Granberg International, located in Pittsburg, CA is a second generation, family owned company and a world leader in the design and manufacture of chainsaw accessories. They say that “Necessity is the mother of all invention.” Well Erik Granberg, President and CEO tells the story of how his father started the company in the 1950s after experiencing the difficulty of clearing timber on a ranch the family had just purchased in British Columbia.
That necessity led to the invention of the first portable chainsaw blade sharpener that is sold today worldwide! Hear Erik tell the story here! We recently sat down with Erik Granberg to learn more about the company and its use of AlibreCAM software from MecSoft Corporation.
The Alaskan® Sawmill
Following his early successes, Erik’s father then purchased the patent rights of what is known today as the Alaskan® Sawmill, a lightweight and innovative attachment that allows one person to perform accurate millwork onsite with only a chainsaw! Erik is continuing the Granberg family tradition of craftsmanship and innovation from their 12,000 sq/ft facility.
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| The Granberg Alaskan® Sawmill is a one person sawmill that allows you to mill rough cut lumber to exact widths from end to end using a chainsaw attachment. | |
Alaskan® Sawmill Video / More Videos
The AlibreCAM Difference!
Six years ago Erik began implementing CNC technology into their manufacturing process and currently has seven (7) Haas CNC machining centers running production full time. Erik has also implemented the Jergan Quick Exchange Die system on each of his Haas machines. This system allows his team to rapidly change setups, minimizing change-over time while increasing production volume and accuracy. Erik designs the many fixture plate configurations in-house using Alibre Design and uses the AlibreCAM plugin to generate the toolpaths and g-code programs needed to manufacture them. Let’s have a look.
Here we see Alibre Design with the AlibreCAM plugin loaded. The AlibreCAM Machining Browser is displayed on the left with the current Machining Job tree above and the current cutting tools listed below. One of Erik’s custom designed fixture plates for their Quick Exchange Die system is shown with toolpaths displayed for the four ball lock guide pin & bushing hole locations. (Top Right) The AlibreCAM toolpath simulation of the Hole Profiling finishing operation on the bushing hole diameter. (Bottom Right) The actual fixture plate mounted on the Quick Exchange Die in the Haas CNC machining center.
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 “Since implementing AlibreCAM and CNC six years ago we have increase our production volume here at Granberg International by 300%! AlibreCAM’s ability to quickly generate CNC programs from multiple Alibre Design configurations and iterations is one of the key factors of our recent success.”
Erik Granberg, President/CEO, Granberg International |
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| Here we see the fixture plate being setup on the Quick Exchange Die in the Haas CNC machining center. | |
More about Granberg International
A special thanks to Erik Granberg and Granberg International for allowing us to share their AlibreCAM success story! You can read the complete case study here. For more information about Granberg International and their available product line we invite you to visit them on the web at https://granberg.com/, on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.