NEW TECHNOLOGIES By John Hebert Many wonderful speakers with interesting topics were presented at this years sawfilers convention held at the end of April in Kelowna BC. Every year there is a wealth of information and new products displayed to the sawfilers that attend. There are computer based monitoring systems to measure lumber and cants, which are sawn or chipped in the sawmill. One type of size control, lumber is measured with digital calipers storing measurements in an attached mini computer or “micro pack”. The stored measurements can later be downloaded onto a mainframe computer, and analyzed later on an hourly, daily, shift, weekly, yearly basis. Another type of monitoring system looks at the wood immediately after it has been sawn on a real time basis. This process can catch a sawing problem immediately and notify operator and filers of problems with the saws. Reports can also be generated to look at trends over a period of time. Either system can help pinpoint sawing or alignment problems and assist maintenance and filers to correct it, and possibly lead to a lumber size target reduction. Major mill downtime quite often can be due to excessive friction generating heat causing problems. A seminar was given regarding thermography or heat sensing devices. When a saw becomes over heated the properties or tension of the saw changes and starts to flutter causing the saw to wander in the cut. Using an infrared heat-viewing camera, heat sources can be found and corrected before a minor problem becomes a potentially big and costly one. Some applications used for this useful technology are looking at heating of bandmill wheels and saws, electrical Mccs, and bearings on any type of machinery. Non-related sawmill uses are by law enforcement and search and rescues for people whom are lost and in distress. Finding the proper log for each facet of the wood industry is very important. A new technology that is being developed is CT scanning or x-raying the log before it is processed. The knots, rot, flare and any other defects are in the log can be looked and positioned to allow for highest grade and recovery before sawing into lumber. Much can also be learned from fellow filers that are experimenting with some of the following new (and sometimes old) technological advances; · Different styles arbors / sleeves · Cryogenics (super cooling steel or other materials) · Different tooth and gullet profiles · Different types of saw steels (band and circular) · Higher feed rates and arbor rpms for saws · Different types of saw lubes and water volumes · Different types of canter and chipper knives Investigating new equipment to help saw filers to do a better job is an ongoing process. Over the past twenty years there has been huge advances to sawfiling equipment such as: · Automatic bandsaw levelers / tensioners · Automatic band and circular grinders · Automatic tippers (carbide and stellite) One must not take for granted implementing new technology into the filing room that all problems will be solved. The filers need to learn to operate and trouble shoot problems with the equipment. For example, if something does go wrong with a grinder and the saws are not sharpened properly they will not cut accurately. Often we assume that something else is wrong, but a careful eye should be kept on saw grinders, proper leveling, tensioning, etc.; or as I call it just “getting back to basics and pay attention to detail.” “If” or better yet “when” the soft wood trade dispute with the United States is finally settled, most companies are eagerly anticipating that at least some of the money will come back across the border. This would help many companies to upgrade their plants and or filing rooms to today’s standards, after being “put on hold” for the past few years. If you have any comments, ideas or questions of interest regarding the sawfiling trade that we can use in this column, please send me an e-mail; jhebert@telus.net John Hebert is the Head Filer at Gorman Bros. Lumber in Westbank, BC. |