With current volatility and uncertainty in the pallet and low-grade lumber industries, having the flexibility to cut your own lumber is important if you want to be able to obtain the most profitable source of lumber. And many pallet companies have found the accuracy and efficiency of a crosscut unit saw to be the right choice when it comes to reducing manpower required in the cut-up operation.
You either have two options – a crosscut unit or package saw designed to cut entire packs of lumber bundled together or processing of each individual board through chop saws or some other trim saw line. One approach cuts a large number of boards at once using one operator. The other may require multiple stations and operations to match the same level of production.
The owners of Pacific Trail Manufacturing Inc. of Portland, Oregon has been a leader in the development of the crosscut unit saw in North America since 1988. And it has cultivated a strong reputation for working with companies in the pallet and cut stock business.
“I had seen Pacific Trail saws in action, and a crosscut unit saw certainly beats hand cutting with chop saws and stacking lumber when crosscutting a lot of lumber. Our Pacific Trail is working out well. This saw has made us competitive,” explained Mike Damato – 84 Lumber, Las Vegas, Nevada.
A pallet and packaging supplier echoed those sentiments. Zane Wall of Custom Forest Products, Spartanburg, South Carolina, commented, “Years ago we bought an Accu-Cut 132-20C from Pacific Trail. Since then this saw has become the heart and soul of production for our company. It is asked to cut soft and hardwoods all day long every day. To say we are pleased with the design, production, ease of maintenance and after the sale service is an understatement. It has performed far beyond our expectations.”
Crosscut unit saws are advancing with newer controls and simpler interfaces to make the operator more efficient.
Efficient Lumber Cutting
Pacific Trail markets its Exacta-Cut 116-24TM model to the pallet industry and other applications. It has a cutting tolerance of ±1/16-inch. The Exacta-Cut 116-24TM has a capacity for bundles of lumber 47 inches high by 48 inches wide and 20 feet in length or longer. It can cut softwood, hardwood, and panels of plywood, oriented strand board, and medium density fiberboard.
The saw chain is 15 hp direct driven at 3,450 rpm for fast, smooth cutting. The saw bar and chain are lubricated opposite the drive end, which puts the oil immediately at the bottom of the saw bar — the cutting side — for longer bar life and maintaining cutting tolerance.
Saw bars are made of an extremely high yield, high tensile steel that is harder to deflect, which aids in holding cutting tolerance longer under severe conditions. A cobalt wear material welded to the saw bars increases wear life before rotational repairs.
Rack and spur gear drive for the digital length measuring option ensures precise location for each cut. Overhead aluminum frame keeps the bar on tolerance through the cut and provides an opening for more accessible loading and unloading of the saw, and it eliminates the need for an operator platform.
Options include material staging to increase production, digital length measuring, choice of pneumatic or hydraulic power assist to the cutting stroke, electric variable frequency lateral drive to the saw head, and features for conveying and collecting scrap.
“Two years ago (2008) we installed an Exacta-Cut 116-40TM crosscut unit saw built by Pacific Trail. We were outsourcing a lot of our cut to length material to other local companies that had unit saws. We saw an opportunity to bring that production back in house for less money using our existing labor. The installation of the Exacta-Cut and double wall unit aligner has allowed us to secure business we could never have handled before,” said, Matthew Baker of Wappoo Wood Products, Sidney, Ohio.
Baker added, “The 40’ frame length is great for staging of lumber to increase production. The digital measuring is accurate. The self-dumping hoppers under the saw catch all end-trims and sawdust and require no maintenance. The unit aligner’s secondary bump wall is great for breaking frozen lumber. We even use the Exacta-Cut for cutting OSB & plywood. The installation was easy and Pacific Trail’s service after the sale has been exceptional.”
Touch Screen Controls Improve Performance for Exacta-Cut
Pacific Trail Manufacturing has begun offering a new touch screen control system for the company’s Exacta-Cut 116-24TM package saw. The new touch screen control system is an upgrade and replaces an older version.
The new touch screen is also a monitor and replaces the previous digital length measuring read-out. It also replaces the cut counter, which is now incorporated into the touch screen.
In addition, Pacific Trail added an amp meter to the saw chain for the touch screen control system. It measures amp draw to indicate to the operator when the saw chain is becoming dull.
The new touch screen control system also has a cut timer to monitor the length of time of the cut so it is neither too fast nor too slow.
The new touch screen control system is an option when a customer chooses digital length measuring, a popular feature that most companies select when ordering the Exacta-Cut 116-24TM.
Pacific Trail recently began offering the upgrade, and in October it shipped two new Exacta-Cut package saws with the new touch screen control system to customers in Texas and Minnesota.
Success Stories – Tight Cutting Accuracies
While it may look like just a glorified chain saw, the Pacific Trail lines of crosscut unit saws can cut to very accurate tolerances. High production machines would still be using what…a gang saw, a radial arm saw, a pop up saw? The Accu-Cut model can cut to ±1/32", and the Exacta-Cut delivers ±1/16" tolerance.
Tom Langton, president of Pacific Trail, commented, “The implications are enormous! A reman or reload yard can create a whole unit of studs in one minute. Deck boards and stringers for pallet stock are done in a matter of moments.”
“For example: Say you have a 12’ unit of hardwood 2 x 4’s. You want to cut that unit into three finished 48" packages. You know that in a matter of 5-minutes you can be staring at maybe 780 cut to length pieces. That’s production! Production created by only one employee and a saw that always shows up for work every day.”
Langton explained, “It is all about accuracy and consistency… you will have a cutting tolerance that will satisfy in most cases downline automatic nailers that have magazines that do not like overt length material.”
And proper maintenance can help keep these cutting tolerances in line.
Some companies don’t need tighter tolerances so they can go with the more economical models. J.W. Lodge of Lodge Lumber commented, “Pacific Trail was wonderful to work with from finding the best saw for our needs all the way to installation. Bruce and Tom run a great team. Our specific needs don’t require tight tolerances, so they recommended the Exacta Cut where a 1/16" cut tolerance is great. The saw is a workhorse and has exceptional design and fabrication qualities from the frame up through the controls.”
Lodge added, “Bruce came to personally install and oversee the project and stayed to make sure it was to our satisfaction. He really knows his stuff and is a perfectionist. The saw has increased our cut to size throughput significantly and improves efficiency and profitability.”
Some companies start out with the lower production machine and work their way up to larger production capacity. Langton pointed to Pasadena Skid & Pallet which kept on boosting production thanks in part to the efficiency of the package saw. Rob Trexler said, “There’s no better testimonial than when a current customer grows and needs another Pacific Trail unit saw to keep up with demand. And, not just any model, but a fully automatic Accu-Cut.”
Is your lumber processing operation as efficient as it could be? How can you take extra labor out of the process? Are you wanting tighter cutting accuracy to improve the performance of boards in automated lines? These are just some of the reasons to consider a crosscut unit saw as part of your operation.
(For more information about Pacific Trail and its products, visit www.ptmi.net or call 888-910-SAWS (7297).
