The Conference Board of Canada has published a report in January 2010 entitled “Canada’s Lagging Productivity: The Case of a Well-Educated Workforce Lacking the Much-Needed Physical Capital” by Alan Arcand and Mario Lefebvre. (http://sso.conferenceboard.ca/documents.aspx?DID=3396).

They describe how despite an increase in education among its general population, Canada’s poor productivity performance is due to lacking capital investment.

In the secondary wood manufacturing sector, the lack of capital investment in new technology has a crippling effect on productivity with companies reporting low KPIs (key performance indicators) such as output/worker/yr and output/square foot/yr below $150,000 and $100 respectively.

Computer-controlled manufacturing equipment has been available to the wood industry since the late 1970s.  Today’s machines offer improved automation, precision, flexibility and much greater productivity at prices that any small shop can afford. In most cases, acquiring a CNC router costs less than hiring a new worker and the benefits can be far superior.

In today’s competitive manufacturing environment, it is imperative for companies to maximize their production performance. New market opportunities have never been more plentiful.  Manufacturers will need to re-examine their business models and invest in new capital equipment in order to drastically improve their productivity and carve themselves a niche in the 21st century.

Find out how to increase your productivity and improve your bottom line using the latest tools in manufacturing automation. “A taste of CNC technology will change your manufacturing experience forever!” FPInnovations-Wood Products Division has published “Understanding CNC Routers”, a handbook that provides you with all the information you need to embrace this cutting edge technology.

FPInnovations has been helping Canadian manufacturers improve their productivity for many years.  They have a network of Industry Advisor’s across the country that can give companies insight into and help implement the latest manufacturing technologies and strategies.  Make them a part of your team.

Contact the author, Alain Albert directly at 604-317-3714. alain.albert@fpinnovations.ca

You can order the easy to read 100-page handbook for $20 at publications@fpinnovations.caor download it for free at http://www.solutionsforwood.ca/news_events/

Learn about the latest techniques and technologies used for reducing interior wood finishing costs in cabinet and millwork shops.

What to Expect

• Maintaining wood manufacturing equipment
• Maximizing your high-quality abrasives
• Setting up adequate lighting
• Maintaining finishing equipment
• Applying spray only stains
• Applying high solids coatings
• Checking your coatings
• Creating a well-defined finishing process
• Improving the flow to maximize productivity
• Using “green” finishing with high solids, water-borne and UV Cure coatings

Added Feature:
We will have special guest experts from the coatings and equipment industry to answer your questions.

Date: November 23, 2010
Time: 9:00am to 3:00pm
Location: Holiday Inn Express & Suites, Langley, BC

Click here for more information and to register

The Business Innovation Partnership in association with Sandler Training and Trainwest Management & Consulting presents a 1 day seminar on sales techniques presented by Randy Hnatko.

This 9 module sales workshop will provide you with the concept, knowledge and understanding of sales techniques. Through appropriate exercises, you will refine your sales-development plan, practice strategies and techniques in a safe environment, and develop your skills, before interacting with prospects and customers.

Date: Thursday, September 30, 2010
Time: 9:00am-5:00pm
Location: Coast Capri Hotel, Kelowna, BC

For more information on this workshop, please click here.

The Working Wood Mentoring Program began last year with the goal of developing and growing the businesses of several independent furniture designers and entrepreneurs in Vancouver region. These companies were small in size, but possessed tremendous potential through high quality, custom furniture and millwork products focusing on unique designs.

Session 2 of the Working Wood furniture mentoring session took place at Brent Comber’s shop in North Vancouver. The focus of this session was to offer the group real experience and insight from a local furniture designer and sculptor. Brent has been a strong supporter of Business Innovation Partnership and BC Wood and hopes this program will help engage and grow the wood designer’s community in Vancouver.

Thursday’s session began with a tour of Brent Comber’s facility with valuable insight Brent’s own experiences and mistakes since he started his business 14 years ago. His story began with how he attended his first local trade show to some of his most recent international work in Japan and Korea. Brent also explained to the group the simplicity of his shop and how he has focused on building a successful brand image and messaging. The new group was very positive about seeing Brent’s facility and having the opportunity to sit down and ask questions about his experiences. Brent’s passion for wood, design, and storytelling was inspiring to all who participated.

Last week, the Business Innovation Partnership delivered its first Working Wood furniture mentoring session for the 2010 year. This program began last year with the goal of developing and growing the businesses of several independent furniture designers and entrepreneurs in Vancouver region. These companies were small in size, but offered tremendous potential through high quality, custom furniture, and millwork products focusing on unique designs. While most had extensive backgrounds in product design, business development was the focus of the Working Wood program. The initial pilot program offered participants specialized seminars tailored to small businesses with topics such as successful trade show participation, branding and identity, and business development. The group also gained practical, first-hand experience and advice from other established furniture designers in Vancouver who generously supported the program. At the end of the program in September, 2009, each participant successfully exhibited at the Interior Design West (IDS West) show in Vancouver, some with new product lines, while others had entirely rebranded themselves.

For 2010, a new group of entrepreneurs joined the program’s first seminar which consisted of a half day session with Jason Heard, event director at IDS West, and Don Cleland, from Cleland Creative. The tradeshow exhibition seminar focused on practical tips of preparing for trade shows in advance, utilizing show organizers, designing an effective booth space, and taking advantage of the media. Some of participants had previous experience with trade shows, while others had never exhibited at one before, but all agreed that they learned something new and found value in the seminar. The branding portion helped the group identify themselves as a business and their target audience. Many of today’s modern tools on the Internet including social media were covered and left participants thinking not how they want to be perceived, but how they actually by prospective clients.

By Iain Macdonald

In its first full year of BIP participation, the Centre for Advanced Wood Processing (CAWP) at UBC has already carried out a diverse range of product development projects with BC companies of all types and sizes. At the beginning of the year, CAWP worked with Smallworks, a Vancouver company specializing in small-footprint sustainable homes, to create a prefabricated room “pod” that could be craned onto site and serve as the core of a customized laneway home. Smallworks was able to affordably access the services of a project manager, technical specialist Jason Chiu, as well as architect Julian Wang, currently studying for a PhD as part of Dr. Frank Lam’s Timber Engineering & Applied Mechanics group.

A second project involved assisting Joern Dettmer, a local furniture maker, to determine an efficient manufacturing sequence for a number of his prototype designs. Bowen Island-based Sorensen Engineered Homes have been working with CAWP since March on their ambitious new panelized home products. CAWP technical staff has been providing design and CAD/CAM support to help the company transition from their current site-built model.

Richmond company, Urthwurks, is receiving help to fine tune a new standard furniture line utilizing 5-axis CNC technology. The company has built a unique niche in providing custom millwork for art galleries and exhibits, working with prestigious clients such as Bob Rennie and Canadian artist Rodney Graham, recently culminating in their work being shown at the Picasso Museum in Barcelona. Owner Tony Millaires hopes the standard product line will even out production fluctuations and ensure that ROI on investment in a new router is realized quickly.

CAWP is also working with Abbotsford-based SEESIn Wood Ltd., a company started by UBC graduate Dallin Brooks that uses cutting-edge technology to thermally modify wood. The company will be carrying out processing trials of thermally-modified SPF in the CAWP labs this month. Gluing tests on wood window components for Unison Windows and Doors Inc. are also being conducted under the product development program this summer.

The projects carried out to date demonstrate the wide range of companies, products and sub-sectors that can benefit from product development assistance. Projects have ranged in scope from one or two days of work up to several months, and budgets and services are tailored to the specific needs of the client company. Discussions are underway with several more companies about projects ranging from new engineered wood products to CNC-carved west coast art, but funding is still available. If you are interested in developing a new product or revamping an existing one, please call Iain Macdonald (604-822-1472) or email cawp@cawp.ubc.ca to discuss the possibilities.

The Business Innovation Partnership in association with Sandler Training and Trainwest Management & Consulting presents a 1 day seminar on sales techniques presented by Randy Hnatko.

This 9 module sales workshop will provide you with the concept, knowledge and understanding of sales techniques. Through appropriate exercises, you will refine your sales-development plan, practice strategies and techniques in a safe environment, and develop your skills, before interacting with prospects and customers.

Date: Thursday, June 17, 2010

Time: 9:00am-4:30pm

Location: Sheraton – Guildford Hotel: 15269 104th Ave, Surrey, BC

Please click here for more information and registration.

Last week, BC Wood along with FPInnovations and CAWP went to Victoria to discuss the Business Innovation Partnership program and meet with value-added wood manufacturers.  I got a chance to visit Swifsure WoodWorkers, M-Time Developments, Vintage Woodworks, and Douglas Grant Cabinetmakers with Randi Walker from BC Wood and Brian Ehrecke from FPInnovations.

The first company I visited was Swiftsure Woodworkers in Victoria with Randi Walker and met with Peter McCutcheon, the President of Swiftsure Woodworkers.  Swiftsure Woodworkers designs and manufacturers cabinetry for fine homes in the greater Gulf Islands region of BC.  They have received multiple CARE awards and GEORGIE awards.  The CARE award recognizes the winning efforts of Vancouver Island’s professional builders, developers, architects, interior designers, and sales and marketing professionals.  The GEORGIE award by the Canadian Home Builders Association of BC recognizes excellence in home building.  We also got a chance to check out the shop and see a CNC machine at work.  This was the first time I saw a CNC machine at work and I was amazed.

Peter also mentioned they employ Joiner and Carpenter Apprentices from Vancouver Island University’s apprenticeship program.  This is a great way to get hardworking and enthusiastic workers, and help develop the skill of the next generation of craftsmen.  I do encourage all of the value-added wood products manufacturers to follow Peter’s footsteps in employing BC apprentices.

For more information on Swiftsure Woodworkers, please visit their website: www.swiftsurewoodworkers.com.

The next morning, I met with Dave Miller of M-Time Developments with Brian Ehrecke. They produce a number of different value-added wood products including panel wall homes. Their goal is to operate an ecologically and socially responsible milling operation which purchases the bulk of its logs from local, sustainably managed (and certified) sources. Dave talked to us about some interesting projects he has worked on and is currently working on.  I don’t think I have ever met someone so enthusiastic and passionate about what they do as Dave Miller is.  It was great meeting someone with so much enthusiasm.

For more information on M-Time Developments, please visit their website: www.m-timedevelopments.com.  Also be sure to check out Dave’s new website: www.bamfield-millworks.com.

I then visited Vintage Woodworks with Brian Ehrecke which is located in what used to be a hotel decades ago.  Vintage Wookworks is BC’s heritage millwork supplier.  They specialize in providing restorations and restoration products for historic windows, doors, moulding, and brackets.  Brian has been working on a technical project through the Business Innovation Partnership program with Vintage.  I got a chance to go on a shop tour and see all of the different machines they use for producing different products.  The most interesting part was seeing all of the improvements that were made through the project.

For more information on Vintage Woodworks, please visit their website: www.vintagewoodworks.ca.

The last company I visited was Douglas Grant Cabinetmakers in Victoria with Brian Ehrecke.  This is another company located in a unique building.  Douglas Grant Cabinetmakers provides quality finished kitchens, bathrooms, built-in furniture, and more.  Douglas gave us a tour of his shop and showed us a gorgeous cabinet he was working on that showcased his attention to detail.

For more information on Douglas Grant Cabinetmakers, please visit their website: www.douglasgrantcabinetmakers.com.

I want to thank all of these companies for their time and interesting stories.  I also want to thank Randi and Brian for taking me with them to visit the companies.  I learned a lot about the value-added wood products industry look forward to meeting more companies!

The Business Finance & Equipment Evaluation, and Safety & Human Resources Management Course  will be offered between March 29th to May 10th , 2010

The Centre for Advanced Wood Processing is now offering a set of affordably-priced online courses to teach skills such as production planning, quality management, new product development, and equipment justification to workplace learners in the wood products industries. Each module requires about 5hrs of study per week for 6 weeks. The courses were designed specifically for the wood products industry and the content is based on case studies from the various sub-sectors. Our goal is to teach skills that can be immediately applied in the workforce related to production, purchasing, HR, QC, equipment evaluation and purchase, sales/marketing, and new product development. These are NOT academic courses, and the skills learned can be applied immediately in the workplace. Each course is led by a tutor with extensive industry experience.

Our management skills training program schedule for Jan-June is as follows:

Business Finance & Equipment Justification – March 29th to May 10th  2010
(MS Excel spreadsheet skills are required)

*   Be able to generate accurate raw accounting data
*   Have knowledge of financing options, sources of capital, basic accounting skills, understanding financial statements (balance sheets, income statements, statements of cash flow, etc.), measures of assessment (e.g. operating profit versus net profit)
*   Describe the difference between fixed costs and variable costs
*   Explain time value of money, payback periods, and net present value
*   Explain and use basic accounting terminology
*   Perform cost benefit calculations

Safety & Human Resources Management – March 29th to May 10th 2010

*   Develop systems and procedures to promote a safe working environment
*   Describe basic safety regulations and identify sources of updated regulatory information
*   Explain management’s responsibilities with regard to safety
*   Explain the key aspects of labour relations (both union and non-union); describe good hiring practices, performance appraisal systems, and compensation systems (for shop floor employees)
*   Create successful employee retention strategies
*   Describe techniques for creating a positive team environment within your company
*   Foster effective communication and leadership skills to motivate employees

More detailed information:

http://www.cawp.ubc.ca/Whatwedo/ContinuingEducationTraining/WMCManagementTrainingProgram/tabid/4010/Default.aspx – Management skills program

To register, please contact Jason Chiu at 604-822-0082 or jason.chiu@ubc.ca<mailto:jason.chiu@ubc.ca>

Are you using coatings in your operation and want to learn more about new developments in the field of coating products and application systems?

This one hour Webinar will cover wood surface preparation for different wood species and coating products, and information on new developments in hybrid coating systems.

The two presenters for this event are Phil Evans, UBC professor and coatings researcher, and Véronic Landry, FPInnovations coatings scientist. Both will share their knowledge of environmental issues and new technological developments related to the coating of wood products.

To register for this free Webinar, click on the link for the date of your choice. Please register early, as they are limited to a maximum of 50 participants for each date.

Webinar Series in English: New Developments in Coatings for Appearance Wood Products

March 16, 18, 23, 25,at 10am PST, (1pmEST). Duration 1 hour.

To register for any of these seminar dates, click here:

https://www.regonline.ca/newdevelopments

The toll free call in number to hear the presentation is:

1 877- 413- 4782
Pass code 4062560#

This event is brought to you by the Value to Wood program funded by Natural Resources Canada (www.valuetowood.ca( http://www.valuetowood.ca/)).