John English

The process begins by learning the grading rules and sawmill jargon.

Cost, durability and accuracy are among the factors involved in sourcing specialized tooling.

Cabinet shops have an increasing number of options to fabricate, assemble and install jobs.

New materials and accommodating suppliers open up new opportunities for woodshops installing decorative panels and countertops.

How to save a few Ben Franklins

A look at new coatings for cabinets, furniture, millwork, special effects and exterior applications

A look at the latest technology to help shops with their tooling purchases

Save time and money by understanding the different types and backers available.

Shops searching for multi-function machines have plenty of choices in today’s marketplace.

Shops of all sizes can benefit from an improved floor plan and the addition of material handling equipment.

Nine ways to keep a shop cleaner, safer and a happier place to work.

Sign making is a breeze with the right tooling, design software and digital fabrication equipment.

Enhancements to the work shop environment, making it safer, easier and more productive, will pay off.

DON’T WASTE THE WASTE: Instead of looking at scrap and sawdust as a nuisance, consider it as a resource that can generate greater profits.

CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC: As the wood industry deals with challenges and economic uncertainty, continued growth is predicted.

As outsourced parts keep getting better and often less expensive, a woodshop really needs to know whether it’s more profitable to buy components, or still make them in-house.

One of the most interesting trends in the coatings industry is the way in which robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) are transforming traditional application technologies.

While customers don’t always understand the quality of a shop’s joinery, they invariably rub a hand across the finish.

The new year might be a bumpy one, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad one. 2019 is just around the corner, and woodshops gearing up for it have more to think about this year than most.

Measuring accurately is a cornerstone of our trade, and the means to do so has evolved quite a bit over the past few years.

Having one machine complete several tasks is more of a European than an American notion.

This is a big category, and a woodworker often has to wade through a lot of peripheral information before zoning in on an appropriate piece of equipment.

Form following function is a weather worn adage, but its inverse is perhaps more relevant when choosing a CNC router.

Over the years, the word ‘left’ has become somewhat synonymous with liberal politics.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says that there are 163,500 professional woodworkers in America, and as of May 2017 their average pay is $30,850 a year.

Rising out of the ashes of war, Ikea spent the second half of the 20th century developing ways to flat-pack furniture.

It can be hard for a woodshop to keep current with bits and blades.

A few years ago, I was asked to make felloes for a wagon wheel.

It’s one of the most visible and tactile signs of a good job.

Nanyang Technological University in Singapore is a research-intensive public campus with 33,000 students in its pre- and post-graduate classes.

By now, most woodworkers are quite familiar with the phrase “Industry 4.0”, which describes the current and fourth industrial revolution.

Whether it’s drawer slides, pulls, corbels, aluminum doors, moldings or lighting, there’s a world of possibility out there for casework designers.

If you didn’t catch it at AWFS last summer, Benz Inc., (benztooling.com) introduced a couple of adjustable angle head systems at the show.

Remember back in shop class when joinery used to mean lap, butt, mortise or dovetail? Well, times have changed.

While many woodshops use prefinished hardwood veneered panels to cut down on construction time, there has been resistance among others to jump aboard because of a belief that the coating will scratch in transit or use, and also because of an impression that the choices are limited to a clear UV on natural veneer.

Finishes are mostly fluid, and so is the nature of the cabinet and furniture coatings industry.

Battery advances and a new generation of brushless motors are combining to make life on the jobsite a whole lot easier, and more productive.

Woodshops that produce flooring are usually among the first to notice new consumer appetites.

It sounds so simple – turn on a vacuum and suck up the dust. But there is so much more to effective dust control in a woodshop. And it begins with the question: Why bother?

Blade technology is moving right along, and it’s not just tungsten compounds or plate geometry that’s evolving. Profiles are also benefiting from Industry 4.0 technologies.

There’s a lot happening with the tools that we use for finish sanding. These include rotary, orbital, belt and inline sanders, and all of them are seeing significant technological changes. Not least of these is the power source.