Custom cabinetry trends

Woodcraft Supply LLC named Jody Garrett president. As Woodcraft president, Garrett will oversee the company’s woodworking tools distribution system that includes retail franchise stores in more than 70 metropolitan areas across the U.S., catalog distribution and the company’s website, www.woodcraft.com.
Garrett brings more than a decade of product development and operations management experience to his new position. Since 2006, Garrett has served Woodcraft as vice president of marketing and merchandising and publisher of Woodcraft Magazine. 
From 1998 to 2006, he held executive-level positions of increasing responsibility for Simonton Windows, finishing as vice president of manufacturing prior to joining Woodcraft. In this role he was responsible for managing six Simonton manufacturing sites across the country and oversaw purchasing, human resources, logistics, customer service, process engineering, facility engineering and lean manufacturing for all facilities. 
Before working at Simonton, Garrett worked at Woodcraft from 1992-1998, including serving as director of new product development and warehouse operations.
“This is an exciting, new opportunity for me, and I look forward to leading the Woodcraft team. Woodcraft employees are committed to delighting woodworking customers by supplying them with a wide array of woodworking tools, developing and launching new innovative products and providing educational classes for woodworkers of all skill levels. As a woodworker myself, it is deeply satisfying to be part of a team that is expanding the craft of woodworking,” Garrett said.

Woodcraft Supply LLC posted a new online video for potential franchise owners to view and learn more about owning their own Woodcraft woodworking tool store.
By visiting http://www.woodcraft.com/enewsletter/franchiseletter.aspx, potential franchise owners can hear current Woodcraft franchise owners from around the country talking about how they got involved with Woodcraft, what it takes to successfully manage a store and how the experience has changed their lives for the better. 
“In an effort to give would-be franchise store owners information from an owner’s viewpoint, Woodcraft has produced a video that tells the stories of retail store owners in seven states,” said Gary Lombard, vice president – retail/franchise development, Woodcraft Franchise LLC.

Woodworking tool supplier Woodcraft recently selected Robert Edwards of California as the winner of $10,000 worth of tools and an expense-paid trip to the set of “The American Woodshop” in the “American Dream Shop Giveaway with Scott Phillips” sweepstakes.
Edwards was randomly selected as the winner among more than 26,000 entries to the sweepstakes. The “Dream Shop” tool prize package includes various Delta and Porter Cable tools, such as a saw, router kit, bench and block plane kits, and more. As winners, Edwards and his wife will also travel to the set of “The American Woodshop” in Piqua, Ohio, to meet host, Scott Phillips.
“My wife and I were sitting at Starbucks having coffee, and I was trying to read the email to her, but she was not listening. I finally got her attention, and we were both somewhat stunned that I had won the grand prize,” Edwards said. “Both my wife and I would like to build a custom dresser for our bedroom.”
For more information, please visit www.woodcraft.com.

The European Federation of Woodworking Machinery Manufacturers, Eumabois, found that tungsten is the main constituent of hard metals, a key material for the production of cutting edges for tools used in machining processes in the wood and furniture industry.
In October, the price of the most popular tungsten-based commercial product, ammonium paratungstate, was about 450 dollars per metric ton. In the middle of 2010, this price was in the range of 250 dollars. The current weakening of the global economy has led to stable prices for tool manufacturers over the past few months.|
“However, this positive signal should not reduce our level of attention to the difficult situation of raw material markets,” said Paul Oertli, president of Eumabois Toolgroup. “As a result of reduced export by Chinese suppliers, prices are still at critical levels despite a slight reduction of demand from many tools manufacturers.”
In October, the “British Geological Survey” placed tungsten at number one in the list of elements ranked by unreliability of supplies in 2011.
“In 2012, we expect a still difficult market scenario. Chinese suppliers dominating the sector will focus on tungsten as strategic metal also in the future. Other raw material sources will not help relieve tension in the short and medium term,” said Dr. Andreas Bock, president of Wolfram Bergbau und Hutten AG, Austria, a European supplier of tungsten and related carbides. 

Stiles Machinery will host a Tool Grinding Technology workshop for solid wood applications on Thursday, January 12, 2012, at the company’s facility in Grand Rapids, Mich.
The free workshop will cover using and maintaining grinder and moulding tooling to improve the end product. The workshop will teach tool preparation from blank to finish, ways to create professional details such as crisp points, sharp square corners and side relief angles, and saving opportunities from Stiles E-tech for knife steel and professional-grade grinding wheels.
To register for the event, visit www.stilesmachinery.com.

Porter-Cable is sponsoring the University of Maryland’s team in the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon by donating tools, including drills, circular saws, compressors, routers and pneumatic nailers to aid the team in constructing a solar-powered house.
University of Maryland’s “WaterShed” is a solar-powered house, inspired and guided by the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. University of Maryland says the 925-square-foot home focuses on addressing issues of water stewardship and solar energy use, with sloped roofs for harvesting rainwater as well as enough solar energy to power and heat the home year-round. The home also features constructed wetlands for water filtration and reuse, edible gardens, and interior desiccant waterfalls that provide high-efficiency cooling and humidity control.
“We’re very proud to provide the University of Maryland team with the power tools needed to build such an innovative and environmentally-conscious home,” said Frank DeSantis, director, brand marketing at Porter-Cable. “It was only logical to support a local team, and we’re excited to see how the house fairs in the competition.”
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon is held every two years in Washington, D.C. During each competition, university-led student teams from around the world design and build highly efficient, solar-powered homes to be thoroughly tested, expertly judged and publicly displayed. Judging is based on a scoring system and involves ten contests: architecture, market appeal, engineering, communications, affordability, comfort zone, hot water, appliances, home entertainment and energy balance. University of Maryland’s entry will be on display at West Potomac Park in Washington, D.C., from Sept. 23 through Oct. 2.