Clearview National November 2018 - Issue 204 | Page 28

PROUD SPONSOR OF DOORS & WINDOWS
DOORS&WINDOWS
‘Mechanical’ Joint Aesthetics:
» » MECHANICALLY-JOINTED TOP AND
bottom rails on traditional window styles are
continuing to grow in popularity and this
demand raises key issues with production, as
mechanical jointing is labour intensive and
can create production bottlenecks.
Coventry-based window fabrication tooling
specialist Jade Engineering has listened to
comments from its fabricator customers and
turned its expertise to providing a fast and
effective production solution. The result is the
facility to produce PVC-U window frames
with the external appearance of mechanical-
style timber joints but with the strength and
integrity of a welded finish, particularly with
highly popular flush-sash and box-sash styles.
Jade’s solution allows window fabricators
the opportunity to produce welded external
‘mechanical’ joints, without paying licence
fees for such a process. Throughput is up to
12 frames per hour, with the further bonus
that all machines may be quickly re-set for
traditional applications, says Jade. Packages are
available from under £40,000.
By using a combination of four milling
machines – two for sash and two for frame
joints – and a two head welder, all engineered
by Jade Group companies, together with
tooling specially developed for the process,
fabricators may now produce frames with the
appearance of external mechanical timber
joints without time consuming fixing and
gluing operations, or the expense of fixing and
jointing consumables.
Now the UK’s largest supplier of fabrication
tooling and small specialist machinery to the
window and door industry, Jade Engineering
says the solution has been thoroughly tested
by fabricators in real-world conditions:
“The project has been over 12 months in
Style with the speed, efficiency and strength of welds
development before release to customers
and we have extensively production-tested
two installations, at Shepley Windows in
Manchester and FrameFast in Derby. Both
companies have reported excellent throughput
and quality,” said Adam Jones, who heads up
engineering research and development for
Jade.
Fellow Jade director Sean Mackey says
the launch of the Jade MechWeld Joint
solution heralds an important new phase
in the development of the company: “Jade
has long enjoyed the status of being the
UK’s leading producer of tooling for frame
fabrication, with the vast majority of British
fabricators using our products. Now we have
combined our knowledge and experience of
developing machinery to provide fabricators
with practical, affordable answers to specialist
production requirements. All of this is driven
by conversations with our customers.”
Jade Engineering Ltd is the leading supplier of fabrication tooling to
the PVC-U and aluminium window industry, supplying products to
fabricators in conjunction with every PVC-U window and door systems
supplier in the UK and the majority of aluminium systems companies.
The company is the combination of one-time rival tooling manufacturer
J Tools Ltd – owned by Sean Mackey and Adam Jones since 2008 - and
Jade Engineering which was established in the late 1970s. In 2017 Sean
and Adam purchased 50% of the share capital of Kombimatec Machinery
Ltd in addition to the outright acquisition of Saltech Machinery and
Edgwick Sheet Metal, both of which provide engineering production
solutions to Jade.
28 » N OV 2018 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M
MECHWELD END PREP
MILLING MACHINE
Four milling machines required for each
of the different end preparations:
•
•
•
•
Vertical prep of outer frame
Horizontal prep of outer frame
Vertical prep of sash
Horizontal prep of sash
Milling machine dimensions:
Width 1325mm
Depth 620mm
Height 1235mm
Weight 50kg
Technical Data
Electrical connection:
415V 3 Phase 50 Hz 16A no neutral
Compressed air connection:
1/4 BSP fitting
Compressed air supply:
5 bar to 8 bar (75 psi to 115 psi)
The Group now enjoys a combined turnover approaching £5 million,
with 30,000 feet 2 of manufacturing facilities over four sites, employing
50 people. These resources enable Jade to design, manufacture and
assemble all engineered components and sheet metal fabrication in
house.
From 2018 Jade Engineering Ltd moved from being a specialist tooling
supplier to offering full solutions for specific production requirements
within window and door manufacturing. The company is engineering-
led with an in-house team of 5 time-served designers with extensive
knowledge of the window industry, and close links with the technical
departments of all major profile suppliers and leading fabricators.