A NEW product released on the Australasian sawmilling market in 2007 continues to gain momentum as a top class performer.

 

Thode Knife & Saw Ltd's sales and marketing manager Tony Ratcliffe said positive feedback on Sandvik's Durashift, which was launched on the

Australasian market by Thode in early 2007 and marketed as the "next generation bandsaw steel" was delivering everthing promosed.

 

"The thinking behind the development of the product was to produce a steel strip for bandsaw blades that had both higher tensile strength, and was very forgiving.  It was also designed to run for a longer run time and able to be swaged" said Ratcliffe.

 

The higher tensile strength gives extra stability in the sawblade, which reduces vibration and crack formation.  Australasia was one of the first regions in the world to launch this product after Sandvik spent more than two years developing it.  It was tested in the field under various conditions before Sandvik was confident in its performace to release it on the open market.

 

"We have a number of high volume sawmills now using Durashift and they have doubled the run-timeof their bandsaws.  the success has been with both swage and stellite tipped saw blades" Ratcliffe said.

 

He also said the feedback had been very positive from sawshops.

 

"Swadoctors say that these saws need very little bench work as they retain their flatness and their tension.  This factor alone tells you that the sawblade has been performiong to a high standard during run time.  Along with the benefits of improving sawing accuracy you have a cost saving as a sawblade running twice as long is cutting twice the amount of pieces per the life of the saw" Ratcliffe said" and that helps the all-important bottom line of the business"

 

as appeared in the Australian Forest & Timber News - July 2008