Stonemasonry in 30 objects
Week 10/30: A CNC wire saw
January 2023 – a New Year and a new investment for AF Jones. At the end of last year we decided to say goodbye to our trusted wire saw that had given us 20 years of service and replace it with the shiny new GRANI ROC SPBO 3000.
A primary saw with such versatility is integral to our production process. It can cut curves, rotate, and cut shapes interlocking with each other to an accuracy of 1mm. It can also process blocks of up to 13 tons. This allows us to cut intricate shapes and designs with minimal stone wastage which has so many benefits. The less block we use and less waste we produce, the more efficient we can be as well as reducing out environmental impact. It’s also much quieter than many other saws meaning from a Health and Safety perspective noise is kept to a minimum.
The images here show it successfully completing its first test cut – the AF Jones logo in Bath stone. We would then pass this onto our secondary saws and finally to the banker masons for carving and finishing by hand.
Look out for another post later on in the series, showing what we used as a primary saw 100 years ago!
This is week 10/30 posts in this series. The full series can be found on our LinkedIn profile – or use #stonemasonry30
