Wood drying machine for finishing in furniture production

• Main Authors: Bituin, Lieza Marie, Chua, Rafael, Deacosta, Monico, Florentino, Kimberly, Gutierrez, Charisse May
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2006
• Subjects: Drying apparatus; Furniture finishing; Furniture painting; Furnitures; Wood products
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/14585
• Institution: De La Salle University

The finishing process of wood furniture is an important element for the quality of the end product. Part of the finishing stage is the drying period wherein the coating applied must be completely dry before undergoing the next stage. The conventional method of drying is the air-drying system wherein items are left idle on the factory floor to dry. This process is time-consuming taking from several minutes to 24 hours depending on the type of finish. Exposing wet items to humid weather conditions also lengthens the drying period and may cause damages on the finishing surface. The thesis Wood Drying Machine for Finishing in Furniture Production or WDM aims to reduce the air-drying time by at least 50% to improve the drying quality and efficiency of the finishing. This is achieved by subjecting the item for drying at a certain temperature and period of time with the use of electric heaters and a blower. The prototype also features a cart conveyor for the transportation of the item as it undergoes the drying process. Experiments were performed to verity the consistency and uniformity of the temperature maintained by the heating system inside the WDM to ensure that the item will always be subjected with the desired temperature at any given time of the drying period. The actual drying of the WDM was tested to verify that the drying period was shortened as compared to the air-drying method. Based on the results, the number of samples tested that were completely dry is within the level of confidence set by the group and therefore achieving the main objective of the thesis.