OPERATION FOCUS
ability to strength-grade lumber for MSR and/or MEL. Since GradeScan is certified for standalone MSR/MEL grading, the mill expects to take advantage of this feature if they are required to or can benefit from adding strengthgraded products to their offering in the near future. Continuous data from a Wagner in-line moisture meter is currently processed by GradeScan with the scanning solution to identify areas that exceed predetermined moisture limits. Instead of automatically downgrading the whole board, these pockets are treated like other defects with specific rules to limit their size and location – many times the best valued solution is a trim instead of simply downgrading the whole board.
behind the next new scanner. And if our customers are successful and stay competitive, it is good for Lucidyne, too. We have been in business for over 25 years and are growing conservatively as we take on more scanning opportunities.” The Charles Ingram mill claims that production has increased with automated scanning. The mill did not see a need to speed up the process before automating the grading process so did not prepare for higher rates – but now they plan to install a new planer and increase their speed. Today they believe that they made a good decision with GradeScan. An important measure is that there has been an increase in high grades with no increase in lower grades. And at the same time, this has
been a tough year – the mill has been in the process of changing over kilns over to continuous, so has had a lot of wood sitting in the yard too long getting moldy. Once the kiln conversion is done, even better results are expected. The claim is that they continue to see improvement in the bottom line the more the staff learns how to use their GradeScan’s capabilities. The Ingram team firmly believes that if a mill has a good grading system it offers an important edge in a poor market when survival is the goal. An improving lumber market leverages that advantage even more. IFI
The summary Ingram does not need to have any assistance when they adjust parameters or even design a custom grade for a new product. Whenever they do need help, Lucidyne has watched remotely through the Internet to answer questions and step in if needed. The mill had one part failure right after start-up when they lost a geometric camera – and replaced it themselves. Other than daily cleaning procedures, the scanner only gets calibrated once every six months; usually when Lucidyne is there for regularly scheduled maintenance service. A telling comment from the staff was that the toughest part was learning the new terminology for scanning. They also said: “We probably haven’t used half of the capabilities that the machine has, so we haven’t run into any limitations.” Ingram expects to see continuous improvements with grade results as the staff learns more about operating the system. It also has already seen value from new software for lumber tracking that was just installed by Lucidyne, six months after start-up. This improved algorithm was part of the continuous upgrade philosophy of Lucidyne’s maintenance program, and all installed (and new) GradeScan owners will benefit as they too, get their new software. Lucidyne’s perspective is that mills will profit more from incremental upgrades since they will always have the “latest and greatest” in their machine rather than just let the system lag behind for 10 years and then install a major retrofit. Lucidyne’s owner and President, George Carman commented: “The technology and software techniques used in an automated grading system are as advanced as any other industry, and as such are constantly changing. Unlike a straight-forward geometric scanner for an edger or trimmer, complete fibre analysis requires far more information from sensors to truly understand the make-up of a board. It’s a shame for a mill to spend millions of dollars for the best there is and a few months later fall
APRIL/MAY 2013 | International Forest Industries 53