were the main topics. Information on  Weinig's finger-jointing systems rounded off the schedule and emphasised  Weinig's comprehensive expertise in solid wood processing

Visitors  were able to form a global impression of all this on a visit around the  production facility. Weinig supported the Ohnemus company as its partner  for the whole production process. The result of this collaboration is a  state-of the-art linked solution from cutting to size through to the  finished solid wood panel.

Intelligently optimised cutting  to size of widths and lengths:

At the start of the processing  process there is a Maxicut 800 pre-cut saw which removes major defects in  the wood such as warps and splits in the cut wood. The operator can then  turn the boards and inspect the underside via an automatic turning station  before measuring the width. Using a laser controlled via a joystick s/he  can then measure the unfinished board either by marking the whole width of  the board or marking various quality zones along the surface of the board.  The division of board width and quality zones into the corresponding  cutting widths is then done automatically by the TimberMax width  optimisation system. Based on the cutting list and optimisation parameters  (timber yield, achievable prices, required numbers), it calculates the  optimum division of the board for each rough board measured.

The  rough board is divided up exactly by the ProfiRip KR 450 M multiplied buzz  saw. The cut lamellae and waste are separated from the oddments via a  discharge belt conveyor downstream from the ProfiRip. These so-called  returns are fed back into the machine before the width measuring stage,  measured again and cut into widths.

The wood then travels through  the chalk marking station to the optimising cross-cut saw. The OptiCut 304  calculates the best division into lengths based on the best combination of  the cutting list and optimisation parameters and cuts the lamellae to  size.

High-tech panel production:

From here the  workpieces are processed using the new Weinig panel line and a hall  specially extended and fitted with climate control. The whole process,  from feeding in the boards cut to variable widths to the finished, sanded  and stacked panel, runs nearly fully automatically with only 2 operators  required. The first station is a Powermat 500 moulder with automatic  pull-in, measurement of width, mobile spindle, automatic discharge for the  various widths and transfer to the sorting station. The lamellae are then  sorted according to colour and application of images. The lamellae are  then collected automatically in the buffer before the ProfiPress T 3500 HF  where they are glued automatically and pressed nearly free of offsets into  panels. Very short pressing times are guaranteed through implementation  high frequency technology. Since only the joins are heated, no stresses or  warping are created in the wood, especially in hardwood in comparison to  other gluing processes. Furthermore, energy consumption is significantly  lower. HF gluing also ensures demonstrably better join quality than using  traditional processes.

After pressing the panels are fed individually  into the grinder. The finished boards are then stacked on pallets using  vacuum technology. The trade visitors to Weinig's solid wood days were  very enthusiastic about the combination of live demos and accompanying  presentation schedule. "Our concept of demonstrating Weinig's overall  expertise in a manufacturing company has worked as planned" CSO Stephan  Weber summed up at the end of the event.

Source: Michael Weinig AG