The satisfied customer

Dario Jäger, owner of Jäger Timber Construction, set up shop in Vilters/CH in 2012. „Originally, my great-grandfather founded the company in the mountain village Vättis, back then as a sawmilling and timber construction business“, the timber construction specialist explains.
In 2008, he took over the family business from his father, and three years ago, Dario Jäger opened up a new site. Jäger has been gradually expanding his business ever since, and is working with 16 to 20 employees, depending on the season. The current production hall was purchased in Grindelwald and re-built in Vilters, with Jäger putting in a lot of personal contribution.

A change of mind

The joining equipment Jäger previously used kept causing problems: "It did not serve our needs anymore, and at some point we unceremoniously sold it to Russia", Jäger explains. At that point, time was of the essence. "For years I had been researching Hundegger's systems and I was following the developments in CNC technology closely", the young timber engineer explains. Up until recently though, Jäger had been sceptical of the technology: A conventional joining system would not meet his requirements. But when Jäger came across Hundegger's Robot-Drive, his attitude changed.
 

The Bavarian joining specialist put the Robot-Drive on the market two years ago. This universal machine was developed specifically for small and medium-sized timber enterprises that have to be flexible in their production. The crucial difference from large systems: All of the processing steps are performed by one robot arm only that is movable along six axes. A tool changer with 16 positions is equipped to allow for extensive processing options. Hundegger offers the system in two sizes: the machine table is either 65 cm or 1.25 m wide.
Jäger chose the smaller model of the Robot-Drive. Apart from the technology itself, the cost effectiveness and prompt availability were convincing factors for Jäger. "We signed the contract in mid-April. On the 8th of June - roughly six weeks later - our Robot-Drive was put into operation", Jäger recalls.

"I went from being a sceptical Hundegger customer to a satisfied Robot-Drive user."

Dario Jäger, owner of Jäger Timber Construction

Constant exploring

Jäger has high expectations both for himself and for the equipment he uses. In Jäger's vocabulary, a categorical "no" or "impossible" does not exist. The engineer prefers to keep exploring and experimenting with options to find out how to best utilize his Robot-Drive. "The software that comes with the equipment is excellent. Still, I am convinced that it is capable of even more", Jäger adds with a smile.
According to Hundegger, the simple input methods suited to timber engineering and a high usability make the CAD/CAM program Cambium particularly appealing. Usually, Jäger drafts his projects in Cadwork and then exports the blueprints to Cambium. The latter offers flexibility to cater for the customer’s needs. Jäger's application of the software is a living proof of Hundegger’s promises. „We already used our joining system to produce window shutters with inserted dovetails“, the timber engineer exemplifies. An exceptional – but nonetheless possible – case is the milling a drawing into the board which would usually only be possible with CNC systems in carpentries. "Almost nothing is impossible", Jäger is convinced.That is why many an evening he can be found experimenting with the Robot-Drive to find even more processing options.

The machine table of 65 cm suffices as Jäger's company is mainly producing timber construction buildings. The default dimensions of timber components produced in Vilters are 20 by 60 mm up to 300 by 650 mm. In theory, processing lengths are infinite – for Jäger Timber Construction, the limit is 20 m. The employee operating the Robot-Drive sets the raw material onto the cross conveyor according to the order. Cambium automatically calculates the optimal cut for the necessary parts, and the six-axis robot arm processes the components. Usually, the readily joined elements are hauled from the processing area onto the pick-up buffer automatically. Even for the automatic removal of particularly short elements the engineers at Hundegger developed a simple, yet inspired solution: Instead of falling onto the ground, the short parts are gently caught by a "drawer" and then hauled with a conveyor belt.For identifying the parts correctly, a label printer was added.

"It is impossible to imagine today‘s timber industry without CNC technology", Jäger is convinced. He concedes that "even if we lose elements of the original craft, certain joints could not be produced at all because they would just be too complex", he says referring to ridge laps and offsets. Now, Jäger can utilize these traditional joints. "By now, all of our elements are processed with the Robot-Drive – even components for beds made from scrap wood", the timber engineer elaborates.

JÄGER TIMBER CONSTRUCTION

Founded: 1912
Owner: Dario Jäger
Location: Vilters/CH
Employees: Between 16 and 20 (depending on the season)
Products: Single-family homes, roof constructions, industry and agricultural buildings, restoration
Revenue: 95% locally in Switzerland