awisa from the stands The latest edition of AWISA was held in early August in Brisbane. As expected, being held in a smaller population area, the shows numbers were a little down on the previous version in Sydney but reports are that those who were there, were there to spend - among them a strong kiwi contingent. AWISA 2014 continued the tradition of the show being a high technology event. 5-axis machining, board handling and storage systems, laser and hot air technology for edgebanding, waste processing and briquetting machinery, compact vertical CNC machinery, and printing directly on to MDF and wood were just some of the newer technologies displayed by machinery companies. Plus there was a huge range of increasingly sophisticated computer software packages presented at the show, along with all the latest in hinge ware, drawer systems, decorative surfaces and more in the AWISA-Design section of the show. The general feeling was not so much new technology but an emphasis on improving the here and now. An exception would be 3D printing machines – very much a new technology that will impact in the not too distant future. Not to say new products were not on display: HolzHer with their new glue station technology, Blum with their new Legrabox range of drawer systems and Hettich with new sliding doors systems emphasized development on earlier models.
JOINERS Magazine September 2014 page 18
Of note was the ongoing interest in edgebanding technology and the debate between PVC and AVS based tape systems. The move if any, to AVS as in Australia, is surprisingly more advanced than one would think. The range of colours and tape quantities available remain important issues for the edgebanding market vis-a-vis market demands. We took to the stands and found AWISA is different things for different people but one thing was common, comments from exhibitors consistently reflected the high number of NZ’ers attending and there willingness to spend at the moment, and for the future. Machinery It is generally agreed the machinery stands drag in the punters at these shows they are big and like car shows provide a view of the cutting edge not always attainable to us all yet. Biesse who took up a sizeable corner at one end of the expo showcased a complete factory layout from their impressively sized Winstore panel handling system which not only summons, loads and unloads panel but also takes care of stock control and ordering.
Through to the latest 5 axis CNC machining centre and onto the Roxyl edgebander range featuring no glue line using their AirForce technology. There was also a lot of interest in their intermac water jet cutting machine which puts ‘benchtop production in range of many kitchen manufacturers’. John Fleet and Rodney Skinner from Machines R Us were on an equally large Gabbett stand at the other end of the show and by the first morning had sold an SCM edgebander - one of the first since they recently took over the SCM agency in NZ. John Fleet comments. “The show was an outstanding success for Machines R Us. Having only had the SCM agency for around 8 weeks prior to the show the level of sales generated has been immense and covered the broad range that SCM offer. Over all I think that the proven products from SCM shine through and the response to some of our new models was very positive. We received orders for 5 axis CNC, flat bed nesting CNC, edgebanders and panel saws all within the 4 day event along with wide belt sanders and solid wood machinery sales overall a total success.”