Automate Your Lumber Sorting

Many attempts have been and are being made to improve lumber sorting. A fair number of mills, particularly in the South, have gone to edge sorters. Some have been more successful than others. Mills in the West are now looking to more automation, but are giving full consideration to the entire problem. There are three basic means of sorting: the edge sorter, the tray-type sorter, and the package sorter. Edge sorters are the oldest and most widely used. Although the edge sorter is perhaps the most reasonable in cost when used manually, it is one of the most costly when mechanization is applied. The tray-type sorter consists of series of trays placed one above the other. This type of sorter gives extreme versatility, the various trays can be used for different lengths, grades, or widths. These advantages are offset by high cost of installation, limited number of sorts, large area requirements, and the fact that mechanical means are the only way in which trays can be fed and dicharged. The package sorter differs from others in that the lumber is transferred edgewise and carried on an overhead lug chain. The lumber is fed into and transported by chain-carrier pockets until board is ejected into the proper bin. When bins are full, lumber is carried by transfer chain to a stacker. The package sorter provides extreme versatility, requires a minimum amount of space, and is unlimited in the number of sorts that can be made. Rough cost estimates include: edge sorter with manual bins, $1,300 to $1,700 per sort, mechanized with live bays, transfer belts and chains $6,000 to $7,000 per bay; tray sorter, complete with mechanized infeeds $13,000 per sort, package sorter with mechanized infeed, bin storage, and transfer chains $5,000 to $6,000 per sort. Manpower requirements for all three are about same, four men.

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