SENNEBOGEN and HOLTEC become partners to drive automation

 Wednesday, August 16, 2023

The Lower Bavarian manufacturer of handling machines SENNEBOGEN and the specialist for plant
construction in the wood sector HOLTEC with headquarters in the Eifel have been realizing
projects together for years. With their portal solutions for sawmills, they are now driving automation in the wood industry. An example of this was on display as an impressive exhibit at the LIGNA wood fair in Hanover at the HOLTEC stand.

Wood processing is one of the oldest industries in the world. The raw material offers a huge range of processing options that have been designed and developed over thousands of years. In the meantime, sawmills in particular have developed into true high-tech centers that are at the forefront when it comes to automation. Portal solutions are an important building block for automation in sawmill technology . In joint projects, HOLTEC and SENNEBOGEN implement portal solutions for sawmills that automate and simultaneously optimise wood manipulation.

ADVANTAGES OF AUTOMATION IN THE SAWMILL INDUSTRY

The (partial) automation in the processing of logs can make an important contribution to increasing efficiency and quality. On the one hand, the installation of automated systems is usually accompanied by a rationalization of processes and the optimization of log storage . Storage capacity is not only maximized, warehousing becomes more intelligent overall, because automated log handling solutions generally require less space than concepts based on manual handling. In addition, the drivers are relieved because decisions are made for them. The reduced chances of error also ensure constant quality.

BUSINESS ADVANTAGES OF PORTAL SOLUTIONS

On the other hand, automation is also extremely interesting from a purely economic point of view. Portal solutions can cover a wide range of applications in timber handling without having to lose flexibility. The driver can turn the machine 360 ​​degrees, and can also move forwards, backwards and sideways with integrated trolleys . Depending on the machine size and equipment of the material handler – SENNEBOGEN offers a wide variety of equipment options here thanks to its modular machine concept – ranges of up to 20 m are possible. Added to this is the individually definable route length of the portal. This saves both time and personnel effort, since a single driver can cover a very large work
area in a very short time.

In addition, material handling machines can be implemented as a superstructure machine with a portal as purely electric solutions . The electric motors are particularly environmentally friendly due to the elimination of fossil fuels and exhaust gases and also offer enormous savings in daily operation. From the outset, they are more economical and require less maintenance than diesel engines, thereby reducing operating and service costs. They also work with reduced noise and generate fewer vibrations, which relieves nature and people in the vicinity of the machine in the long term.

A brand new example of the cooperation between HOLTEC and SENNEBOGEN is the company Dold Holzwerke GmbH in Buchenbach, where a new SENNEBOGEN electric machine 840 E with rail portal recently replaced an old cable portal crane after only 9 months of project phase. With a range of 20 m and a portal version with 36m track width and a travel distance of approx. 45 m, the machine sometimes takes care of emptying the boxes and supplying two cutting lines with logs. An expansion option in the sense of an extension of the track system is already planned. The new, fully electric drive concept with a 200 kW electric motor is perfectly integrated into the processes of the sawmill, which has stood for sustainable, economical and ecological action for more than 130 years. The SENNEBOGEN 735 GED (Green Efficiency Drive) pick-and-carry material handler with electric drive has therefore been used for unloading incoming trucks for some time .

Tags: Automation, handling machine specialist, HOLTEC stand, ligna, log handling solutions, log processing, manual handling, plant construction, portal solutions, sawmill technology, sawmills, Sennebogen, timber handling, wood industry, wood manipulation, Wood Processing