New Plans to Connect With Customers

With IWF cancelled for 2020 - Thermwood has put new plans into place to connect with our customers who won't get to see us live in Atlanta.

We are currently working to produce a series of Info Spot videos featuring our Cut Ready Cut Center, 3 Axis and 5 Axis CNC routers and LSAM (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Systems) that highlight the capabilities of each, in addition to giving tips and tricks to help with tooling and fixturing.

The Thermwood team is always available to consult in the form of web demos/videos and time studies.  We are also ready to welcome customers to our Dale, Indiana, headquarters for in-person demonstrations, or use the web to stream live demonstrations if preferred.

Thermwood is Open For Business

Thermwood is open for business, and ready to demo your projects on our machines to prove our CNC equipment can machine customer applications more efficiently and with a significant cost savings.

See Our Machines in Action Without a Trade Show

At IWF, we had planned to demonstrate three of our machines.  First, our Cut Ready Cut Center, which allows users to make virtually anything a cabinet shop would want to make, with no programming required.

We were also planning to show the heavy-duty Model 45 (composites, plastics, nested base, aluminum, non-ferrous metal and wood) and the high-performance Model 43.

The Cut Center would really have been the star of our show. Once people see it in action, and understand how easy it is to operate, they love it.   The machine control actually walks the operator through the entire process, using a touch-screen interface to easily select and configure what they want to make.   

It also keeps track of all maintenance items (lubrication, tooling, filters, etc.), and handles selecting the correct tool and nesting the sheets for maximum efficiency. It also automatically prints labels for each part, as well as a diagram to apply them.

Info Spot Videos Coming Soon - Stay Tuned!

With this in mind, our first round of videos, or Info Spots will feature the Cut Center, and walk viewers through everything from understanding the differences between the Cut Center and a regular CNC router to operating the machine and selecting and cutting out cabinets.

Stay tuned in the next couple of weeks for the first in this new series of videos from Thermwood!

Thermwood has designed, fabricated and put into operation the largest machine it has ever built. The metalworking machine, dubbed internally as the M400, weighs 51 Tons (103,000 pounds) and is mounted on a special isolated, double steel reinforced concrete pad.  It has a 15 foot wide, 35 foot long floor level steel table that by itself weighs 21,000 pounds.

The massive steel gantry, mounted on parallel walls, moves on four steel rails. It also has a unique feature in that it can be moved up and down by four feet. The Z Axis, mounted on the gantry, has an additional 4 feet of servo travel so that, it is possible to machine parts up to eight foot tall. Moving the entire gantry instead of using an eight foot Z axis results in reduced overhang and significantly higher rigidity and higher quality machined surfaces.

The five axis liquid cooled metalworking head can generate up to 40 HP at speeds up to 20,000 RPM. The Live Load, which is the parts of the machine that move under servo control, weighs 18 Tons, (36,000 pounds). 

The machine is controlled by Thermwood’s Quad Core SuperControl, the same Thermwood designed and built CNC control used on its CNC routers and LSAM systems. This machine is, by far, the largest and heaviest machine built by Thermwood to date and is intended for its own internal production use.

Thermwood has no plans to offer this type of machine for sale, but instead has found that its own increasing demand for large part machining, especially to support growing demand for its LSAM, large scale additive manufacturing machines, required this extraordinary effort. Although the design concept has been in the works for several years, it required about eight months to complete the project and place the machine into production.

About Thermwood Corporation

Thermwood is a US based, multinational, diversified CNC machinery manufacturer that markets its products and services through offices in 11 countries. Thermwood is the oldest manufacturer of highly flexible 3 & 5 axis high-speed machining centers known as CNC routers.

Thermwood has also become the technology and market leader in large scale additive manufacturing systems for thermoplastic composite molds, tooling, patterns and parts with its line of LSAM (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing) machines that both 3D print and trim on the same machine. These are some of the largest and most capable additive manufacturing systems ever produced and are marketed to major companies in the aerospace, marine, automotive and foundry industries as well as military, government and defense contractors.

Thermwood is proud to announce that we will be awarding six scholarships to dependents of associates for the Class of 2020. Each recipient will receive a $2,000 renewable scholarship. 

Since the introduction of these renewable scholarships, Thermwood has awarded over $200,000 to students wishing to further their education. 

Cody Frakes is the son of Dawn Tullis of Santa Claus, IN and Jonathan Frakes.  He is a graduate of Heritage Hills High School. 

He has been a member of Beta Club, Rock/Paper/Scissors Club, Yearbook Staff and Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA).  Cody was a member of the 2019 State Finalist Team and also received Academic All-State for Football. 

He plans to study at Indiana University in the fall.

Hannah Schnuck is the daughter of Greg and Janie Schnuck of Santa Claus, IN.  She is a graduate of Heritage Hills High School. 

She has been involved in Beta Club, Student Council and Pep Club.  Hannah participated in Feed My Starving Children and coached 7^th grade volleyball.  She was part of the Patriot Volleyball team and received Volleyball All-Conference PAC 2018/2019 and Volleyball All-State 1^st Team 2019. 

Hannah plans to attend Indiana University to study Business Management. 

Jordan Yates is the daughter of Seth and Angie Yates of Lynnville, IN.  She is a graduate of Tecumseh High School. 

She has been involved in Drama Club, Art Club, Tribe and President of National Honor Society.  Jordan was a member of the Varsity Swim and Golf team.  She also was a member of the THS Dinner Theatre and the THS production of “The Little Mermaid”.  She is the recipient of the Rising Star of Indiana award, Top Ten and ETFCU $5,000 Ted Hitch Scholarship for the 2020-2021 school year. 

Jordan plans to attend University of Louisville for Biochemistry.

Haley McDaniel is the daughter of Jason and Tammy McDaniel of Lynnville, IN.  She is a graduate of Tecumseh High School. 

She has been involved in the Drama Department, Art Club, Academic Team, Marching Band, Drum Major, Pep Band and Concert Band. 

Haley plans to continue her education at Ivy Tech Community College.

Addison Fella is the daughter of Audrie and Michael Leisman of Tell City, IN.  She is a graduate of Tell City High School. 

She was president of the Pep Club, a member of the Spanish and Advocate Club.  Addison participated on the high school Volleyball and Basketball teams.  She was also involved on traveling Volleyball and Softball teams.  She also received All Conference PAC for Volleyball.  

Addison will continue her education and Volleyball career at IU South Bend this fall, and pursue a degree in Exercise Science.

Ian Treat is the son of Ryan and Alison Treat of Ferdinand, IN.  He is a graduate of Forest Park High School. 

Ryan was a member of SADD, Builders Club and Baseball Club K-8.  He also participated in High School Baseball and Football. 

Ian plans to attend Ivy Tech Community College to join the Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Program.  

Thermwood would like to congratulate all seniors of the Class of 2020 and wish them the very best in their future studies and endeavors! 

This update contains the following:

• New Adjust Settings Layout
• Additional Labeling Options
• Door & Drawer Front Matching fix
• Shaker Door Fixes

New Adjust Settings Layout

In this update, we have reorganized the Adjust Settings layout.  For example, all mobile accounts have been grouped into one area and a new Hardware Options section has been added.  We have also grouped Cutting and Air Assist options under the Operations button, while also adding a new user request option for Labeling.

Labeling Options

Now (within the Operations area), you will see some new labeling options that were requested by several users.  These allow you to print labels for All Parts, Off-Fall Only or choose to not print any labels at all.

Improvements/Fixes

We have also addressed a few issues:

• An issue finding a Drawer Front match for MDF Slab Doors was discovered and fixed.
• We have modified the cutting operation for a handful of Shaker Doors where a small amount of material was left in the corners.

What Some of Our Cut Center Owners Are Saying...

Thermwood machine owner Rind Routing, (www.rindrouting.co.za) located in South Africa, was initially devastated to be forced to close down their business due to COVID-19.  According to owner, Rayno von Schlicht, “Although the initial feeling was that this wouldn’t last very long, as a business owner, I was terribly concerned of the knock-on effect that a three week down-time would have on my business”

After the first week of the shut-down passed, Mr. von Schlicht noticed the 3D-printing “maker-community” designing face shield brackets and distributing them to first responders.  He was intrigued by the idea and thought that Rind Routing could do something similar on a larger scale.

They located a dental distributor who loved their design, and after some small tweaks, developed a PPE product to manufacture on their three Thermwood CNC routers (Model 40, Model 43 and MTR 21) that was not just effective and comfortable for the end-user, but also allowed Rind Routing to return to work as an essential service!

PPE face shield created by Rind Routing on their Thermwood CNC routers

According to von Schlicht “Since first starting this new venture, we have been able to churn out 5,000 face shields on our Thermwood Routers within three weeks and still have orders pouring in for more!  This is proof to me that with a little vision & creativity, the willingness to try something new, and of course the correct tools to do so, you can achieve great things!”

PPE face shield created by Rind Routing on their Thermwood CNC routers

Thermwood MTR 21 at Rind Routing

Thermwood is a US based company with dealers and distributors worldwide.  In addition to machine manufacturing and software development, Thermwood has a technical service organization that provides support, machine installation, training, retrofits, custom programming and production assistance.  Please visit www.thermwood.com, call 1-800-533-6901 or email sales@thermwood.com for more information.

In this update, we’ve created a new category of MDF Doors dedicated entirely to the Shaker style, one of the most popular type of door styles within the industry.   These are available with and without a miter cut on the inner profile.   Miter cuts can be machined as a multi-pass or single pass door.

Over 600 New Door and Drawer Front Definitions

Shaker Doors are also available with different pocket depths (0.1875” to 0.4”) and different width for the Styles and Rails (2” to 3” in increments of 0.25”) giving you a wide range of options to choose from.  The addition of Shaker Doors has added approximately 600 new door and drawer front definitions!

What Some of Our Cut Center Owners Are Saying...

Thermwood machine owner, Bednark Studio (located in Brooklyn, New York), has engineered a disposable PETG Face Shield for health care professionals.  They are sharing CNC router files and production information to any other manufacturers across the country who would like to supply these to hospitals, etc. that are in need.

Thermwood is here to assist anyone who would like to produce these face shields on their equipment (including non-Thermwood CNC routers).  If you need help, or would like to do something similar, please contact us at 1-800-533-6901 or email at program@thermwood.com.

Download Face Shield Production Files

Please click here to download a .zip file with instructions, machine code files, tooling and material information.

Included in this download:

• Bednark Studio Face Shield Production Document
• MasksV3 - 27 per sheet nest.dxf
• MasksV3 - 27 per sheet nest TABBED.MCX-7
• MasksV3 - 27 per sheet nest TABBED.NC (tailored for Cut Centers)
• MasksV3 - 32 per sheet nest.dxf

Material Required (supplies may be scarce):

• PETG / Polycarbonate with 0.02” or 0.03” thickness in 4’x8’ sheets
• 1” Plank Foam or Stacked Adhesive Weather-stripping
• ¾” Flat Elastic Chord

Recommended Tooling:

• Amana Tool 46225-K
• 1/8” down spiral plastic tooling

Notes (from Bednark Studio):

1. This thinner material is very difficult to hold down with vacuum.  We used tabbing to prevent the parts from moving.  Once most of the machining was done, the machine removed the tabs.  Please refer to ‘MasksV3 - 27 per sheet nest TABBED.MCX-7’ to see how we accomplished this. 
2. The matching NC file is the program Bednark Studio is running on their Cut Center.

More Information

Bednark Face Shield Story from the New York Times

During these unprecedented times, we wanted to reach out and thank all of our customers, and to let you know that Thermwood has been classified as an essential business for our involvement in critical manufacturing, logistics and the defense industrial base.  

As such, we are operating as normally as possible to support our customers.  We are available to support and assist via phone, email and virtual service.

Free Live Demonstrations Available

For new machine purchases, our CNC Router and Additive Manufacturing experts can still evaluate your production needs and determine how you can best reduce costs and increase efficiency.  We offer free live demonstrations of our equipment and software to qualified companies.  These demonstrations can be done via Webex, Skype, as a time study, via dedicated hosted video and/or by completing your project and shipping it back to you for verification.

If you have any questions on how Thermwood can help improve your business, or if you need support, please give us a call at 1-800-533-6901 for sales (1-800-221-3865 for service) or click on the Request More Information link below. 

We are all in this together and Thermwood is committed to doing our best to rise to this new challenge and support all of our customers both existing and new.

About Thermwood Corporation

Thermwood is a US based, multinational, diversified CNC machinery manufacturer that markets its products and services through offices in 11 countries. Thermwood is the oldest manufacturer of highly flexible 3 & 5 axis high-speed machining centers known as CNC routers.

Thermwood has also become the technology and market leader in large scale additive manufacturing systems for thermoplastic composite molds, tooling, patterns and parts with its line of LSAM (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing) machines that both 3D print and trim on the same machine. These are some of the largest and most capable additive manufacturing systems ever produced and are marketed to major companies in the aerospace, marine, automotive and foundry industries as well as military, government and defense contractors.

Thermwood recently completed a 3D printed multi-piece foundry pattern.  The pattern was printed on an LSAM 1020, and machined on a Thermwood 5 Axis Model 90 (because of other projects that were pending on the LSAM).

The pattern was printed out of ABS (20% carbon fiber fill).  Print time for the project was 6 hours and 40 minutes, and the trim time was a little over 47 hours with multiple fixture setups.

Click below to watch a video of the process:

The final pattern after trimming

The completed and assembled pattern.

About Thermwood Corporation

Thermwood is a US based, multinational, diversified CNC machinery manufacturer that markets its products and services through offices in 11 countries. Thermwood is the oldest manufacturer of highly flexible 3 & 5 axis high-speed machining centers known as CNC routers.

Thermwood has also become the technology and market leader in large scale additive manufacturing systems for thermoplastic composite molds, tooling, patterns and parts with its line of LSAM (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing) machines that both 3D print and trim on the same machine. These are some of the largest and most capable additive manufacturing systems ever produced and are marketed to major companies in the aerospace, marine, automotive and foundry industries as well as military, government and defense contractors.