Kitchen Maker, Hereford

The triple benefits of precision, well-engineered construction and a space saving footprint has led to kitchen maker Programme Products Ltd choosing a Striebig Control vertical panel saw after downsizing its operations.

Until recently the Hereford company specialised in mass-produced kitchens, turning out up to 700 cabinets a week, with a beam saw used for panel sizing.

Owner’s Annie and Simon Bolt have radically changed the business’s direction. It now operates out of much smaller premises and specialises in making top quality bespoke kitchens. As well as doing private work, the kitchens are sold by five up-market kitchen retailers around the country.

Striebig Control chosen for bespoke cutting accuracy

The Striebig Control is used for all the panel cutting on MDF, veneered MDF, MFC, chipboard and laminated boards, ranging from 18 to 30mm thick. Supplied with three different blades, its scoring saw comes into its own to give a chip free finish on melamine board. The saw is also used to cut laminated worktops and even Corian. The Control range of fully-automatic vertical panel saws operates to an accuracy of 1/10 mm and represents the cutting edge in vertical panel saw technology, with a digital measuring system fitted as standard.

The saws deliver a perfectly square cut every time, doing away with the need to manually sand and trim edges after cutting. The model 5524 selected by Programme Products can size panels up to a length of 4,300mm and a height of 2,240mm, with a maximum depth of cut of 80mm.

Its sophisticated design allows it to be operated via an ergonomic control panel, leaving time for the next batch of work to be prepared. Much of the cutting operation is automated; the saw head is power fed, and the feed speed is controlled to ensure the quality of the cut is maintained.

Numerous automatic procedures carried out by the press of a button include locking and releasing the saw beam, setting the horizontal cutting height, plunging and swivelling the motor, locking the support rollers during sawing and fine saw blade adjustment.

It features the highly efficient TRK dust extraction system that ensures that dust levels are kept well below permitted European limits.

A unique option available with the Control is four-sided trimming. This allows the bottom trim cut to be carried out automatically without the panel having to be lifted or turned once it has been placed on the bed.

Said Simon Bolt: “There was no way we could have fitted our beam saw into the new, smaller premises as it would have taken up far too much space. I realised I had to go for a vertical saw and remembered Striebig’s reputation for making a top quality product.”

After checking out the latest models at W6, on the stand of Striebig’s exclusive UK distributors, T. M. Machinery Sales of Leicester, he came away having made the decision to purchase.

He said the Control was consistently accurate, gave a good quality cut on all the different materials sized and was simple to operate.

“I suppose I could have gone for a much cheaper make but I wanted a well-built saw that was reliable, would last me a long time and still fetch a good price when I came to sell it.”