Custom shop emphasizes standardized procedures to achieve maximum efficiency and repeatability
View of the Millwork & More shop from the assembly area looking back.
Millwork & More LLC in Bernardsville, N.J., was founded on a strong millwork business but has expanded to cover a wide range of millwork, cabinetry and even architectural restoration work. Owner Sean Benetin actually spends very little time at the shop, instead relying on a loyal crew of four employees and huge body of codified standard operating procedures.
Developed mostly by the crew in the shop, the procedures cover virtually everything that needs to be done in the shop. Besides filling multiple shelves worth of binders on the wall of the office, they also show up all over the shop in the form of notes attached near machines. For example, two notes near the jointer cover specific instructions for using the jointer and more general instructions for working with solid wood.
The overall shop encompasses about 6,500 square feet and emphasizes conventional machinery. Although the shop does use computer programs for accounting, estimating, and drafting, there is no CNC machine. Some key machines include a Northfield 24-inch planer, a Jet planer, an Altendorf sliding table saw, and a Cehisa edgebander.
View of the Millwork & More shop from the rough mill area looking forward.
There are also two Williams & Hussey moulders, which offer a good example of the time-saving methods the shop uses. The moulders are set up to use special fixtures designed for each different moulding operation. The fixtures are designed to make it very fast to accurately repeat settings by just dialing in the tooling to match the fixture. Individual fixtures are coded and stored on shelves next to the two moulders. A similar system is used with shapers in the shop.
Another interesting feature of the shop is the raised floor. Because of the site and the way the building was built, Benetin set most of the shop up on a raised floor and ran most of the dust collection below to maximize headroom and maneuvering space in the shop.
Updated: Dec 10, 2009
This article appeared in CabinetMaker+FDM, December 2009. ©Copyright 2010, All Rights Reserved.