1

SAWMILL

O VERVIEW
This section will give description about PT. Haswin Hijau Perkasas
Sawmill. However, before going deeper into explanation, we should
understand what sawmill is and what happens in sawmill.
S A W M I L L : a place or building in which timber is sawed into planks,
boards, etc. by machinery

W HAT H APPENS IN S AWMILL ?

There are several activities happen in sawmill which can be seen in
figure below:

Figure 1.1 Process Happens in Sawmill

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Sawmill activity always starts from log yard area since it is where the logs
are placed before they are processed further in the machines.
There are 2 main activities happen in log yard, which are:
Receiving & Checking Log

Measuring & Trimming Log

Every log received should be:

Checked and measured
Recorded in the report
Placed based on carpet number
After being checked and measured, the log then must be trimmed using
chainsaw into several log pieces based on production instruction. After
that, the trimmed logs are recorded in the trimming report.
TO

E A SE TH E R EC OR DI N G OF L O G D AT A , TH E R E AR E SE V ER AL NU MB ER S
WR I TT E N O N TH E SU R F AC E OF TH E L O G :

F OR

E X AM PL E :

93

N UM B ER O F LO G

N UM B ER O F T R I M M ED L O G P I E C E S

440

L E NG T H O F T H E LO G

HL

S UP P LI ER CO D E

41

N UM B ER O F O R D ER FR O M S UP P LI ER

R ED P AP E R :

CO D E F R O M S UP P LI ER

39

C AR P ET N UM B ER

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After the logs are trimmed in the log yard, the log pieces then being
transported to sawmill using forklift and they are ready to be processed
further.

Breakdown machine is a machine used to cut the log into several pieces
according to the production instruction. The placement of log is
important in this machine because the cut will form the pattern of the
timber.
W H A T H AP P E NS

IN

B R EA K DO W N M AC H I N E ?

1. The timber is chosen to fulfill the demanded cutting size.

2. The remaining nails and strings are removed before the log is cut.
3. After that, the chosen timber is placed in the break down machine.
The logs are being placed in the break down
machine using a hoist.
H O I S T : a device used to lift or move material. It is
shaped like a hook.

4. The timber then hooked into the break down machine to hold it.
5. The timber cut into more pieces. The cutting method can be seen in
the next section.
6. After being cut into several parts, the logs are transported through
the conveyor to pony machines.
C U TT I N G M E TH OD
There are two kinds of method to cut logs and the method is based on
the size of the logs.

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1. The first one is big log cutting method which can be seen in figure 1.2
below:

Figure 1.2 Big Log Cutting/Breakdown Method

First of all, breakdown machine will cut about 1/3 part of the log. Then,
the operators will turn the log so that the flat side is down. After that, the
log will be cut into more parts again but the center part of the log should
be avoided.
2. The second method is small log cutting. The method is a bit different
from big log cutting:

Figure 1.3 Small Log Cutting/Breakdown Method

The small log is only cut into two parts. If there is no crack, the log is cut in
the middle. However, if there is crack, the cutting direction should follow
the crack on the surface of the log so the logs are not broken. See figure
1.4 below:

Figure 1.4 Log Cutting Direction if There is A Crack

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Pony machine is used to cut the log pieces from breakdown machine
into several thinner (desired thickness) pieces as demanded in the
instruction. PT. Haswin Hijau Perkasa has six pony machines: two big pony
machines and four smaller pony machines.

Figure 1.5 Cutting Process from Break Down to Pony Machine

W H A T H AP P E NS

IN

P O NY M AC H I NE ?

1. The timber from break down machine is measured and arranged.

2. The timber then inserted into big pony machine to produce smaller
pieces.
3. The cut timber then transported to smaller pony machine through
conveyor based on the size needs of each small pony machine.
4. The timber then cut again into smaller or thinner size in the small pony
machine.
5. After that, the timber is sent to band saw machine through the
conveyor.
*All the measurements of thickness of cut are based on the production
instruction.
*Each wood has different cut because each of them has different size
and density

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Band saw machine is a machine used to cut the timber into demanded
length and remove the undesired part of the timber. PT. Haswin Hijau
Perkasa has 2 band saw machines. After processed in band saw
machine, the sawn timbers are ready to be dried.

Figure 1.6 Cutting Process in Band Saw Machine

W H A T H AP P E NS

IN

B A N D S A W M AC H I N E ?

1. The timber from pony machine is measured one by one.

2. The operator then marks the timber to show where the timber should
be sawn.
3. The timber then inserted into band saw to produce smaller pieces
based on the cutting translation.
4. The output of sawn timber is recorded in the tally machine.
5. There are various sizes of sawn timber output. The same outputs are
grouped and placed together. So log A will go to group A and log B
will go to group B since log A and B have different size.
*All the measurements of length of cut are based on the production
instruction.
* Timber cutting should leave some additional length for shrink tolerance

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T IM B ER P A TT ER N
The pattern of timber is affected by the cutting. There are 3 kinds of
timbers pattern:

1. Plain/flat sawn
Plain sawn timber will leave a flowery pattern on the wood. Usually,
this kind of wood pattern is sellable in China because Chinese people
like the pattern.
2. Quarter sawn
Quarter sawn timber will leave a straight line pattern on the wood.
This wood is sellable in Japan since Japanese love perfection and
straight line.
3. Semi quarter/rift sawn
Semi quarter/rift sawn timber will leave a diagonal line pattern on the
wood

Training Report 2015 Vely Tannia Lianto