Workshop Tour- Kitform kitchens Bunbury W.A

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Workshop Tour

Welcome to the Kitform Kitchens tour of our workshop located near Bunbury. Since this is a separate facility to our showroom in Picton Road, our customers don't often get to see what goes on behind the scenes as their cabinetry is manufactured, so we invite you to take this virtual tour of the premises. This facility uses the most advanced computer-controlled machinery to produce components for many kitchens every day. You will see some of the tradespeople and equipment that are involved in the production of our high quality cabinetry.

Our Workshop Staff

Kitform Kitchens' workshop employs a staff of approximately 15 tradespersons and apprentices in a spacious factory unit of 1800 square metres. We train a number of apprentices in a permanent programme and each apprentice works under the direction of several qualified tradespeople. Our tradespeople also receive ongoing industry training, which keeps them up to date with knowledge of new techniques and equipment.

Our Manufacturing Process

Once the design for a kitchen has been approved and an order placed, the electronic design files are transmitted to the workshop for manufacturing.

The tight integration of our computerised system ensures that the fabricated product is exactly as intended at the design stage. We typically commence production of a job 10 days before the date booked for installation.

Router Control

An operator loads the data from a completed design into the controlling computer

Kitform Kitchens selects only the highest quality manufacturing materials, conforming to the relevant Australian Standards and our stock levels are constantly monitored to maintain impressive turnaround times for all our customers.

Precision Machining

On the day that a job is scheduled to start, the electronic design files are loaded into the computer system that controls the full-sheet flatbed router machines. The required sheet stock is placed on a router bed where it is quickly cut and shaped into the components that will become the finished job.

Router Moving
A turret on each router automatically loads the various tools needed to produce the intricate profiles of FlowForm doors and to cut rebates for hinges.

Our two identical flatbed routers are world-leading German industrial machines representing state-of-the-art cabinet-making technology, offering a degree of precision that greatly contibutes to the quality of our finished product.

Flatbed Router

The two machines work together to maintain our schedule during the busiest times, while allowing continuous production when one machine is off-line for maintenance.

Edge Finishing

Once the router has finished cutting and profiling, each component is labelled and sent to the next stage. The flat sections are sent for edge banding, while profiled components are prepared for the vinyl press.

Edge Binder
The computer-controlled edge banding machine applies a 0.5mm PVC edging to carcase components and a 2.0mm ABS trim to flatform doors. Each component passes through the machine several times, the trim being applied to one edge in each pass. The components return to the operator on a conveyor bed, allowing a single tradesperson to complete the edge banding stage with great efficiency.

Postformed Benchtops

Benchtops are prepared in another part of the factory, where the chosen laminate is bonded to the upper side of a profiled benchtop, which is then inserted into the automated post forming machine edge-first.

Postforming
The operator starts the machine and the laminate is heated and then precisely machine-wrapped to follow the edge profile of the benchtop. The material is held in place by the machine while the laminate cools and hardens and is then released from the machine. Both bullnose edges and tight-radius edges are formed in this way.

Vinyl Wrapping

Profiled components are prepared for the vinyl press, which will apply a durable vacuum-wrapped vinyl film in the colour and texture selected by the customer. A special spray glue is uniformly applied to each component.

Several components are loaded into the press together and carefully arranged to achieve optimum transfer of the vinyl film. The selected film is drawn across the frame and the press is closed and made ready.

Once the press is started, the vinyl film is heated evenly from above, becoming soft and flexible. The vacuum inside the press draws the film down onto the component, where it conforms precisely to every detail in the profile, and around the edges.

The special glue is activated by the combination of heat, pressure and vacuum in the press to permanently bond the vinyl film to the material beneath.

As the components cool, the vinyl film hardens. The components are removed from the press and the excess film is trimmed away.

Quality Control

Once all the cabinetry components for a complete job have been fabricated and finished, each piece is carefully inspected by a qualified tradesperson. If a defect is found, a new component is normally manufactured to replace the defective one.

Once all components have passed quality inspection, the job is flat-packed and delivered to the Kitform Kitchens showroom where it awaits collection by the installation team, or the customer in the case of a D.I.Y. installation.