On 9 December, an investment contract was signed between the President of the Municipality of Viana do Castelo and the executive director of PORTILAME, which will lead to the expansion of the facility.
The contract, supported under the municipality’s Economic Investment Incentive Scheme, provides for a contract with “ecological innovation, contributing to the sustainability of the planet” that has created 6 more jobs in the Neiva Industrial Zone – 2nd phase.
The document signed between the two parties grants PORTILAME, on behalf of Viana do Castelo Municipal Council, total exemption from paying the fees due for licensing the urban development operation, as well as any other fees due for alterations/additions to the project.
According to PORTILAME’s CEO, Luís Rocha, the “PORTILAME i4.0 Modular Timber Construction” project involves the acquisition of the production equipment and support technologies needed to manufacture pre-defined modules for modular timber constructions, supplied in kit form and ready to be installed by the customer or third parties.
With this project, PORTILAME is moving towards a manufacturing model for agile and flexible response to the dynamics of demand (Quick Response), reducing manufacturing and assembly lead-times compared to the current model, with high consistency of service and manufacturing quality. The new business model, with downstream integration in the value chain, will be geared towards rapid collaborative development with customers in product customisation and new product development, based on the new modelling and manufacturing capabilities provided by CadWork tools and the K2i CNC machine, supporting interactivity with customers via the internet (e-commerce platform).
A highlight was the investment in a 36 metre long by 8 metre wide CNC machine. The K2i CNC machine and its support equipment, integrated with the CadWork software, enable the manufacture of pre-defined modules for fitting together modular wooden constructions with a higher level of definition, precision and fitting for easier, more intuitive, Lego-like assembly. This new production infrastructure is activated by process engineering in conjunction with the simulation tools for modular wood constructions (CadWork) and the application for collaborative product development with customers (e-commerce platform), configuring a “Smart Factory” system. Also of note is the autoclave for wood treatment, helping to reduce dependence on third parties. This option has the great advantage of being able to treat the wood after it has been mechanised, saving on treatment, i.e. PORTILAME will only treat wood that is specific to the work.
