Engineering the Future

Jonassen Industrial Projects Limited (JIPL) is on a mission to redefine the engineering landscape of New Zealand – an emphasis on quality and use of the latest technologies available worldwide are our weapons of choice.

Innovation, creativity and attention to detail are the values that JIPL adheres to when taking on any new project and JIPL utilized these when Independent Extrusions Limited (INEX) asked JIPL to assess options for improving their ageing oven capacity at their Hamilton plant.  The existing ovens were not able to keep up with the increase in production – with crates stacked up on the factory floor waiting to be aged.

INEX started their aluminium extrusion business in 1997 with refurbished plant purchased offshore.  In 2002, with the growing demand from within New Zealand and Australia, they expanded their operation with the purchase of a new 8″ Danieli Breda extrusion press.  INEX is an acknowledged leader in the aluminium extrusion and supply extruded aluminium to the manufacturing and fabrication industries throughout New Zealand and Australia.

INEX turned to JIPL to design and build the new ageing oven for the plant.  The oven required innovative technology in that it had to cater for 50% higher volumes than standard ovens.  The heat transfer technology JIPL developed is unique, and a result of considerable research as well as experience earned from previous ageing ovens modified, or designed and built by JIPL.

INEX recently turned to JIPL to upgrade their original oven (which dates from 1968) to solve their capacity issues.  The solution JIPL developed was to extend the oven to cater for an additional 50% capacity – to process 24 crates per cycle at minimum cost and within the time frame available.

To achieve this with the existing oven equipment meant re-designing the airflow system for effective heat transfer.  The oven was extended over the Christmas shutdown with insulated extensions at each end; existing ducting modified; new ducting installed; controls modified to suit, and both doors refurbished.

Not only has the upgraded and extended oven solved the capacity issue, but it now also produces consistent ageing results throughout the oven, with a small increase in the aged hardness of the extrusions (an unexpected bonus).

Plant Manager Steve Bradley commented “ The improved productivity performances across the operation created a bottleneck, with metal waiting to be aged. This meant we were delaying product getting to our customers.

To overcome this we contacted JIPL to see what could be done with our existing plant. The INEX engineering team and JIPL worked together and came up with an innovative cost effective solution to increase our age oven capacity resulting in a very pleasing and successful outcome.

Many thanks to the team at JIPL.”