FIELD TRIP TO SWARTLAND

In February my boss Carin Smuts decided it would be a good idea for us to go to the Swartland factory to see how doors are made. And for us to physically see and understand the differences between well engineerd doors and badly enginered doors.

  

Massive storage space for there timber. all in random sizes and not pre-treated.

Timber planks in raw form.

At this point, the planks are scanned by machine and are then cut/ sorted into various lengths.

Timber containing nodes such as these, are cut up and used as fuel for the burners. Nothing is wasted  in this factory line.

                                     

Laminated timber before treatment.

Members being glued to form what we know as laminated wood.

Some of the planks once cut to size, are then cut into slices. Forming what we call a veneer.  At this stage the veneer sheets are placed into a press to be flattened and dried for storage.

Veneer is used to stick over doors, giving it a flush finish.

Planks being glued- Laminated wood.

This is a joinery method know as Finger Jointing, as apposed to simple Butt jointing.

Door frame butt jointed in three segments- not the best but its still strong.

Door panels being glued and stapled. 

Joinery detail.

Doors and window frames handing and waiting to follow line to be sprayed or treated.

Roller used in the sliding doors.

Section view showing the weights used in sliding sash windows. 

Pulleys that allow easy movement of the weights.

Worker hand tieing the weights.

Section profile showing rebate and rubber strip- for waterproofing. Groove in the back, is where the vertical damp proof mebrane is tucked into.

Louvered timber door. These are sanded by hand before final coat is applied.

Worker hand sanding the louvered door.

Gun joint.

Some of the heavy machinery used at Swartland.

And that was the Swartland field trip.....