Problem: Stringers broken by an automatic nailer were costing a pallet manufacturer multiple pallets every day.
Solution: The Nail Kicker V20 denailer made it easy to quickly remove the broken stringer and put the pallet back into the production line.
Forte´ Industries Inc., a manufacturer of new pallets in Stephenson, Mich., was disposing entire pallets because it did not have an effective way of removing stringers that were accidentally broken in the automatic nailer. The company often has stringers broken due to quality issues with the lumber or the nailer’s pressure being set incorrectly. Because the company does not do any pallet recycling, it was disposing of the pallets that had broken stringers, resulting in lost costs.
But when the company found the Nail Kicker V20, it discovered a cost effective solution that allows workers to quickly remove a broken stringer. The Nail Kicker V20 is a 3-in-1 pneumatic nail remover that is similar to a nail gun, but “kicks” nails out of lumber.
“When they’re running, they just knock the stringer out on the go, and then put a stringer in and put that pallet back in the production line, rather than stacking it and bringing guys in to pull the pallet apart,” said Andy Duffrin, operations manager at Forte´ Industries.
The Nail Kicker has been an easy solution to an ongoing problem that allowed Forte´ Industries to save the intact parts of the pallet without the costs or space requirements of a full pallet dismantler.
“It’s very easy to use,” said Duffrin. “If I had to get a pallet dismantler and make a stack of pallets to take apart it would require dealing with a big machine. But this is an easy hand tool that anybody can use.”
It didn’t take long for the company to recoup the cost of the Nail Kicker as it immediately began seeing savings from using the denailer.
“It saves us from junking six to eight pallets every day,” said Duffrin. “So it’s been saving us a lot of money. It paid for itself within two to three months, so it was kind of a no-brainer for us.”
The Nail Kicker is manufactured by RECONNX, Inc. in Boulder, Colo. RECONNX was founded to provide engineered solutions for the construction and demolition waste reuse industry. Since 1999, the company has been focused on developing tools that denail lumber. The Nail Kicker V20 is a quick way to drive nails through pallet deck boards and into stringers for easy removal and repair or to remove nails from reclaimed lumber without leaving hammer marks. It runs on the same air pressure as a framing nailer and is a versatile tool with three sizes of driver/nose sets available. It can also be used as a pneumatic nail set to set nails at or just below the surface of wood with a single hit. The desired depth can be easily set by adjusting a thumbscrew on the nose.
“It’s been a pretty reliable hand tool and there’s not a lot of maintenance,” said Duffrin.
More information on the Nail Kicker is available at http://www.nailkicker.com or by calling 888-447-3873.
