50 Years of RAUKANTEX, 30 Edgeband Symposiums

Sine 1993, REHAU and its partners have been organising an annual Edgeband Symposium – the processor conference on the latest edgeband developments. For the 30th anniversary event, the companies had to turn to the internet once again. As in the previous year, it was extremely popular: around 270 experts attended the online event. The focus was on digitalisation and sustainability.

It’s almost becoming routine: for the second time in a row, REHAU moved its Edgeband Symposium online. The venue usually alternates between HOMAG AG in Schopfloch and IMA Schelling in Lübbecke. For the thirtieth time, attendees included representatives from the furniture industry, trade press and everyone involved in furniture edging. “Then, as now, the aim was to bring everyone involved to the table,” says Matthias Hacker, Project Manager and Senior Engineer for the Edgeband Division at REHAU. “Close cooperation and proximity to those who work with the product allows us to constantly improve RAUKANTEX.” Hacker delivered a 90-minute presentation with Jens-Uwe Affeldt, Head of Product Engineering in the Edgeband Division, and Vivien Olschewski, Edgeband Product Manager at REHAU. The supporting speakers were Daniel Elfe-Degel, Head of Product Management and Project Manager of Sustainable Edgebands, and Dr Uwe Krämer, Head of Engineering Edgebands. To ensure that the aspect of touch was not forgotten, registered visitors were sent a sample box containing innovative product examples in advance. 

The webinar was divided into four thematic blocks:

#edgeisdigital: The edgeband becomes digital
The first thematic block addressed a central issue in the edgeband world: digitalisation. REHAU has been pushing ahead with digital edgeband management via #edgeisdigital. Thanks to the central collection of data, the system simplifies warehousing and processing enormously. REHAU offers three versions and reported that #edgeisdigital has been successfully used in series production for various customers since early 2020. As of 2021 the system, which is available in three versions, can also be used in Asia. Data transfer via tapio is a new option whereby digitalisation experts transfer data between REHAU and the customer who then accesses the data using the app or by scanning the label on the edgeband roll. Tool manufacturers such as LEUCO also transmit master, catalogue and instance data. This allows all the edgeband, machine and tool data to be managed in a single system. 

The REHAU myEdge app has also been improved: scanning the data matrix code now displays even more information about the product in question. In addition, all REHAU news and highlights can now be accessed at any time on a smartphone or tablet. 

Tools & processes for the perfect furniture component

The symposium then turned to the issue of tools and processes. As usual, our partner companies took to the stage. Firstly, Riepe presented its tool for the perfect processing of structured surfaces. Standard tools are often unable to accurately follow the surface contour of this increasingly popular surface variant. This results in untidy finishes which Riepe aims to combat with its structure brush and horizontal brush units.

Leuco on the other hand uses a multi-tooth profile cutter and a special scraper to rework edges for glass laminate surfaces, such as RAUVISIO crystal for example, in order to achieve a 45° bevel in acrylic edgebands and top layers. HOMAG has already applied for a patent. HOMAG presented its powerEdge Pro Duo whose combi-operation makes it possible to process zero-joint and hot-melt adhesives on a component without re-tooling. After REHAU had re-emphasised the benefits of its state-of-the-art edging, RAUKANTEX pro, the next section addressed one of the key topics.

Circular economy for the responsible use of resources

Sustainability is a huge topic in the furniture industry. More and more customers’ purchasing decisions are dependent upon the manufacturer's use of natural resources. REHAU has always considered this to be extremely important. At the Edgeband Symposium, the company first presented its various approaches and then outlined its progress towards a circular economy. Instead of depleting, consuming and disposing of raw materials as waste, they should be recycled. Based on this concept, the sustainable edgeband solution RAUKANTEX eco was developed, which consists of 50 percent post-industrial recycled material and is in no way inferior in terms of the design, durability, quality and processing of the PP edgeband. RAUKANTEX evo, another product innovation, goes a step further when it comes to sustainability. The PP edgeband is ISCC-PLUS certified*, thereby helping save crude oil. After introducing these two new edgebands, it was time for HOMAG to present its ‘Eco Plus’ concept using practical examples. Under this term, the machine manufacturer bundles technical solutions that save valuable resources such as energy, materials, time and staff – while making production more efficient. The customer controls all of this via a so-called Eco-Plus button that is integrated directly into the machine.

Design & trends: scratch resistance and an elegant noir feeling

In the final section, the latest trends in the edging sector were discussed, starting with an overview of the new products in the RAUVISIO surface portfolio. In addition to RAUVISIO crystal, brilliant, fino and wave, RAUVISIO noir is another highlight – a new surface for items of furniture that exude elegance. The design match concept was also discussed: REHAU’s portfolio not only has the right edgeband for every surface but also suitable storage solutions and wall edge profiles. This facilitates a monolithic look. A new edgeband version was also presented: RAUKANTEX scratch.protect from REHAU takes surface finishes to the next level of quality. It does so in four respects: fingerprints are reduced, scratch resistance is significantly higher, the matt surface does not shine when viewed from an obtuse angle and, on top of all that, the edgeband is easy to clean with a gloss level of between 3 and 12.

The final item on the agenda came from another partner: Leuco presented its new tool: a synchronously adjustable joint cutter that has been developed for use on edge banding machines with hydro clamping. This enables the tear-free joining of melamine resin and paper-coated, HLP, film-coated and veneered wood materials.

Following a final round of questions, attendees returned to the analogue world with lots of new information and ideas on the topic of edgebands.

All the relevant information about the Edgeband Symposium 2021 is summarised on the www.rehau.de/edgebandsymposium2021 website. “We’re delighted with the large turnout. It shows that the Edgeband Symposium continues to be an important industry event – even online,” says Matthias Hacker. “Nevertheless, we and our partners are hoping that we can return to the usual format for next year’s event.”

*Certification process in progress