DWM - June2006

Volume 7 Issue 6 June 2006

Technology Overload
Preview of What's to Come at IWF 2006

Machinery, technology and door and window manufacturers will all be found in the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, August 23 to 26, at the 2006 International Woodworking Machinery and Furniture Supply Fair-USA® (IWF).

The woodworking industry has been waiting two years for the return of this event, sponsored by American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA), Wood Machinery Manufacturers of America (WMMA) and Woodworking Machinery Industry Association (WMIA).

This year, attendees will have the opportunity to visit nearly 1,400 exhibiting companies covering approximately 840,000 net square feet of exhibit space. Hundreds of products with applications beyond woodworking will be on display at this year’s show.

Between the machinery and products at the booths and the networking on the show floor, attendees are sure to find a tip on the equipment or processes that will aid their businesses.

“All the machines, all the people,” are the reasons Joe Slovak, vice president of sales and marketing for SIKO Products Inc. of Dexter, Mich., says his company will be at the show. “Anybody’s that’s everybody is at that show.”

The measurement system manufacturer uses IWF as an opportunity to meet with clients and find a new audience for new products.

“We have both new business and existing customers that are at this show,” says Slovak.

Kris Reid, marketing manager of Stiles Machinery Inc. of Grand Rapids, Mich., says that IWF is the place for manufacturers to experience first hand all of the options available to them in their manufacturing operation.

Stiles has been an exhibitor at IWF since its inception.

“IWF is an important event for Stiles as we have the opportunity to exhibit all of the latest manufacturing technologies and equipment—along with our integration, consulting, service and engineering capabilities—all together in one place,” says Reid.

One of the 250 first-time exhibitors at IWF is Dakota Automation Inc. of Watertown, S.D., a manufacturer of custom machinery.

“There’s more and more automation being developed in the woodworking industry and wood window industry, and that’s what we’re targeting,” says Jason Wobbema, sales representative for Dakota.

Dakota is getting started on a machine, custom-made for the show.

“We will have one machine there that we’re currently building right now, that will be applying 3M double-sided tape to window grid bars,” says Wobbema. “It’s something that’s going to be built just before the show.”

In addition to the hundreds of exhibits, seminars will be presented throughout the show on CNCs, material handling and increasing profitability, among other topics.

For more information on the show, visit http://www.wynjcomade./iwf06/ebooks.

IWF Booth #2803:
Excel Offers New Dowel Pins
Excel Dowel and Wood Products Inc. of Itasca, Ill., a supplier of wood dowel pins used in wooden interior and exterior doors, is now offering plain and pre-glued dowel pins. The pins are available in diameters from ¼- to ¾-inches and lengths between 1 and 6 inches, in both multi-grooved and spiral-grooved. Metric sizes are also available.

Excel Dowel also offers a complete line of woodworking and construction screws. All types of drywall, hinge and hardware screws are available in multiple head styles, thread types and drives.

IWF Booth #4353:
Contact Lumber Veneer Looks Like Wood
The latest in veneer-wrapping technology from Contact Lumber of Portland, Ore., is a wood “look alike,” a highly durable film printed to look indistinguishable from real wood. The wood look-alike components are made with a real wood core profiled to customer specifications and wrapped with an ultra-thin, extremely durable vinyl material that is virtually indistinguishable from finished veneer. As with all of the company’s profile-wrapped products, the components are available in widths up to 9 1/2 inches and lengths up to 18 feet. The components are easy to maintain, available in 11 look-alike species including walnut, maple, cherry, oak and birch, and can be wrapped over nearly any substrate.

IWF Booth #6561:
SIKO Measures Up With New Tools
SIKO Products Inc., based in Dexter, Mich., a part of Wandres Corp., offers a variety of measurement display systems. According to information from the company, the SIKO systems are suitable for use where a simple, dirt-immune and rugged installation is required, such as end stops for cut-off units.

The SIKO MA508 measurement display system is available with integrated sensor or optional cabled readhead. The system has a five-digit metric display resolution of 100um. Other features include the display of an absolute position value or an incremental move value. A programmable offset is also featured.

The Model MA504 offers a 6-digit display resolution of 10um, and is programmable in either metric or imperial measurement values. A calculation factor is directly programmable on the unit, allowing for a meaningful angular measurement display. Added features include an absolute position value or incremental move value, and a programmable on/off delay. Model MA503/1 offers the same features, but with a display capable of fractional inches down to 1/16-inch display resolution.

IWF Booth #5927:
Colonial Saw Spotlights New CNC Profile Grinder
The UTMA Model P20-CNC from Colonial Saw of Kingston, Mass., profile grinds HSS moulder knives, carbide inserts, CNC router bits and brazed cutters from CAD drawings, eliminating the need for templates. It rough grinds from blank knife to finished knife automatically, including automatic indexing. The heavy-duty machine has a 10 HP grinding motor, weighs 6,000 pounds and is fully cabin-enclosed for maximum flood-cooling during grinding. It has four CNC controlled axes, X, Y, A and B, with AC digital servo motors on each axis.

The machines includes a Windows-based 2-D CAD system, accepts DXF CAD drawings and employs an operator-friendly CAD/CAM menu.

IWF Booth #2207 and #2300:
Häfele Adds Hardware to Product Line
Häfele America Co. of Archdale, N.C., has added lever handle and lock sets to its current range of functional door hardware. These lever handle and lock sets are for residential applications and are complementary to all door types. Available in a variety of different shapes, designs, and finishes, these make suitable entrance locks for interior doors, according to information from the company.