FEI6000 CM, Column Laminating Machine

The Cost of Manual Manufacturing

The FEI6000 CM was designed to reduce and eliminate many of the issues associated within the manufacturing of internal structural components of buildings. These issues include; (1) the availability and cost of large dimensionally-sized building lumber, (2) the labor costs related to manual construction even with the use of jigs and fixtures, (3) the lower quality of products resulting from manufactured columns using commercially available lumber relating to straightness and (4) the inadequate load tolerances caused by inconsistencies from manual manufacturing processes.

Nailing Down the Costs

As a solution, the FEI6000 CM assembles (or laminates) columns using commercially available lumber which increases the availability of your dimensional-sizing needs. The ability to laminate your own columns allows you to stock commercially available standard lumber sizes which in-turn reduces costs. The machine solution increases operator throughput by implementing more automation within the lamination process which also eliminates rework of incorrectly manufactured columns. This increased throughput and reduction in rework greatly reduce the added labor costs. The final, arguably most important, improvement is an increase in the quality of products produced with very precise and repeatable nail patterns.

Features & Benefits

• Intuitive Operator Interface (HMI) — Reduces operator training labor costs
• Dynamically adjustable nailing pattern — Reduces nail consumption while achieving the engineering load specifications
• Hydraulically actuated lumber compression rollers — Improves the straightness resulting in a higher quality of finished columns
• Servo controller linear feed system — Provides flexible and accurate nailing patterns, increasing quality
• Fully enclosed machine safety guarding — Inhibits work-related accidents and injuries
• Finished column auto-stack and bundling system — Reduces labor and increases machine throughput
• Rigid, heavy duty mild steel construction — Increase machine longevity while reducing the overall cost
• Remote connectivity for machine diagnostic support (option) — Allows for quick, responsive service – keeping your machine running
• Quick and easy column size change-over — Increases operator efficiency resulting in greater machine throughput

Capabilities

• Infeed Capacities
  • 2″ x 6″, 8″ or 10″ pressure-treated commercially available lumber

• Outfeed Capacities
  • Minimum 8 foot laminated column
  • Maximum laminated column length is limited only by your building size constraints
  • Columns can be laminated between 3 to 5 layers thick
  • Processing speeds of up to 13 inches per second on average using the 9″ nailing pattern

• Nailing Station
  • Utilizes four independently adjustable pneumatic nailing guns
  • Adjustable nailing location by across-board-width (up/down) and distance-from-board (in/out)
  • High-powered clamping rollers to correct curved and warped lumber inconsistencies
  • Lumber absence error detection
  • Optionally, Low nail conditions can be detected by manually loaded nail guns

• Auto-Stacking Station
  • Fully automatic stacking of up to 6 columns
  • Maximum bundle width of 8 stacks
  • Safety strobe light and audible alarm activate while in motion

Specifications

• Machine Footprint; 14 ft x 67 ft  ^{*Adjustable by final length of desired outfeed station}
  • Infeed Station; 13 ft x 24 ft
  • Nailing Station; 5 ft x 11 ft
  • Outfeed Station; 14 ft x 33 ft  ^{*Adjustable by final length of desired outfeed station}
  • Electrical Cabinet; 4 ft x 6 ft

• Power Requirements
  • 460v AC 3-phase @ 100 Amps

• Pneumatic Requirements
  • 90 PSI @ 25 CFM  ^{*Adjustable based on nail gun usage}

Literature Downloads

• Equipment Presentation – Download PDF
• Laminating Rate Estimation – Download Spreadsheet (OpenOffice)
• Laminating Rate Estimation – Download Spreadsheet (Excel)