The latest technology is helping roof truss and engineered floor systems manufacturer Pasquill improve production efficiency at its operations across the UK.
Pasquill, the UK’s largest supplier of roof trusses, has installed a laser projection setup system at three of its sites as part of the company’s overall strategy to increase productivity and enhance product quality. The Redhill branch in Surrey is the group’s busiest branch, serving London and the southeast. It was the first Pasquill branch to get the laser technology.
“We’ve introduced five laser systems in Redhill, and improvements in our productivity have been excellent,” said Igor Marcius, site operations manager.
The system, supplied by Shropshirebased AV Birch Timber Engineering, works by projecting design fi les of roof truss configurations into a full-scale laser image on a manufacturing ‘table’ surface.
Jigs are then accurately set using the laser projected truss outline and components quickly identified and placed into position. Nail plates can be precisely positioned on component joints to ensure accuracy and optimum quality control and the design software allows work to very tight tolerances. “In addition to improved productivity and quality control, we have also introduced a new training programme for new operatives to help them understand the technology and ease of use,” added Mr Marcius.
“The new system allows us greater flexibility so that we can react more quickly to increased customer demand.” The lasers also save time on setup and ensure truss quality is maintained. The system has increased the site’s truss assembly capacity, through the reduction of setup and cycle times.
UNI-ROLL OPEN WEB JOIST TECHNOLOGY
Another piece of kit from the AV Birch stable which is helping Pasquill’s Redhill branch is the Uni-Roll 750 Open Web Joist Roller, designed to manufacture open web joists quickly in a single workstation.
Very fast and effi cient cycle times are gained using the Uni-Roll, with the webs and plates quickly embedded along the joist length, while the technique of rolling of plates and webs is designed to produce consistent and precise high-quality joists.
The process is aided by powerful mechanical clamping to ensure joists are manufactured to exact dimensions with no pre-assembly of frames required.
The new equipment gives a clear, open working surface with a clamping mechanism positioned under the table. The machine also allows joists to be pressed in pairs, thereby increasing productivity further, and a ‘one touch’ remote controlled dual direction head enables fast production times with safety photoelectric cell sensors protecting operators.
Pasquill said the system was quiet and took just seconds to produce a joist.
Meanwhile, the recent addition of a Tigerstop automatic positioning system for cutting processes in its JJI-Joist operation is estimated to have led to a 50% increase in productivity over the previous operation.
NEW DESIGN SOFTWARE
The design office at Pasquill’s Redhill site is also now using a new cutting edge software system, which helps to speed up the design process.
MiTek’s Pamir software combines roof layout, truss engineering and high quality CAD output features, all into one integrated software platform.
Historically these three areas have been handled by three distinct software packages. Pasquill said the software brings designs to life on the screen through its 3D presentation ability.
In addition, the system facilitates BIM compatibility by means of file exports generated, which can be easily emailed and opened on a variety of smartphones and tablet devices. This means that a roof model can quickly and easily be shared with Pasquill’s supply chain partners.
The approach is especially useful on very complex roof designs because it helps customers see the proposed solution clearly. The system also facilitates auto framing because when building dimensions are edited, a roof is re-framed automatically. With the entire roof being designed simultaneously this means each element of the roof is taken into account including any adjacent members being supported on it.
Basically, any adjustments made lead to an automatic change to all component parts in the design, saving valuable time and meaning consistency of quality of design. “It’s a good way of detecting clashes in the design at an early stage,” said Ross Baxter, managing director of Pasquill.
“It’s all about getting the quote back to the customer as quickly as we can and having the ability to adapt the design to the customer’s needs.”
Mr Baxter said that Pasquill was midway through the Pamir rollout across its 16 design centres, and is already seeing enhanced benefits for its customers, such as the improved presentation of its site drawings. Additionally, Pasquill is seeing a productivity improvement, which allows it to return quotes more quickly to customers.
