Software
SAWSIM®
The SAWSIM® Sawmill Simulation Program
SAWSIM® is a flexible computer program that accurately models the breakdown of logs in any sawmill. With close to 50 years of development, SAWSIM® is widely recognized as the industry-standard sawmill simulation program. Using SAWSIM®, virtually any question about sawmill operations can be answered.
Typical applications include evaluation of mill design or modification proposals, alternative mill equipment options, and overall production planning and analysis. SAWSIM® can process actual-shape logs with crook, sweep, ovality, and variable taper. Solutions are calculated individually for each log, based on its particular geometry. SAWSIM® will print end view and 3D log plots, detailed results for each log that is sawn, and "Totals and Averages" to show results, including the overall lumber product distribution, for a distribution of logs that typically represent a complete shift's production.
SAWSIM® Features
Specific features of the SAWSIM® program allow simulation of the following:
- Optimum or manual bucking of stems.
- Production of many lumber sizes with different wane rules for different products.
- Different saw kerfs and target sizes for different machines.
- Any type of log & cant positioning, including full-taper, half-taper, "centering roll", etc, and imperfect log rotation prior to sawing.
- Curve sawing.
- Edger, trimmer, and cant optimizers, plus ability to account for imperfect manual edging, manual trimming, and other sources of mismanufacture.
- Different grade regions can be defined in the log, and the volumes of different lumber grades produced by different sawing policies can be determined.
- Specification of products by vertical grain, flat grain, mixed grain, heart center, and free of heart center, and production from the appropriate position in the log.
- Many other features allow simulation of virtually any mill layout and breakdown policy.
Please click here for an example of the printed results from a SAWSIM® run.
The output starts with Totals and Averages for the run, followed by a sample of results for individual logs. Comparing log solution plots side-by-side for alternative runs allows one to gain a better understanding of the results.
Please click here to view a selection of detailed reports from two SAWSIM® runs.
Reports can also be generated which show results for each log class separately.
- Note that in both these examples, lumber volumes are in board feet and log volumes are in cubic feet. SAWSIM® is also able to calculate lumber volumes in cubic metres, and log volumes in a variety of other units, including cubic metres and various versions of Scribner board feet.