Prime Fortune, Taiwan - Transforming LVL efficiency with smart monitoring and automated lay-up

MAKING WOOD MATTER

Summary

Prime Fortune, a leading Taiwanese producer of LVL for the interior design market, aimed to overcome severe labor shortages and reduce material waste. To address this, they invested in Raute’s automated LVL Lay-up Line R7. The cooperation, built on a partnership spanning decades, enabled a successful transition from experience-based operations to smart, data-driven manufacturing, drastically improving yield and spatial efficiency.

Prime Fortune

Prime Fortune (元鴻發展) is one of the largest factories with integrated, fully automated production lines in Taiwan, producing "Yongxin LVL". In their recent upgrade, the company partnered with Raute to introduce the latest LVL Lay-up Line R7 to break through production bottlenecks caused by an aging workforce and outdated equipment.
Location
Kaohsiung , Taiwan
Annual output
120,000 meters of LVL
Export markets
Interior design, ceiling works, and partition walls in Taiwan
Raute Partner Since
1987

Challenge

Prior to the latest LVL Lay-up Line R7 investment, Prime Fortune faced mounting pressures common in Taiwan’s traditional plywood and timber sector. While their market penetration remained high, older production methods were becoming unsustainable. 

According to Prime Fortune, the key challenges included: 

  • Severe labor shortages The traditional industry struggled to find manpower, making heavy reliance on manual operation a critical operational risk. 
  • High material waste and glue consumption Traditional glue spreaders were highly inefficient, leading to excessive glue usage and constant, troublesome glue buildup on the machines. 
  • Spatial restrictions The factory footprint in Kaohsiung had strict length and height limitations, making standard, off-the-shelf production lines impossible to install. 
  • Complex raw material characteristics Processing Radiata pine presented specific technical challenges that required highly adaptable machinery. 
  • Reactive management limitations The management team suffered from the pain point of "reviewing only after the fact," lacking real-time visibility into line utilization and material waste. 

In recent years, the biggest challenge facing Taiwan's traditional plywood industry has been a severe labor shortage. In addition, old production methods resulted in significant material waste.

—— Jen-Yuan Hsiao, Vice President, Prime Fortune

Want to see exactly how Prime Fortune rewired their production for immediate gains in capacity and reliability?