Kallfass at Ligna.23

Positiver Messeverlauf EN Positive results from the
trade fair

The Kallfass representatives at the LIGNA Trade Fair in Hanover, Germany were pleased to welcome a large number of visitors. The exhibition team was especially happy about the many sincere inquiries—from sawmill technology inquiries to cross-laminated timber projects.

After a four-year interruption, Kallfass was again looking forward to a very positive event at the LIGNA Trade Fair. “We met with many visitors. Above all, we welcomed customers and prospective clients from the German-speaking regions and other European countries at our stand. But also international representatives, such as from South Africa or Australia, were represented here," reported Kallfass CEO Hans Haist.

Kallfass at Ligna.23

Kallfass reported many promising conversations and concrete inquiries that took place at the LIGNA Trade Fair.

Kallfass at Ligna.23

Specific inquiries

The Kallfass trade fair team was particularly pleased with many concrete inquiries from new and existing customers. “In particular, we noticed a strong interest in projects involving cross-laminated timber. But also our sawmill and planing automation systems were in demand," concluded Haist. In contrast to the years before, the first days were very busy. Towards the end of the week, things were quieter than usual, as other exhibitors at the Ligna reported.

At the Ligna, Kallfass presented three exhibits: its cross-laminated timber press, a robot for filling stick magazines and the tried-and-tested Tongloader®(see Holzkurier issue 18, p. 30). In addition to its remarkable vertical pressing force of 1 N/mm2, the CLT press scored high with its uniform pressure distribution across the entire board. To achieve this, Kallfass uses four cylinders per press row. The Tongloader® is used to cycle-in boards of different thicknesses and at the same maintaining a time high production speed in the sorting and planing units. The capacity is 240 cycles a minute. The Tongloader® can handle wet and dry goods. The patented robot handling system for stacking with strip placement was also very well received. “Filling the stick magazines with a robot increases performance and cycle speed”, explained Haist.

Kallfass at Ligna.23

Kallfass showed its CLT press at the Ligna - many inquiries were received for CTL projects.

The order books at Kallfass are well filled: In June, the installation of a box sorter at the Wolf sawmill in Germany will begin. The automation specialist also supplies this type of equipment to Eurolegnami in Italy, as well as to the Blanc sawmill in France. Also in June, Kallfass will install the entire automation factory for a planing mill, including a bundling system at Rettenmeier Baltic Timber in Latvia. The feed speeds of the afore-mentioned plant will reach up to 350 m/min.

Text and images: Martina Nöstler Holzkurier
Holzkurier No. 22/2023

Kallfass CLT Press, BSP Presse

Ausreichend Druck auf jedem Quadratmillimeter EN Adequate pressure on every square millimetre

With its CLT press, Kallfass meets the high demands that cross laminated timber producers make of flexible production. The panels are joined according to the zero joint principle. Process reliability is the top priority. There can be no compromising here if high panel quality and good approval values are to be achieved.

Kallfass, the automation professional from Klosterreichenbach/Germany, has already realised extensive mechanisation systems for CLT production in the past, including the KLH plant in Wiesenau, Austria and, also, various Stora Enso facilities in Ybbs and Bad St. Leonhard in Austria and Gruvön in Sweden. Kallfass incorporated the experience gained from this into the plant configuration at Stora Enso in Ždirec/Czech Republic last year. For the first time, an overall concept consisting of mechanisation and the company's own CLT press was offered, and another project with a CLT press is already in the implementation phase at best wood Schneider in Messkirch.

Pressing with maximum safety

Minimising interfaces is one of the central goals in every CLT plant. The step towards realisation of its own CLT press now offers Kallfass the opportunity to act as a main supplier for cross laminated timber production and optimally network production with a coordinated control concept. CLT process data and parameters can be recorded and archived on the master computer. For pressing, the press cake, which consists of single board layers glued crosswise and with a maximum height of 600 mm, is moved via a conveyor belt into the Kallfass CLT press. The CLT press consists of several press segments. The conveyor is reversible to enable return trips or emergency pressing in the event of a malfunction. This means that no valuable raw material is wasted and a degree of flexibility is achieved in production.

Kallfass CLT Press, BSP Presse

Flexible pressure

Pressing of single to multi-layer panels is realised with low maximum tolerance values of only 0.1 mm. This zero joint is achieved through a very high vertical pressing force of 1N/mm² in combination with uniform pressure distribution across the entire panel surface. Four cylinders are employed in each press row to ensure that the pressure is applied to every square millimetre. The pressure build-up is automatically controlled and adapted to the respective panel size, taking into account the elastic behaviour of wood. Furthermore, only those units and press punches required for the panel size are actuated. A speedier pressure build-up is achieved by pre-positioning the press plungers. Kallfass can supply its press with additional transverse pressure if wooden lamellas are to be pressed.

One press for numerous formats

The CLT press from Kallfass presses panel lengths from 8,000 to 16,000 mm and widths from 2,000 mm to 3,600 mm in a single pass. Individual panels can, at the customer's request, be automatically pushed off at the dry joint after the pressing process and separated again before being transferred to sanding machines or portal processing systems for further processing. When maintenance work is due, the press rams can be mechanically locked in the upper end positions to protect operating personnel. A continuous platform above the press facilitates accessing of hydraulic and electric systems.

Kallfass CLT Press, BSP Presse

Kallfass CLT Press

Source: Wood Biz Africa
Issue 25

Kallfass Maschinenbau

DER NORDSCHWARZWALD UND SEINE WELTMARKTFÜHRER EN The northern Black Forest and its global market leader

In addition to being a major tourist attraction, the Black Forest is also a centre of development in the area of wood processing, with numerous global market leaders and mechanical engineers in the region involved in this sector. Forum Weisstanne reports on this in its anniversary magazine.

Forum Weisstanne, an association run by volunteers that seeks to improve the market situation of the Black Forest SILVER FIR, issued the Faszination Weißtanne magazine, a publication dedicated to the allure of the silver fir, in September to mark the occasion of its 25th anniversary. Over 40 reports address construction, architecture and marketing associated with regional timber. One contribution is dedicated to the Northern Black Forest and its global leaders in wood technology and engineering, including firms such as Linck, Kallfass, Homag and Schmalz.

The following is an excerpt from the article:

The Northern Black Forest – global leader in woodworking and wood processing engineering

The Northern Black Forest is a densely wooded area rich in timber that is frequently popularised as an attractive tourism destination or, indeed, a booming forestry and timber region.
And all this is true! But it is not the entire story, as the Northern Black Forest is also a region that produces many inventors. Most Germans are familiar with the Fischer plug, and many of them also know that these fixing elements were invented and are produced in the Black Forest. However, beyond the Black Forest, not many people know that the Northern Black Forest is centre of invention and development in woodworking and wood processing machinery.

The most widely known inventor in this respect is probably Max Himmelheber. Born in 1904 in Karlsruhe, Max grew up in a carpentry and joinery shop where he saw at first hand how large quantities of wood chips largely went unused. He began to tinker about with this material at an early age and, later as an electrical engineer, he examined options for using waste wood material. Max ultimately invented the chipboard in the 1930s, a development that we would today call a “turning point in the utilisation of wood”. Max Himmelheber then founded a company in Baiersbronn and established chipboard factories all over the world, issuing production licences to around 80 firms.
However, this was only the beginning of the machinery boom for woodworking and wood processing in the Black Forest. Numerous machine manufacturers are active today in this sector.
.../...

Kallfass GmbH – Maschinen plus Automation, Klosterreichenbach, District of Freudenstadt

KALLFASS has been developing and producing machinery and systems for sawmills and the global timber processing industry in Klosterreichenbach, Germany since 1949. Kallfass solutions are customised and range from charging of small process units to the mechanising of complete production lines for sawing, planing, glueing, pressing and sorting of timber.

As a family-run business in its third generation, KALLFASS employs around 120 people at its main facility in Klosterreichenbach, Northern Black Forest, and another production location in Wernigerode (Saxony-Anhalt). The development, design, production, assembly and programming of plants are all realised completely in the company.

Wood harbours enormous potential for further development, thanks to the numerous options available for its use. KALLFASS helps its sawmill customers to implement innovative product ideas and achieve special production requirements in practice and develops tailored fully automated process and plant technology. KALLFASS has readied a wealth of new developments for series production.

This success has also been demonstrated by the KALLFASS multiple circular cross-cut saw. Designed in 1965, its precision and flexibility in wood cutting has today made it the global leader among multiple circular cross-cut saws in this sector, and it is integrated in cutting systems and sorting and planing plants. The tried and trusted KALLFASS box sorter is a further success story. Timber in a variety of dimensions can be stored in the interim in large space-saving boxes for further use. This means that packages with the same dimensions and quality can be created later from different boards from the same log.

Mehrfachablängsäge mit vier Sägen, multiple cross-cut saw with four trimmer saws

Multiple cross-cut saw with 4 saw units

Kallfass Boxensortierung, box sorter, bin sorter

Sorting with inclined boxes

Source: Forum Weisstanne, anniversary issue 2022
www.weisstanne.info

Zaunpfähle anspitzen, Gehrungsschnitt

Vom Schnittholz zum Gartenholz EN From sawn timber to garden timber

Whether for a terrace, privacy fence or a raised bed, hardly any garden can do without wood. The demands associated with the production of garden timber are as varied as the raw material itself. Sawmills which, in addition to standard timber products, also include a special garden timber range in their portfolio, need a plant configuration that can combine classic machining steps flexibly with special refining processes.

Kallfass provides turnkey mechanisation concepts for further processing of timber, integrating profile milling for chamfering fence battens, planing machines for rippling of decking, incisor systems for preparing material for impregnation and chop saws for fence post pointing.

The following practical example of the installation of a fence production line in a confined space involves the raw material travelling from the vacuum destacker to a multiple cross-cut saw to create the required lengths. It is then conveyed on to the post pointing plant for sharpening of fence poles and subsequently passes through a profile miller for chamfering or milling of a radius on the board head. The squared timbers are now separated, planed and bundled, followed by a stacking and strapping system. This is only one installation example of many. Quality assessment systems, equipment for labelling and marking and incisor systems can be included in the configuration if desired.

Processing from sawn to garden timber often involves a lot of time and personnel. A well-conceived, automated production concept reduces manual tasks to a minimum and multiplies the production output.

Squared timbers are turned while passing through and pointed with a mitre cut on 4 chop saws to create fence posts

Milling of a radius on the board head

Holzkurier 09/2022

Manueller Beurteilungskettenförderer

Alles unter Kontrolle EN EVERYTHING UNDER CONTROL

The decisive economic factors in timber processing are product quality and production utilisation. Quality assessment systems integrated in the production process increase the automation level and, simultaneously, optimise utilisation.

Optimised cutting in networked production

KALLFASS has developed an interface concept that networks different software systems in a production line, thus enabling direct communication between individual processes. For example, the wane scanner installed in the sorting system determines board dimensions such as length, width, thickness and possibly quality, identifies flaws such as knotholes or wane and transmits these measurement results as cutting information directly to the KALLFASS trimmer saw. Trimmer saws normally only work with preconfigured grid lengths, but adding equipment to the system such as a servo-controlled, flexible zero stop upstream of the trimmer can cut out flaws with great precision while minimising the loss of wood.

As an alternative to scanning, the KALLFASS assessment chain conveyor can be used for a manual quality assessment of timber. Each board is individually accommodated and rotated through 180° before being deposited again on the conveyor. The operator can observe the timber from all sides and assign a characteristic.

Manueller Beurteilungskettenförderer

Alternatives to scanning: Manual quality assessment of timber with the KALLFASS assessment chain conveyor.

Holzkurier 13/2021

Mechanisierung Upgraded

Mechanisierung upgraded EN Mechanisation upgraded

More flexible and quicker production through automation

Quicker, easier, more flexible. These are all requirements which a modern timber production facility designed for different product dimensions needs to meet. The focus on the product needs to change to a focus on the process to achieve this, as processes can be actively influenced.

Kallfass, the automation specialist from Klosterreichenbach/DE, analyses the customer’s production goals and framework conditions that define the automation level of the plant. After all, the ratio between sawmill capacity and the extent of investment must be exactly right.

Robot versus personnel costs

Potential upgrades which can be exploited in automation include the use of a robot to take the place of pick & place handling which otherwise involves a high level of human resources. In the case of production involving large batches per timber dimension, this investment can pay off very quickly in the form of savings in personnel costs.

Kallfass has offered a fully automated stick handling system since last year. Time-consuming filling of the stick magazine is realised by a robot that accomplishes charging with practically no human intervention and at a consistent cycle rate. In addition, a stick scanner can be used prior to magazine filling that assesses the quality of the sticks. Only suitable sticks are separated, packetised and then prepared for robot filling.

Roboterbefuellung_Leistenmagazine

Robot solution for automated filling of stick magazines

Holzkurier 34/2020

BSP Prozess Know-How EN CLT process know-how

SINGLE PROVIDER FOR EVERY SOLUTION
The topic of cross-laminated timber has become increasingly significant in contemporary timber construction. CLT production is complex and requires extensive space. With plant sizes of up to 200 m in length and 80 m in width, planning frequently has to begin in the “great outdoors” and include the production facility.

Kallfass, the machine manufacturer from Klosterreichenbach in Germany’s northern Black Forest region, regards itself as a solution provider, taking charge of complete project planning for its customers. Production lines, ranging from plants for finger jointing of timber lamellas to single-ply boards to the gluing and pressing of single-ply boards to create cross-laminated timber boards, have already been realised in a variety of configurations in Germany, Austria and Scandinavia. Many years of process experience enable Kallfass to minimise interfaces in its fully automated mechanisation, combining all components to create a highly efficient production line.

The Kallfass CLT press is the latest addition to the range. Development concentrated on achieving a high degree of product precision and quality and reliable creation of a zero joint, regardless of the product dimensions involved.

Available at an attractive price, the Kallfass CLT press combines single-ply boards measuring 8 to 20 m in length to create multi-layer panels

A hydraulic concept based on quasi-isobaric pressing that enables the generation of both vertical and transverse pressure is at the core of the Kallfass cycle press. Pressure control ensures a constant pressing force of at least 1 N / mm² over the entire board surface, even where a maximum board width of 3.6 m is involved. Combined with quick-bonding polyurethane adhesives and fully automated charging / emptying, this enables the achievement of short cycle times and maximum production capacity.

Massanzuege Aus Metall

Maßanzüge aus Metall EN Bespoke tailoring in metal

Kallfass is an enterprise from Wernigerode that constructs plant for sawmills all over the world. Targeted revenue for this year is 23 million EUR.

Kallfass GmbH – Maschinen plus Automation in Wernigerode has made its mark on the global market. Located in the Harz, the subsidiary of the parent company in the Black Forest community of Klosterreichenbach constructs special machinery for processing sawn timber. These plants are installed all over the world. The company aims to achieve a turnover of 23 million EUR for the first time this year. After delivering a completed plant, the production facility in the Stadtfeld industrial park can appear pretty manageable at first glance. Indeed, it is hard to imagine that plants often measuring 100 metres in length, 20 metres in width and 10 metres in height are manufactured here for use all over the world.

… Carefully packed, many plants have set out from Wernigerode on the journey to their new destination. Some made their way to Austria, while other machines were also delivered to Sweden. Specialists from Wernigerode were also responsible for constructing a plant in South Africa. Kallfass is not simply a hardware provider. It also takes care of on-site plant construction.

… All plants, including those already assembled, also need to be serviced at regular intervals. This machinery from the Harz is definitely not an off-the-peg solution. Each plant is, in its own way, a “Rolls Royce”, says Enrico Goldhahn (Operations Manager at Kallfass GmbH in Wernigerode). Each plant is completely unique, including those fully automated solutions which, in this age of Industry 4.0, the company finds itself increasingly constructing and installing. One merely needs to enter a code here, and the machines adapt and adjust to suit the respective product. “Sometimes we construct really large plants, and then – and only then – is the factory built to house them. We’re making, so to speak, bespoke suits in metal.

… We’ve made a point for years now of ensuring that we can always rely on a steady supply of young highly qualified talent”, explains Goldhahn, pointing out the training results of his apprentices. These are consistent in their excellence, so it comes as no surprise that the skills of Kallfass personnel and Kallfass plants made in Germany enjoy an excellent reputation all over the world.

… The export share is generally around 75 %. Solutions are realised for clients all around the globe, with customers in North and South America, France, Scotland, the Netherlands and even Australia.

… The next plants will be installed in Austria, Lithuania and Switzerland. A sorting machine here, a planing unit there, and a stacking line over there. And Russia is also a popular destination. It is an extremely significant market, a fact reflected in the order books. These are filled for the next 18 months with commissions.

Forecasts clearly indicate that future expansion can be expected at both the parent company in Klosterreichenbach in the Black Forest and the Wernigerode location in the Harz. In the Black Forest, the company has just grown through the acquisition of an additional facility. Consideration is also been given to expanding capacities in the Harz. Throughout Europe, the machine manufacturers from Kallfass are number two in their sector

 

Text Frank Drechsler, Harzer-Wirtschschaftsblatt September/Oktober 2019