For over 16 years, family-run timber merchant H Nordstrom & Son has been cutting over 150 panels a day on a Striebig vertical panel saw. The saw has become a fundamental part of the supplier’s business and a valued workhorse – but with almost 900,000 cuts to its name, growing demand for cut-to-size timber and the addition of a bespoke in-house joinery service, the independent merchant has worked with Leicester-based machinery supplier, TM Machinery, to find a suitable replacement.
“Since my grandfather founded the company in 1953, we have focused heavily on quality and service. It’s what we are known for, and it’s why we’re the largest independent timber merchant in Sunderland,” begins David Nordstrom, general manager at H Nordstrom & Son. “When our old Striebig vertical panel saw started to show signs of aging, we knew we had to find a suitable replacement in order to minimise any disruption to our day-to-day business and the quality of cuts we were producing.
“Our old saw had served us well, and it had showed us just how robust and reliable a Striebig saw could be – but new machinery always involves a big investment, so I had to do my homework before settling on a new saw. I looked at several vertical panel saw brands, but the quality of the Striebig’s build was a huge selling point for me.
“Could a different brand work tirelessly for over 16 years to the same high standard, and would the ongoing service and aftercare be as good as what I was already getting? I knew what to expect with both Striebig and TM Machinery, and I had confidence in both companies. It didn’t take me long to realise a new Striebig was the best option for Nordstrom.”
David’s requirements were clear – the saw needed to cut upwards of 100 MDF, plywood and chipboard sheets accurately every day, and have the capacity to work with jumbo sheets. Any additional features that could simplify the job and reduce errors were, in David’s eyes, not essential, but a welcome addition.
Within six weeks, a Striebig Standard S TRK1 vertical panel saw was installed, and David chose to integrate the saw’s Comfort Package into the build process. This included several accessories including a TRK dust extraction system, pneumatic clamping motor carriage, pneumatic brakes and laser indicator for horizontal cuts. The saw was also built with a digital measuring system for both X and Y axes, offering a display accuracy of 0.1mm on every cut.
“Stripped of the Comfort Package, the old and new saws are extremely similar, and, just like its predecessor, the new Standard S does the job very well – but the added digital read-out stops and laser indicator have not only simplified the cutting process, they’ve guaranteed an extremely high level of accuracy on every cut,” says David.
“The brakes and rollers have made handling even easier and the repeat cutting gauge has also proved very useful when we have had lots of strips to cut. We can simply set the machine to repeat the cuts as many times as we want, saving the operator a lot of time and increasing the number of cuts we can do in a day. It’s certainly been a welcome addition to our machinery line-up and allows the operators to precision-cut sheets and panels to size quickly and effectively. The machine does all the hard work and the results speak for themselves.
“Working with TM Machinery on this installation has been seamless, but if I’m honest, they’ve always been an easy company to work with. The team are always on hand to give us expert advice, and their knowledge of the Striebig range is second to none."
“What I can’t stress enough is the build quality of these machines. Striebig saws are built to stand the test of time, and our experience is proof of this. If this machine runs as long as our last saw, it will have been another worthy investment. Here’s to another 16 years of service!”
0116 271 7155
www.tmmachinery.co.uk
