Striebig Control at ASL projects

ASL Projects, a specialist shop fitter and manufacturer of point of sale and retail display equipment, has bought the latest top-of-the-range Striebig Control vertical panel saw to guarantee total accuracy in its sizing work.

The highly successful small company, based in Farnborough, Hampshire, was set up in 1992 by Robert Parke. With a broad spectrum of big-name clients it offers a comprehensive range of specialist services that also include office and bar interiors.

“We were using a four-year-old Dutch single-phase vertical panel saw but as the business grew and we picked up more high end work we realised we needed a more accurate, heavy duty saw to cope with the increased volume of sizing work,” said Mr Parke.

Top of the range Striebig Control for total accuracy

The impetus to invest in the Control came when ASL won a prestigious contract to refit Samsung’s flagship store in Tottenham Court Road, the London street renowned for the choice of consumer electrical product outlets.

“We had already done our research and looked at Striebig machines when choosing our first saw, but at the time our budget didn’t stretch to buying one,” said co-partner Luke Handley. “When we won the Samsung contract and needed to replace the Dutch saw, we knew that nothing came close to a Striebig on quality. We made the decision to buy after seeing a video of the latest Control in action on the sales agent’s web site.”

As ASL needed the new saw right away, they ordered the Control 5224 model being exhibited by T.M. Machinery Sales at the W10 Working with Wood exhibition. One of nine models in the Control series, it was delivered and installed four days after the show closed.

The saw’s purchase was part of an £85,000 spend on new equipment which has also included an entry-level CNC machining centre and a new spraying system.

The fully-automatic Control, with a powerful 5.5 kW motor, is used to size mainly MDF panels as well as laminates, including brushed aluminium and high gloss panels. With a cutting range of 4300 x 2240mm it is ideal for sizing Jumbo sheets, and has a maximum cutting depth of 80mm.

The Control sets itself apart from rival woodworking machines with its high degree of functionality user-friendly ergonomics for secure and risk-free operation.

For use particularly where high levels of panel throughput are required, such as at ASL Projects, it features as standard Striebig’s innovative “touch and saw” operating system. This delivers easy and convenient machine control through a touch screen panel that operates all of the machine’s functions.

Other features include improved error messaging and laser cut indication for making totally accurate cuts. There’s also an innovative cutting list input function, provided via a USB memory stick. All possible dimensions are shown on the touch screen with each dimension ready to be selected by the operator.

Included among the wide range of options to make the Control even more productive are an automatic top trimming function, for use in combination with the bottom trim; an electronic positioning system for the automatic positioning of both the length stop and saw head, and a scoring saw, specified by ASL Projects to prevent damage when sizing laminate panels. “The biggest single advantage of trading up to the Striebig is knowing that the saw is totally accurate,” said Luke Handley. “This gives us peace of mind, particularly when making repeat cuts, as we know that the boards will always come out the correct size every time.

“The strip cutting option from the top is also an excellent feature, as is the repeat ripping facility, while the ability to be able to save cutting lists is very useful. There’s nothing comparable to the Striebig and its solid backboard means that laminate panels are in no danger of bending whilst on the machine.

“Our customers are very exacting and demand top quality work from us. The Control helps us achieve this, also removing operator fatigue when working on long runs. It should help us to win even more high-end work in the future, and we expect it to meet all our sizing needs for many years to come.”