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Andreas Müller and his Hundegger Robot Drive have been a winning team for four years © Günther Jauk

andreas müller zimmerei u. holzbau / hundegger

Dovetails instead of joist hangers

Article by Günther Jauk (translated by Eva Guzely) | 21.06.2021 - 10:23

“When the wood is in the machine, I don’t worry anymore,” says master carpenter Andreas Müller, speaking of his Robot Drive joinery machine from Hundegger. Müller has been working as a freelance carpenter in Neukirch, Saxony since 1992, and first thought about buying a joinery machine as early as in 1997. At that time, he was just playing with the thought, but with the development of his company and the increasingly demanding requirements for modern timber constructions, thoughts gradually turned into a concrete plan.

Two mainstays

In the years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Saxon company quickly grew to 12 employees and has been doing all classic carpentry work from roof trusses to complex renovation projects ever since. When the demand for wood packaging increased at the beginning of the new century, Müller started producing industrial packaging, thereby establishing a second mainstay for his company. It was not uncommon for Müller to produce two heavy-duty boxes a day with external dimensions of up to 7 x 3 x 3.5 meters.

Müller and his team often processed wood with big cross-sections which they could only drill and mill manually. “It was time-consuming and also quite exhausting,” recalls Müller.

Tailored to the customer

Having this problem in mind, Müller contacted several machine manufacturers and almost opted for a used machine. Eventually, however, he ended up at Hundegger. Actually, he was interested in the Speed-Cut cutting machine but, in the end, he ordered a Robot Drive joinery machine. “Hundegger’s team understood what we wanted right from the beginning and put together the right machine for us,” says Müller, satisfied.

With the Robot models, Hundegger developed extremely flexible universal machines designed for small to medium-sized timber construction companies. All of the processing is carried out with a six-axis robotic arm. A tool changer which can hold up to 18 tools is available for the extensive milling, drilling and sawing work. For example, Müller can now easily drill holes with a depth of up to 62.5 cm from all sides.

The master carpenter opted for a 65 cm-wide machine table. Hundegger also offers the machine with a working width of 1.3 meters.

Perfect result

The machine was delivered in 2017 – six months after the order had been placed. “We used the delivery time to expand our production hall and adapt it accordingly. It was a huge effort, but it paid off,” tells us Müller.

Originally, the Robot Drive was to be used in the industrial packaging division. However, Müller now mainly uses it for timber constructions. “Where we would use a joist hanger in the past, we now use a dovetail connection whenever it is structurally possible. This is not a problem for the machine and on the construction site, we just have to assemble the elements,” says Müller, giving an example of the numerous old wood connectors which he now uses more frequently again, and adds: “We would never be able do this manually in such a short time. With the Robot Drive, even part number 100 comes out perfect – and without any effort.”

Completely satisfied

In addition to the machine, Müller appreciates the service provided by Hundegger, although the term service hardly does justice. “It is the way in which the company treats you and deals with your questions. The Hundegger team was and is extremely friendly and open. It doesn’t matter when you call Hawangen – someone is always there to help you”, says Müller, summing up his experience with Hundegger.

With the purchase of the Hundegger machine, Müller opened a new chapter in his company’s history: “Thanks to the joinery machine, we combine centuries-old tradition in carpentry with modern technology. We are always fascinated by the speed and precision with which the wood is processed by the machine. This investment really pushed our company forward.”