Machinery: Intermac

Chris Arend, UK Business Manager for Intermac, at the Biesse Group’s headquarters in Italy with Filomena Cartletti (left), Marketing, and Miranda Tomatis, Subsidiaries Sales Manager.

Intermac stone company customers from Ireland were among hundreds from all over the world who joined Intermac at parent company Biesse’s headquarters in Pesaro, Italy, this year to see the 24,000m2 modern factory where the CNC workcentres and waterjet cutters are made.

Intermac is proud to say it uses the same manufacturing philosophy that is used by Ducati, the maker of the world beating superbikes. And a trip to the Ducati factory was included in the itinerary for the Biesse guests.

Like the Ducatis, most of the Intermac production is exported and Biesse has 30 subsidiaries around the world, including its UK base in Daventry, Northamptonshire. It also has factories in India and China.

Intermac has hundreds of patents on its products – in fact, 220 at the last count with some of the latest coming from the Intermac development of waterjet cutting machines. One of latest, the Primus 322, will be on the Intermac stand in Verona alongside the

top-selling Master 30 and Master 33, and the new Master 850 block workcentre. All are now being sold with a five-year warranty that can even cover operator error. Intermac’s own diamond tool range, Diamut, will also be shown.

Intermac’s 400m2 stand at Marmomacc will be divided into three areas to show the waterjets, the workcentres and the tools separately.

Waterjet cutters are currently proving to be the stars of the Intermac range and visitors to the show will be able to see why from the demonstrations of the Primus 322.

It can cut just about any shape, no matter how complicated, in just about any material up to 150mm thick. Although not all those who have bought one wanted it for its undoubted versatility. One kitchen worktop company making 70-100 worktops a day wanted it just because it could cut accurate 45º edges in any material, including the new ceramics. It can also produce rounded edges as well as making inclined cuts.

The work area is 3210 x 2000mm with two five axes cutting heads that can both work at the same time to produce identical pieces.

The Primus uses the same ICam 2D and 3D software as the Masters, so will be familiar to anyone who has used an Intermac workcentre.

The star among the Masters on show will be the big 850, which made its World debut at last year’s Marmomacc. It is Intermac’s first workcentre for machining stone block, filling a gap the company’s range had beyond the worktop sector. There is an even bigger version now in the 1200, but that will not be on show in Verona.

With a five axes operating head, these block workcentres can be used to make all kinds of larger masonry – fountains, monuments, pots, handrails, capitals…

The 850 uses new CAD/CAM bSolid software developed by Intermac in-house and the company says that using it is intuitive – which it probably is once you have done some training on it.

The software will work out the production time of a project to help you price it and the 3D simulation connected to the machine has the handy advantage of enabling you to check before you start working that it will not go through your workpiece on its way from one position to the next.