Our Local Factory

ITM Joinery has a long and close relationship with the trades in the Nelson and Tasman region where they supply direct to builders and the public as well as providing joinery services for their four stores in Havelock, Nelson, Motueka and Takaka. A recent move to new premises in the Lower Queen Street Industrial Park in Richmond prompted an upgrade of their machinery and processes.

JOINERS Magazine asked Joinery Manager Paul Rusbatch what they bought and why.

What machinery did the company purchase?
We ended up purchasing two machines from Auckland SCM agent Machines R Us. An SCM N200 24 x 12 nesting cell which we largely use for kitchen work and an SCM Morbidelli Author M100 5-axis which is primarily used for our door manufacturing operation.

What prompted the purchase?
Our business was expanding, with a staff of 20 we had outgrown our old factory in Motueka and required bigger premises. The decision was made to start from scratch with a well worked out factory layout accompanied by some modern machinery. We also decided to remove as much of the manual machining and labouring in our factory as possible. For our pre-hung door department this meant the obvious choice was to purchase a 5-axis CNC machine. For our kitchen manufacturing department the decision was for an automated self-loading nesting machine.

How was this done previously?
Previously we had an older manual loading Pratix SCM CNC nesting machine that proved very reliable and was easy to operate while our prehung doors were machined on a more manual type machine.

What research did the selection process involve – why SCM and Machines R Us?
We started out thinking we knew what we wanted but quickly became overwhelmed with the choices and brands available. We set some criteria. At the top was reliability followed closely by the availability of service from the machinery supplier. However, it was not until we actually saw the machines running at AWISA in 2018 that it became clear what was best for us. SCM had the accuracy and reliability we were looking for and our previous dealings with Machines R Us had proved their service capabilities.

The SCM small nesting machines have heavier running gear compared to the smaller nesting machines from other brands which suited our heavy workload. Also the N200 has an excellent infeed and outfeed system. I am not sure why you would want a nesting machine without infeed and outfeed. The initial extra costs are very quickly paid back.

What benefits have the SCM’s brought to your business?
The SCM Morbidelli 5-axis gives us the ability to get it right every time accurately, while also being able to increase the amount of doors we machine in a day. Now every door we machine is to size with hinge and lock sets perfectly machined out.

The SCM N200 nesting machine has enabled us to push more board per day through the factory and has reduced back injuries through lifting full sheets of board. Now we edge band while we unload so the time to machine a kitchen is basically the time it takes to edge band it.

How was the install and commissioning process?
Very good, Machines R Us have a good team of experts. With two machines being installed they sent two technicians. This enabled some training while the install process continued and meant minimum disruption during the changeover with both machines working as expected from the time of commissioning.

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