Gilkey Lumber Enters Next Phase of Optimization

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That success led the brothers to begin planning for additional optimization controls of the mill's systems. They still wanted to increase yield, but another factor in their decision was to improve quality control-Gilkey Lumber customers in the U.S. and abroad require high quality grade lumber. "Our customers are driven by the same need to maximize yield from the raw materials they are purchasing as we are," noted Mike. "In the export markets especially, because of the cost of shipping, companies have tight standards for grade. We began to look at ways to meet those standards and still maintain our own profitability. We looked at the possibilities optimization offered, especially at the edger, and decided to go ahead with the purchase of a new edger-optimizer package."

Although they were pleased with the first project they entered into with Inovec, they did not automatically turn again to the Oregon-based company. They devoted a lot of time and resources to researching options-more than two years. "We investigated and examined some other equipment," said Mike, "but when it came down to the final decision, we thought it made sense to stay with a company that has already shown us it has a very good product and is committed to providing excellent service." Their five-year plan included optimization controls for the edger and, in the future, for trimming.

Inovec is a leading manufacturer of scanning, optimization and control systems for the forest products industry. More than 600 of its systems have been installed since 1979. Combined with an experienced machinery operator, its high-tech systems can increase yield up to 15% from each log, according to Inovec. The company designs, manufactures, programs and tests its systems at its headquarters in Eugene, Oregon and has sales and service personnel based in Eugene and also Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Gilkey Lumber recently installed the Inovec WaneMaster(tm) edger optimizer, which the supply says can increase yield by 7% to 18%. At the time Mike talked with TimberLine, the new system had only been operational a brief time. However, it was already obvious that the new optimization controls were performing to expectation.

"We expect a lot of our equipment," said Mike. "If we weren't sawing for the export market, we would probably leave a little more wane on our board than we do, but the export market is demanding. We can't go quite back to the wane the grading standards allow, so we try to seek that medium between an absolutely square edge and the amount of wane the NHLA grading system allows. As you get closer and closer to exactly where you need to be it becomes amore difficult for a grader to do all of the work. Inovec's WaneMaster(tm) for hardwood edgers lets the operator have input, but the machine does calculations an operator just can't consistently do well and quickly."

The company has analyzed the initial results being achieved with the new Inovec optimizer-edger system and has been pleased with the numbers. "We had on of our best graders analyze some boards, then calculated the value we would get from them," Mike explained. "Then we had the optimizer run solutions on the same boards. What we see is that on some boards there is no difference between what the grader sees and what the optimizer decides is the best solution. But, quite often, because the equipment can do the complex calculations almost instantly, we see a solution that gives us more value." The optimizer's solution for one sample board increased the value by 78 cents, while on another board the difference was in the range of 20 cents. "That might not seem like much," Mike noted, "but when you multiply that out over the number of boards we run in a year, the increased value is substantial."

"The machine can do things you just can't do quickly and accurately enough by hand." Mike continued. "On one board we recently ran, the grader's solution would have been for a wide Number 2 common board. The optimizer's solution gave us two boards, a narrow common off the top and a narrow Number 2 common off the bottom. The upgrade on the top board means we make a few cents more on the board, and that's what optimization is all about. It's not that you're ever going to see big increases. It's an accumulation of a lot of small increases that pays for the machine." Jeff Franklin, Vice President of Inovec, agreed with Mike's assessment: the large volume of incremental increases in yield adds up to big results for a mill.

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