The day begins early, after a good coffee and a journey through the French region of the Charante. We are here to visit Joubert Plywood, a company specialised in producing poplar and okoume plywood.
The group is a family owned concern, currently run by the third generation, with three production sites, one of which in Port-Gentil (Gabon), one in Saint-Jean-dâAngély and the third, which is the one we visited, in Eliots, north-east of Angoulême, where a Celaschi panel squaring line has been fully operational for a few years.
Before it reaches the Celaschi line, the wood is transformed in plywood.
âWe retrieve the unfinished sections of poplar, which we cut lengthwiseâ, explains Laurent Marty, the Industrial Manager. âWe then pass them through a short wood peeling lathe that can treat wood up to 2.7 metres in length [longer sections, up to 6 metres, are peeled at the Saint-Jean-d'Angély site, editorâs note]. They are then dried with a new system purchased in 2016, which is 30 metres long and 6.20 metres wideâ. After the peeling, the poplar sheets are thoroughly checked. If any break, the strips are sent to the joining laboratory: âwhere they are processed to create intact sheetsâ, continues Laurent Marty. âIn particular they are straightened and re-assembled with the application of a strip of glueâ.
Once the dimensions have been programmed, the panels are cut along the longer side, whilst the scrap is unloaded laterally and milled. The panels are then transferred with feed pistons to ensure the squaring.
âThis custom transfer system has been developed thanks to a close collaboration between SCM and our design officeâ, explains Laurent Marty. âSince the machine has been installed we are very happy with the machining resultsâ.
The second panel squaring line machines the short side and the scrap is collected and recycled as fuel for the boiler. The panels are then fully finished and ready to be shipped in France and worldwide. Joubert Plywood exports 70% of its production, in particular to the Netherlands, which is the groupâs main market.
Text by the magazine Bois Mag
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