SOMAform is a medium-sized company with a production facility based in Marienfeld, Germany. The company manufactures mainly cabinet doors for the caravan industry, as well as the shopfitting, furniture and shipbuilding sectors, producing shaped and flat panels, going from the raw wooden boards to the decorated, ready-to-assemble parts.
Anticipating a demand for high-quality glossy and matt surfaces for the furniture components SOMAform makes, in particular the superior curved door fronts for mobile homes, General Manager Joachim Sonnberger made the decision to integrate a lamination line in 2015. Two factors were seen as major challenges: ability to guide the thin boards and to process wide panels, up to nearly one and a half metres.
Considering the customer’s policy to incorporate the latest and most efficient technologies as a way of staying ahead of competition, we provided a PowerWrap machine featuring a patented SlotCoater to ensure homogeneous glue application on the special foils. Working width reached 1400 mm and a special threading aid device made it possible for one operator alone to run the line.
In six years of operation, the PowerWrap Wide has proved to be an optimal solution, especially regarding the significant level of automation which greatly simplifies the operator’s job and increases production efficiency. The decision to select Duespohl as a partner has enabled SOMAform to stay in pole position on the market.
Automation and smart mechanisms for precision and ease-of-use
According to Joachim Sonnberger, the decision to implement solutions desiged and built by Duespohl have consolidated SOMAform’s excellent reputation for high-quality products featuring glossy and matt finishes.
Line operator, Bulen Aslan, points out the flexibility of the lamination line which handles different panel thicknesses, but also focuses on the automated systems which allow him to manage production alone. In particular, the threading aid device and the push-button controls that implement the saved settings from one job to the next. These include the board dimensions and the foil width, SlotCoater positioning for glue application, all of which saves time and effort.
Advanced, suitable and safe glue application techniques also represented a key reason for choosing our solution.
"The decision to invest in a Duespohl line was beyond doubt the right one"
Joachim Sonnberger
www.ceflafinishing.com