The new ‘plug and play’ compact planer, the Cube, probably stole the limelight on Weinig’s 3,000m² stand, not least because one featured a grinning cartoon shark livery.
But another launch also made a big impression, the Multirex CNC machining centre. Targeted at window, door and conservatory manufacturers, the Multirex is one of the first fruits of Weinig’s synergy with CNC machine centre specialist Holz-Her, which it acquired last year. In fact, Multirex components are made at the latter’s Austrian plant for assembly at Weinig’s facility in Tauberbischofsheim, Germany.
“The Multirex, which was finished just in time for the show, fills a market gap below our bigger Conturex window line,” said Weinig UK managing director Neil Forbes. “It’s very easy to use, with a Campus software control system and the new VarioGrip clamping technology which adapts automatically to the profile and clamps the workpiece in the optimum way.”
The Multirex also uses a Windows-compatible software system to determine best workpiece position and a laser to display it. Another new aspect is the automated console table and special tool magazine, which allows two tools to be placed on one mandrel, increasing the number of tool slots possible.
Meanwhile the £27,000 Cube was inevitably attracting a lot of attention. In fact, by the second day of the show, 10 had been sold off the stand. The machine has a maximum working width of 260mm, feed speed of 6-12m/min and offers four-side planing in one pass and all the user has to do is specify width and thickness on the touchscreen control panel. The Moulder Preview facility illustrates the how the workpiece will be processed using laser beams and, if necessary, the operator can then make adjustments. A ‘flow optimised’ hood cuts power needed for extraction by 60% and EasyLock tooling gives for “precise blade exchange in a few steps”.
Also new was the latest variant of the OptiCut S50 entry level cross-cut, featuring a side kicker or pusher that ensures the workpieces flow out in a specified order and makes it a true single-operator machine.
Meanwhile, a new variant of the OptiCut S, the Precise, lived up to its name, with the blade cutting down into the workpiece surface and an optional pre-scorer working from below to ensure a tear and break-out free finish, even with coated timber and composites.
On show alongside were the OptiCut 450 Quantum II, which uses an integrated automatic scanner to achieve cutting and optimising speeds of 100m/min, the second generation Profipress LII 2500, which uses radio frequency curing to produce a laminated board in 40 seconds, and the Powermat 2000 PP planer moulder. The latter’s 620mm working width suits it to MDF panels as well as timber processing and it features an oscillating tool head facility to produce ‘structured’ surface finishes for panelling, joinery and flooring.
