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New & Noted
The second Timber Processing and Energy Expo held October 15-19 in Portland, Oregon built on the good attendance and exhibitor participation achieved at the inaugural show in 2012, according to show organizers.
Catering to the lumber, veneer/plywood and engineered wood products primary manufacturing industries, the higher level of participation was generally attributed to an upswing in the forest industry.
With a more buoyant industry mood, this provided exhibitors with a great opportunity to roll out new and innovative technology for industry’s consideration. Here are some of the highlights:
WaneShear Smart Saw Guide Lube System
WaneShear has taken the next step in saw lubrication and cooling to precisely control the flow of water and lubricant to each individual saw blade with its new Smart Saw Guide Lube System.
WaneShear Technologies LLC is a partnership between Ron and Clark McGehee and Shawn Guibergia and has been in business for three years.
By monitoring which saws are cutting the most and which saws cut the least, this saw guide lube system is able to drastically reduce the quantities of both water and lube. The system uses grease instead of oil to lubricate the saws and guides.
WaneShear is taking its system to the next level by installing wireless temperature sensors in the saw guides to close the loop and eliminate all the guesswork involved in cooling and lubricating guided circular saws.
Murray Latta Side Head Jointer Assembly Upgrade Kit
Murray Latta Progressive Machine has designed an improved “plunge joint” side head jointer assembly upgrade kit for Stetson-Ross, Coastal and Newman planers called the Safety Plunge Jointer.
They are built with a focus on safety and convenience, allowing operators to joint without opening the planer hood, preventing exposure to the unguarded and running side heads.
Access to the jointer is quick, easy and convenient, as the operator no longer needs to fully lock out the planer to joint the head. The jointer stone is designed to match the exact profile of the knives, providing accurate jointing quickly and easily. The result is consistent joints with less downtime, improved knife longevity and a better finished product.
Murray Latta Progressive Machine Safety Plunge Jointers are robust and heavy-duty, having the benefits of time saved, improved safety and a consistent finished product. Full payback can be realized within approximately 60 to 75 shifts, according to the company.
Saw+ADD Bandsaw Lower Guide Holder
The Saw+ADD system received tremendous interest at the TP&EE, says the company. Many industry veterans immediately recognized the value in the concept with comments like “that’s a simple strong idea”, and “this is the best idea out there”, it says.
The Saw+ADD bandsaw lower guide holder with integrated force sensors offers extremely responsive technology and provides the much needed feedback to operate in the sweet spot.
An example of this responsiveness from the lower guide holder is that it can be used to slow the feed when necessary to prevent deviation before it starts. This ability to slow down only when necessary for irregularities in the wood that cause excessive deviation at higher speeds results in higher average speed and more production.
The Saw+ADD guide holder has a stress concentration channel to allow the force sensor to measure the maximum force with only one thousandth of an inch deflection.
The result is the ability to stop snaking before it starts, increased production, increased recovery, fewer saw changes, fewer saw wrecks, less saw benching, elimination of planer skip, and better quality lumber, says the company.
Tolko confirmed an order for their Lavington, B.C. mill at the show, which is scheduled to be installed before the end of November, and Sierra Pacific’s sixth installation went into their Burlington, Washington mill following the show.
USNR ElectraTong Lug Loader
The USNR ElectraTong (E-Tong) lug loader provides excellent board control at high speeds, excels in random thickness applications, and is the industry’s first all-electric lug loader, says USNR.
It handles feather edge material well and can be coupled with USNR’s MillTrak backlog sensor.
It does not require incoming backlog pressure to deal with the board. Instead, it has the ability to pick up a piece off the infeed belts with no backlog forces. Because no backlog pressure is required, it handles feathered edge material well.
Because the infeed belts index on a board-width basis, this allows the E-Tong lug loader to provide optimum board control at high speeds. It will tolerate a wide range of thickness, which is what allows it to excel in random thickness green mill applications.
It is also suitable for planer mill applications, with modified shoes and clamps for gentle handling.
DK Spec Multifunctional Knife Grinder
The DK Spec ‘Filex 2’ is a multifunctional, high performance and versatile knife grinder and offers a head diameter up to 20” and 15” long.
It can sharpen up to 0.001” precision and has a compact 6’ X 7’ ground footprint. The grinder is all electric and comes equipped with a touch screen that makes repetitive tasks easier with very little handling. The system is programmable for up to 50 knives.
Tajfun Electronic Digital Caliper
Tajfun’s new electronic digital caliper, powered by Bober software, is a unique forestry solution for timber cruising, log scaling and lumber inventory.
Tajfun’s Bob800 digital caliper comes with wireless Bluetooth technology. The caliper is light, durable and ergonomically designed, can be used in rainy weather, is designed to enable fast measurements, and is custom designed for log scaling and timber estimating. Multiple scale options and measuring lengths are available.
ACTIW LoadMatic Automated Truck and Container Loading
ACTIW offers automated truck and container loading with LoadMatic technology. The benefits of automation are labor reduction, loading damage reduction, reduced staging requirement, optimal appointment control, and smaller drop lots.
Technical advances in motion control, sensing and detection, logic and controls, and safety devices have allowed cost and performance improvements for manufacturers like ACTIW, which supply automated loading technologies.
ACTIW LoadMatic makes loading as easy as it should be. It is the last link in the end-to-end solution for fully automating pallet handling in the warehouse. In short, the LoadMatic is a plate which sequenced pallets are rolled on to. When a full truck load is ready, the LoadMatic simply loads the cargo into the truck or container in one push. No alterations to the cargo space or substructures beneath the cargo are required. The LoadMatic can be seamlessly integrated into any production, warehouse or sequencing system.
This system offers: fully automated truck loading, seamless integration to any complementary systems; one shot loading that reduces docking time to a matter of minutes; less manual work and equipment needed; gentle loading both for cargo and cargo space; no alterations needed to trailers and containers; and no special equipment required at the receiving end.
Williams & White Equipment Circular Saw Sharpener
The Williams & White Equipment Robosharp-AX10L2 is a new highly advanced, multi-function, circular saw sharpening centre.
It comes with top and face, dual side, and plunge grinding capabilities, and is among the most functional machines in the industry.
The dual-bay robotic loader and automated tool changing system allow this sharpening centre to run with simplicity. Operators load the saws, select the cycle and return once the process is complete.
It is possible to grind multiple saw diameters in one cycle without the need for human intervention, automated tool changing allows for pre-programming of different grind profiles, it can detect and replace worn out grinding wheels, and remote monitoring allows for off-site updates and alerts sent to email or mobile phone.
www.williamsandwhiteequipment.com
Schneider Electric’s New HMI Software
Schneider Electric’s new WonderWare Intouch Machine Edition Human Machine Interface (HMI) software is aimed at OEMs, panel builders, and end users.
The Wonderware brand has long been associated with easy-to-use software solutions that can be integrated with any controller and run on any computer. The Intouch Machine Edition is designed to run with modest hardware requirements and operate on embedded versions of Microsoft Windows operating systems.
This software makes it possible to seamlessly integrate machine and panel data directly into the Supervisory HMI system, making machine information more accessible to operations and management for a broader understanding of the entire operation with greater control, faster response times, higher operating efficiencies, and lower total cost of ownership.
The communication system is also described as highly maintainable. It has comprehensive features that make it easier for users to integrate their information and automation systems.
RemaSawco Board Scanner
RemaSawco supplies complete solutions for the entire sawmill production process, from log sorting to dry sorters and planers.
It has launched a fully automated system for green and dry sorters and planers called the RS-BoardScannerQ 2.0. The system inspects all four sides of the board simultaneously; flipping the board over is not required. Installation will result in a higher production rate, improved quality output and a higher yield, says the company.
The mounting width of the unit is less than 8.2’, which means that it can be easily integrated into an existing facility without the need for major redesigns.
The key to successfully detecting defects is achieved by combining tracheid and vision techniques. The tracheid technique makes it possible to discover changes in the wood fibres. Together with the vision technique, the equipment can find defects that are otherwise hard to detect. Defects such as different types of knots, rot, and bluestain are easily identified. Dirt stains like footprints or oil slicks can be pinpointed as stains and not be mistaken for other defects.
RemaSawco can supply smart solutions for the entire sawmilling process. Its product range incorporates sophisticated measurement techniques for all measurement requirements in the log sorting, sawline, board sorting and planing processes.
SPRINGER MiCROTEC opens North America sales & service office in Vancouver
A leader in the European sawmill industry, SPRINGER-MiCROTEC has opened a sale and service office in Vancouver, BC. This office will be staffed with technicians, service engineers and sales personnel with extensive experience in the North American industry. One of the technologies available from Springer Microtec is CT.Log. Medical technology has found its way into the timber industry with this log scanner. The computed tomography (CT) system scans and digitally reconstructs the internal features of a log and precisely portrays the size and position of log defects, such as knots and cracks, in three dimensions. All that is accomplished in a fraction of a second at feed speeds of up to 120 metres per minute. This three dimensional log reconstruction system should help sawmills achieve greater recovery, productivity and value. Founded in 1952, SPRINGER-MiCROTEC has been run by the same family for over 60 years with manufacturing locations in Austria and Italy. Springer Microtec’s new office in Vancouver can be reached at 604-879-4628 E-Mail: [email protected] www.springer-microtec.com
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