The intelligent suction concept guarantees optimum cleaning of workpieces.

Complex milling operations are also possible with the BIMA Gx50 from IMA Schelling.

Room doors with subtle, decorative elements are an adornment for every dwelling. Photo: Blanke Türen

Blanke uses the BIMA Gx50 moving gantry machine from IMA Schelling for machining the surfaces of doors.

Doors with decorative grooves, doors with vision panels, frame design doors, style doors and many others: Blanke Türenwerke GmbH is a specialist company for internal doors and door frames that has a long-standing tradition. Blanke is one of the best-performing door manufacturers in Germany, with more than 100 years of market experience. The company is based in Bad Iburg in south-west Lower Saxony and makes internal doors with decorative, CPL (continuous pressure laminate) and white painted surfaces.

Blanke has relied on a machining centre from IMA Schelling for door frame production for a long time: the BIMA Cx40 CNC machine is an all-rounder that can even be used to machine aluminium and plastic components. Its C frame construction allows the machine to process excess lengths, giving a great deal of freedom in how it is assigned.

Blanke was now looking for a new solution for door production. "Our door production has moved to a new production hall. On this occasion, we also took our old machining centres out of service, thus creating space for the latest machines," explains Karsten Schlegel, head of the work preparation department at Blanke.

For complex surface machining

The first question was: Which machine is particularly suitable for machining surfaces? Blanke received extensive advice from IMA Schelling Group experts. The requirements were very specific. "We had to implement vision panels, grooves and V-joints," says Karsten Schlegel, "as well as milling recesses for ventilation grilles, interior door closers and lock boxes."

"Our recommendation was the BIMA Gx50," explains Dennis Reddig, Product Manager at IMA Schelling. As a pass-through CNC machine, the BIMA Gx50 takes over exactly those tasks that are not possible on a classic pass-through machine: milling operations for lock boxes, drilling operations for edge banding, milling operations for interior door closers, milling and drilling operations for handles and spyholes or multiple locking mechanisms, as well as creating vision panels or decorative surface features such as decorative grooves.

Individual tool change concept

The BIMA Gx50 is a moving gantry machine that is modular in structure and also suitable for milling, gluing and laser edge banding. For the different types of machining demanded by Blanke Türen, the 5-axis head developed by IMA Schelling is used in combination with an individually adjustable tool change concept. This provides a wide range of options – from classic tool change carousels for each spindle, to fixed pick-up changers, to chain-type tool changers which can access several spindles, and combinations of several of these systems. The solid gantry design of the CNC machine and its highly rigid machine bed ensure extremely high process reliability.

The machine has been fitted with two machining spindles, one 4-axis and one 5-axis spindle, so that it can handle the set tasks in the best way, with optimised setup times. Both spindles can each carry out a tool change in parallel, that is, while the other spindle is processing.

"The BIMA Gx50 represents the optimum combination of high-quality mechanical engineering and intelligent process control," stresses Reddig. It can be connected to fully automatic feeding and stacking systems, as well as integrated into existing plants and existing software and data landscapes.

Systems for the entire process chain

The IMA Schelling Group specialises in the development and production of modularised special systems and processing solutions for the wood, metal and plastics industries. The company is more than 100 years old and its product range includes systems for the entire process chain from storage, cutting to size, handling and transporting, edge banding and drilling, to sorting and stacking panel-type materials made from wood, metal or plastics, as well as a comprehensive range of services and digitalisation products. IMA Schelling has years of expertise and skills that are much in demand, especially in the furniture industry.

For door production, IMA Schelling also offers its customers numerous competent solutions and customised machines that can be configured individually. The formats of the doors, which can be up to 90 mm thick and 3200 mm long, pose special challenges to production machines. This is why IMA Schelling offers units with a motor rating of up to 30 kW and plants with machine lengths of up to 60 metres for this sector.

Intelligent suction system

This competence, specifically in relation to doors, was also crucial for Blanke. "Right from the start, we were convinced by IMA Schelling's adherence to deadlines and ability to develop solutions," stresses Karsten Schlegel. And when it came to plant planning and machine commissioning, the solution provider also supported the customer as much as possible. "It was an extremely constructive collaboration and our specific requests were all taken into account," says Schlegel.Blanke has been using the BIMA Gx50 moving gantry machine since May 2020. "To start with, there were some minor teething problems, which were resolved very quickly, thanks to IMA Schelling's extremely competent service technicians, who were always promptly on site," recounts Karsten Schlegel.

According to Schlegel, they were delighted by the machine because firstly, the moving gantry is mounted on both sides, with the gantry design allowing the two CNC-controlled feed motors to move the gantry with absolute precision and synchronised to the angle. Secondly, there is the intelligent suction concept, which ensures the best-possible cleaning of workpieces with minimal installation work. The machine is currently processing about 20 doors an hour, and it is not yet running at full capacity.