August/September 2011 - PAWPRINT PUBLISHING

PANELS & PANEL PROCESSING
Three-in-one from AXYZ
A PREFERRED system for the processing of aluminium
composite and metal composite panels, the three-inone
PANELBuilder system from AXYZ Inter -
national has evolved from years of testing
and field interaction with fabricators of these
materials. The system provides an allembracing
three-in-one panel processing solution,
comprising a specially configured large-format CNC
routing machine and a dedicated software
program to simultaneously groove, drill
and profile-cut single or multiple sheets of
ACM/MCM.
The system can be configured to handle all standard
ACM/MCM sheet sizes up to 8 m x 2 m. Key
design features include a triple Z tooling
arrangement (complete with three 5 hp router
spindles), an automatic tool mister/coolant facility
for machining plate aluminium, pop-up location pins for
material alignment and a powerful vacuum hold-down system
to firmly secure sheets during the routing process. Waste
generated during this process is safely removed through a chip-extraction system
complete with an automatic vacuum extraction manifold.
The supporting PANELBuilder software includes both 2D and enhanced 3D design and layout capabilities
for more complex panel processing requirements, in addition to precise panel nesting to maximise sheet utilisation
and automatic tool path creation. Once a panel cyanotype has been created, it can be saved with parametric values for recall at any time.
Panels can be easily created by changing the dimensions of the design, adding these to the job schedule and finally nesting onto the materials to be
processed using the software’s powerful nesting feature. Significantly, PANELBuilder software is supplied loaded with many usable existing panel
designs to help start-up and accelerate panel processing. It will also link with and enhance existing software programs to increase the ability to
create panel blanks for ACM façade systems.
The system is supported with a comprehensive range of specially designed cutting tools and accessories to accommodate multiple panel processing
requirements. These include tools to profile materials in a thickness of between three and six millimetres and those that will provide the required fold
angle and bend radius and specially configured tool options for the processing of exotic materials.
The PANELBuilder system is backed by a comprehensive training programme to ensure the benefits are fully understood and maximised by
operatives, together with ongoing technical support from the AXYZ International team of dedicated engineers.
AXYZ International ● Tel 01902 375600 ● Email sales@axyz.co.uk ● www.axyz.co.uk
Koolkut’s the saw for Sawtry
ONE OF the challenges often
arising as a result of rapid workshop
growth is the need to be
able to reliably, accurately and
speedily cut large volumes of
assorted sheet materials.
Cambridgeshire based Sawtry
Cabinets has found the solution to
this challenge in Sagetech’s range
of Koolkut vertical panel saws.
Sawtry Cabinets provides a bespoke
fitted bedrooms service, including
design, manufacturing
and fitting, mostly for local residential
customers. The company
uses melamine-faced boards
heavily, and while the majority of
the shaping work is handled by
CNC routers, the 2.6 m x 2 m
‘Jumbo’ boards that Sawtry uses
must first be cut down to size, as
the routers only take sheets sized
up to 8’ x 4’.
“Initially, I was working on my
own,” David Shipp, Proprietor of
Sawtry Cabinets, recalled. “I had to
lay the boards on timbers on the
workshop floor and cut them with
a circular saw. That took a lot of
space and created a serious dust
problem. Also, 2.6 m x 2 m of 18
mm melamine is heavy: simply
getting the boards into position
was difficult and time-consuming.”
The business grew and David
took on a couple of employees. By
the late 2000s he was in a position
to look for a better solution to the
problem of sizing sheet materials
for the routers.
It was at 2008’s Woodmex exhibition
that David came across
Sagetech’s Koolkut moving column
vertical panel saw range. Impressed
by the company’s approachable,
helpful attitude and the capabilities
of the machines, he looked into the
range in more detail.
David settled on the Koolkut
KK21S, specifically designed for
boards 2.1 m wide, as the unit best
suited to his requirements. “It was
the Koolkut’s price that tipped the
balance, though,” he observed.
“Given the machine’s specification
and capabilities, it’s really very attractive
indeed!”
Installed in 2009, Sawtry Cabinet’s
Koolkut KK21S quickly became
key to the company’s
production process. The Koolkut is
used to size sheets of a wide variety
of materials, including
melamine faced boards, veneers,
MDF, chipboard and plywood,
usually for the CNC routers.
Asked what difference the
Koolkut has made for the business,
David was clear and to the point.
“Huge,” he said. “It’s saving us enormous
amounts of time: we’ve
been able to accelerate our production
process with no impact
on quality. Put simply, the business
is more profitable because of
the Koolkut.”
Given the difference the Sage -
tech machine has made to David’s
business and the very attractive
pricing of the range, it’s perhaps
no surprise that he gives his
Koolkut panel saw “Ten out of ten”
for value for money and is more
than happy to recommend it to
other businesses needing a quick,
safe and economical solution to
the challenge of cutting sheet
materials.
Sagetech
Tel 0118 970 1950
Email info@sagetech.co.uk
www.sagetech.co.uk
Page 20 Panel, Wood & Solid Surface August/September 2011