At the end of 2021, Leitz was awarded the Innovation Award of the Eastern Württemberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce, for the development of the flexTrim3 automatic profile changing system.
The Innovation Award judged the flexTrim3 automatic profile changing system based on the evaluation criterion of economic efficiency, originality, chance of realisation and use, effort for the idea, and sustainability. The Award for Patents and Talents is handed out every year to regional companies, persons and organisations for the development and implementation of outstanding innovative ideas.
The patented flexTrim3 system was developed specifically for quick profile changes within continuous production processes. Since its market launch about two years ago, furniture manufacturers have been producing their furniture components such as carcasses or fronts with this tool system.
FlexTrim3 shows its full effect in batch-size-one production and leads to increases in the efficiency of the production process by minimising downtimes for profile changes. Since manual tool changes take time, this way of changing profiles is uneconomical for batch-size-one production. Alternative systems for tool changing are usually expensive and also require an amount of installation space within the machine.
With flexTrim3, Leitz offers an economically acceptable solution for this type of challenge. The three-in-one concept allows automatic profile change between three different profiles. In terms of profile types, all customer-specific radius and chamfer profiles, up to a depth of 3mm, can be implemented on the profile rims. Even the combination of “with feed and against feed” is individually possible with the system.
According to Leitz, the profile changes are programme-controlled and take “30 seconds”. The result is a maximally efficient batch-size-one production with less manpower and short downtimes. The flexTrim3 system is also universally applicable in the materials to be machined. Softwood, hardwood, veneer or plastic laminates can be processed. On the machine side, the new flexTrim3 system can be used specifically on HOMAG FF32 units.
In terms of sustainability, particular emphasis was placed on using resources as efficiently as possible. By using diamond cutting edges, the tools have lifetimes of “one year and more” before they need to be replaced. In this way, the pressure switching mechanism can be reused at the end of the tool’s lifetime.
In January 2022, Leitz also announced that they are now a member of the Brands of the Century club, which includes brands such as Lufthansa, Märklin, HIPP and many others, selected by a jury of experts on behalf of the Zeit-Verlag publishing house from Hamburg, Germany. The internationally recognised quality mark is awarded to companies that have been active for decades as trendsetters and pioneers in their respective industries, and whose brand is known by the public for quality, innovation and style.
