FEATURES

 

“The ease of the kiln and direct fired burner, the cleanliness, I mean everything, it’s just been a dream." - Ron Cauley, Division Manager - Treating, TR Miller, Brewton, AL

Trams are loaded and the pusher carriage cycles them through the kiln. The process is controlled by Kiln Boss.

"The biggest problem is keeping it loaded," he laughed, "It eats like two teenage boys, hungry all the time.” - Ron Cauley

TR Miller also installed a new USNR direct fired burner, a unit known for producing cleaner and brighter wood.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TR Miller Thrilled With New TLC Dry Kiln

When TR Miller decided to invest in the new Triple Length Continuous (TLC) Dry Kiln at the Brewton, AL pole facility, Division Manager, Ron Cauley had no idea it could be so easy. “We have been just tickled to death with this operation,” he declared.

As the name implies, this innovative kiln is three times as long as a traditional kiln, but its most obvious feature is the open-ended design. The kiln has no doors. The patented process enables wood to cycle through at variable rates based on temperature and moisture content.

The innovative TLC Kiln has no doors.

Alan Robbins, Sales Manager of USNR’s Dry Kiln Division explained, “The TLC Dry Kiln is an important advance, especially in times of escalating energy costs, because it dramatically reduces the energy required to dry lumber and is capable of increasing your kiln production by up to 50%.”

“We’re producing about 9500 cubic feet a day,” said Ron. “It was taking us 14 hours longer in a conventional kiln to do the same amount of volume. With the TLC Kiln, we can do as much in 24 hours as we did with a conventional kiln in 38 hours.”

The TLC Dry Kiln is a double-track kiln where lumber stacks, or poles in the case of TR Miller, run in opposite directions so that heat coming off the dry wood preheats the green wood, and moisture coming off the green wood conditions the dry wood. This energy efficient process happens at both ends, and helps produce poles with less stress and a tighter moisture distribution.

“We’re seeing less checking in the poles and more consistent drying between our trams,” Ron confirmed. “We’re only seeing about a 2% difference from tram to tram on moisture content. The moisture content of the dry poles coming out is within 2% of each other.”

The TLC Kiln includes a staging and loading system to keep packages moving through the kiln continuously and automatically. “We’ve tried a couple different increments,” explained Ron. “We ran it one time at 2.5 ft. every 30 minutes. Since then we’ve gone to 5 ft. per hour, and right now we’re at 5.5 ft. per hour. So every 60 minutes the pusher pushes the trams through about 5.5 feet and it stops. An hour later it does it again.”

TR Miller uses USNR’s Kiln Boss Computerized Control System to control the heating process and provide the ultimate in kiln operation, temperature control, and tram movement. Ideal for both hardwood and softwood, Kiln Boss automatically runs drying schedules while compiling diagnostic information, giving you the ability to access kiln histories, pinpoint problems, and adjust the heat to where it’s needed.

“So you just set your parameters in the Kiln Boss control panel and it takes over. You can change it up if you want to, and say push it every 10 minutes, or every 30 minutes or every hour,” Ron commented.

“We’re hoping to push it another six inches per hour, probably after Christmas. We want to try to get around 6 ft an hour with it. We’re ramping it up slowly and taking it in short increments to see what it does. We may find that we can move faster than that, though I’m not sure we can manufacture enough poles to put in the kiln if we get any faster” he laughed, “but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

 

USNR Bandmill Wheels for all your replacement needs

USNR offers replacement bandmill wheels for almost any manufacturer including Letson& Burpee (L&B), Cancar, Kockums Cancar, Log Boss, and Forano among others. Wheels can be fabricated, cast or custom crafted from a variety of materials to ensure many years of trouble-free service.

Replacement bandmill wheels from USNR will work smoothly and compatibly on the same bandmill with cast or fabricated units. All wheels are dynamically balanced for efficient operation.

Benefits of Fabricated Bandwheels: • Quicker manufacturing time means faster delivery times • Potentially longer periods between wheel grinds • Stress relieved Benefits of Cast Bandwheels: • Cast iron tends to be more stable than steel • Easier to grind • Stress relieved

 

NEW PROJECTS

 

 

 

USNR says Thank You to our customers for the new orders. We appreciate your continued loyalty and pledge to continue earning it!