Contour edgebanding: the shape of things to come.

Equipment suppliers say there is more than one way to edgeband a shaped part.

Edgebanding contoured edges has long proved to be a time-consuming, labor-intensive job, so much so that many furniture manufacturers have opted for straight edge designs rather than put up with the hassles involved in manual edgebanding.

This situation is changing, however, thanks to new options available for automatically applying edgebanding on contoured edges. This article will discuss some of these systems available from IMA-European Woodworking Machinery, Stiles Machinery, Delmac Machine Group and SCMI.

FEED-THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

Mike Hawkins, sales coordinator for IMA-European Woodworking Machinery Inc. of Franklinton, NC, said the company offers two different solutions for edgebanding contoured shapes: the Combi-Form edgebander and the BIMA 810 machining center.

"Basically," Hawkins said, "the Combi-Form incorporates a lot of the processes that before were only achieved with stand-alone machinery. By incorporating the processes in one feed-through machine, you eliminate any 'manhandling' of the parts and human error in a process where rejection rates tend to be high due to the volume of handling."

The computer-controlled Combi-Form operates much like a standard automatic edgebander. The big difference is that it profiles the edge of the workpiece and then edgebands the contoured edge in the same pass.

Hawkins said the Combi-Form can machine a contoured edge up to 12 inches deep on a part. Rough trim and double fine trim is accomplished via right and left cutters and is controlled by CNC. Then the part goes through the glue and magazine soft-forming section where the glue is applied to the back of the band. From there, the part travels to a pressure section and then to an end trimmer for flush milling before moving on to a buffing station.

"It looks much like a normal edgebander. The advantage is that you no longer have to shape the part before edgebanding," Hawkins said. "Now you can put a rectangular part in the machine and all the work is done automatically. The many steps involved in profiling an edge, applying edgebanding and trimming are all done in one pass."

Hawkins said the concept especially has great potential for ready-to-assemble furniture manufacturers. "It opens up new design avenues for RTA. Contoured shapes were not practical for them before (because of their high production requirements), but with this machine you can manufacture curved work as easily as rectangles and squares."

Limitations of the machine include the angles of the contour and the intricacies of the shapes that can be machined. For example, the machine would not do well with inside radius or outside radius with sharp edges. However, Hawkins said the machine can be engineered to fit a variety of applications.

MACHINING CENTERS

In addition to the Combi-Form, IMA-European offers the BIMA 810 Work Center, on which parts are fixtured on a worktable. This CNC machining center has 18 tool positions on the magazine to bore, rout, groove and edgeband.

Hawkins said operations that can be performed include rounds, ovals and butt joints. Plus, the machine center does flush mill, end trim and can put on two or three layers of banding.

Hawkins said the BIMA 810 should be attractive to end users who do less volume than RTA manufacturers, such as specialty manufacturers of office furniture who make peninsulas and odd-shaped parts.

Hawkins said one limitation of the machine is that it cannot band an inside corner.

Phil Herzog, Homag product manager for Stiles Machinery Inc. of Grand Rapids, MI, explained the technology involved in the Homag BAZ 20 and BAZ 32, two stationary processing machines that work much like a CNC machining

The machines can be programmed to rout, groove, drill, edgeband, trim and scrape. "You can put on a raw blank on the BAZ's table, start a program and then take off a completely finished work-piece," Herzog said.

Major users of the technology include RTA and office furniture manufacturers as well as component manufacturers. Herzog added that the technology will soon benefit all segments of manufacturing, including traditional furniture makers and the kitchen cabinet industry.

To further explain the machine's operation, Herzog provided a step-by-step look at the machine during a typical tabletop application. First, a substrate is put on the table and the necessary program is downloaded, either by bar code, modem or floppy disk. Then the substrate is routed or cut into the desired profile. The machined part is then edgebanded with the manufacturer's choice of edging material including 3mm PVC or solid wood up to 1-inch thick.

Next, the edgebanding is trimmed or shaped. In the case of PVC edge-banding, the material is scraped and buffed. Because the BAZ is a machining-type center, Herzog said it will do any other work it is programmed to do for the part being worked on. This might include horizontal drilling and routing or vertical drilling and routing. The machine is set up to work in zones so that as a completed piece is unloaded, an already loaded piece is ready to be machined.

Herzog added that at the Ligna Hannover woodworking show taking place next month in Germany, Homag will introduce machines capable of edgebanding with T-moulding capability and with advanced edge foiling capability.

TWO-STEP METHODS

Another way to achieve an edge-banded contour-shaped part with less labor is to use a combination of machines.

David Lillard, customer service manager for Delmac Machinery Group of Greensboro, NC, discussed one such option. DMG offers a machine that is designed to be used in conjunction with the Busellato CNC Machining Center. The CNC Machining Center routs the contour on the part and the DMG 50CB edge-bander applies the edgebanding.

Lillard said the edgebander can apply coils or strips of veneer, melamine and PVC banding up to 3mm thick. The manually operated machine features a split table which can be used to band round tops as well as other contoured edges. It is designed to work with hotmelt adhesives and allows the customer the flexibility of working with material ranging from a thin PVC to a high-pressure laminate.

The system outlined by Lillard is a lower-cost solution for replacing hand banding operations in the manufacture of contoured parts for store fixture makers, kitchen cabinetry and furniture. Applications include store displays, kitchen shelves, cabinetry with exposed shelving and dishwasher tops. Lillard said that users of this combination approach include traditional furniture manufacturers such as Ethan Allen, The Lane Go. and Bernhardt.

SCMI of Duluth, CA, offers a three-step solution to edgebanding contoured shapes by combining a CNC machining center with an SCMI Contura manual edgebander designed for straight, round and shaped panels. Andy Flores, Group Leader for Edgeband Services, called this concept a semi-automatic option designed to replace hand banding.

"You manually feed the panels into the CNC machinery where the different shapes are applied and then the panel is taken to the Contura edgebander," Flores said. Features of the Contura include a shearing device for cleaning up 3mm rolled edges, a hot air blower to soften the 3mm prior to edge-banding, four wheels fixed to the machine base for mobility and a Bakelite coated working surface. The machine is equipped with automatic loading strips and rubber and needle rollers. It also has an operating speed adjustable from 2 to 10 meters per minute and a length selection presetting device.

Pre-cut edges can have a maximum thickness of 3mm. After the Contura applies the edges the piece is taken to the Practica trimming machine where the excess banding is trimmed on the top and bottom. Flores said the system is designed for use by manufacturers of virtually any curved shapes, such as furniture manufacturers, store fixture manufacturers, contract furniture manufacturers and custom wood-workers who make entertainment centers and office furniture featuring rounded edges.