There is no sign of any tree trunks. But all sorts of pallets carrying chipboard stand in front of the Röthlisberger carpentry workshopTarget not accessible in Schüpbach, canton of Berne. The factory can be found beside the village mill on the banks of the river Emme, which gently winds its way through the countryside.

Vacuum extractors and spray mist

The furniture is manufactured in a large production hall. It is loud here. Most of the employees wear earplugs. To keep the air as free from emissions as possible, huge pipes suck up the residual wood particles from the sawing and machining processes into a silo. The entire hall is equipped with a humidification system that constantly emits fine spray mist. “We have a constant air humidity level of 48 percent,” explains Adrian Röthlisberger. Together with his brother, Christoph, his cousin, Stefan Röthlisberger, and Andreas Meister, he is part of the third generation running this family business. What was a wheel-making business only 80 years ago has now become one of Switzerland’s largest individual carpentry workshops.

No frills

 “In total, we produce more than 150 different individual parts,” says Stefan Röthlisberger. These include units such as the Swiss Post counter – the showpiece of the series – as well as shelves, partition walls and sound insulation made from recycled PET. All the furniture units must fit seamlessly into the existing architecture of the individual branches. “Swiss Post doesn’t want any frills, just timeless, purpose-made furnishings”. It currently represents the largest order for the Emmental-based company, which is a major employer in the region with 120 employees and 20 temporary posts.

Handcraft in demand

Stefan Vifian, C Technology Project Manager, sitting in front of his computer in the planning office. This is where the 3D plans for the Swiss Post furniture series are created from simple sketches. “Every hole to be drilled and every area to be milled is indicated,” explains the expert. The plans form the basis for all subsequent work steps in the production process. Despite the highly automated process, handcraft is also required: carpenter Leonie Baumann assembling the final parts of a Swiss Post counter. “It fits exactly,” she says, pleased with the result. All that is missing now is the postmark. This is added by surface specialist Ruedi Geissbühler, using a stencil and black paint. After half an hour, he gently removes all the foil parts. A wonderful pattern appears, giving the counter its finishing touch.

Copyright: Annette Boutellier, Daniel Winkler