In the heart of red pine country in Michigan, Biewer Sawmill manufactures its line of dog-ear fence boards. “Our owner, Tim Biewer, designed this saw line specifically for fence boards. Nearly everything moves by conveyers between saws and machines,” noted Jason Otto, plant manager.
When laying out the plant, Biewer Sawmill rated the speed and reliability of the TS300 against the other stackers on the market to keep up with output of their saws. “The TS300 Stacker is the smallest stacker we’ve ever used and it has been a very versatile machine for us. It handles our long boards with no problem provided we have on-target spec wood,” Otto continued. “Our Quality Control department oversees the wood specs and grading so ninety-five percent of our stacking operation is fully automated. That’s quite an upgrade from the process at other mills.” With three operators per shift, two graders pulling outs from the saw and one operating the TS300 Stacker, Biewer Sawmill is running 30,000 to 40,000 pieces or about 100 packs per shift.
Packs exit the TS300 Stacker on a custom-built powered roller transfer conveyor and travel directly outside the plant. “AIT made it easy to configure the TS300 for maximum throughput. We minimized the forklift traffic in the plant which increased our efficiency and reduced our costs further, even in the cold weather.” A forklift picks the packs off the rollers, side batons are added, and the pack is strapped for shipped to retailers like Home Depot and Menards.