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The CMA and its members have enjoyed many virtual “What’s Your Problem?” discussions over the past few months; however, they are going to pause these sessions since the organization is launching an exciting new virtual webinar program.
Since IWF was cancelled, the CMA decided to move forward with their planned educational seminars by transitioning to an online format. Given the amount of content and speakers connected with the organization, the initial series has evolved into an exciting new webinar program to continue throughout the year. The sessions will be held each Wednesday at noon Eastern Time, and then shared online for anyone who is unable to attend the live event. Each presentation will be followed up with a virtual discussion on the same topic, which we are calling “A Closer Look.” This is a focused dialogue about what was previously presented – essentially an online question and answer session, but with more time to review and digest the presentation. For the schedule of upcoming webinars and to register, visit www.cabinetmakers.org/events The webinars are free for members. For non-members interested in participating, the fee is $35 and includes a one-month CMA membership, which can be renewed monthly or converted into an annual membership of $275. Registration is required to attend, and space is limited.
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Although IWF 2020 was cancelled due to COVID-19, we still need to recognize the winners of the CMA's annual awards contest. The virtual ceremony will be held on Thursday, August 27 at 7 pm Eastern Time.
Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the association's awards program began as a means for members to be recognized by their peers. After the first awards were announced, the benefits were clear: the program gave the organization another opportunity to promote excellence in in the industry. Registration is required to attend, and space is limited. Sign up today! As all of us navigate this crisis, the CMA wants to ensure that you have access to the tools needed to manage your business through this unprecedented time.
Here's a compilation of relevant resources: The CMA announces the results of their annual election for the organization's leadership team6/18/2020 The Cabinet Makers Association (CMA) is pleased to announce the results of their annual election for the organization’s Board of Directors and the installment of their officers for the next year. The CMA members re-elected Matt Wehner of Cabinet Concepts by Design (Springfield, MO), and Gregory Paolini of Gregory Paolini Designs (Canton, NC) was elected as a new board member. Both of them will serve a three-year term. In addition, the Board has appointed the following officers who will serve in these roles from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021:
The Members-at-Large are Monika Soos of Sofo Kitchens (Maple Ridge, BC), Brian Clancy of Clancy Woodworking (Sherman, CT), and Matt Wehner. Exiting the board is Leland Thomasset of Taghkanic Woodworking (Pawling, NY). The CMA expresses gratitude to Leland for his contributions for the betterment of the association during his six years on the board, including serving as president of the organization. To contact any of the board members of the Cabinet Makers Association, please visit www.cabinetmakers.org/contact About the Cabinet Makers Association Celebrating over 20 years, the Cabinet Makers Association was incorporated in 1998 by a group of custom cabinetmakers who thought the small to mid-size shops needed to network and help each other grow profitably. Currently, CMA membership is made up primarily of 20 or fewer employee operations, with the vast majority of those being 1-5 person shops. For more information, visit www.cabinetmakers.org The Cabinet Makers Association (CMA), in conjunction with Woodworking Network, requests that small- and medium-sized shop owners complete their 2020 Benchmark Survey. The answers will provide a clearer picture of the woodworking industry in the U.S. and Canada, while also helping other shops have a better idea of where they stand in relation to the rest of the industry
. This annual survey is designed to establish benchmarks for the industry. In doing so, the survey explores business outlook, staffing and compensation, shop rates, CNC automation, construction methods, and marketing. On the demographic side, the survey paints a portrait of where shops are located, number of employees, and what kind of work they do. Participants are eligible to be entered in a drawing for a free power tool, and they will also receive a copy of the full survey data. Individual survey responses are kept strictly confidential regarding the participant’s name and company. An overview of the results will be published in the December 2020 issue of FDMC Magazine. You can read the 2019 summary at https://bit.ly/2019-Benchmark The 2020 survey is open until 12:00 AM on November 1, 2020. To complete the survey, please visit https://bit.ly/2020-Benchmark ShopBot Tools, one of the largest manufacturers of CNC routers in the US, has launched a rapidly growing “virtual workshop” for ShopBot customers and CNC users. While individuals, businesses, and educational institutions work to adapt to the changing environment surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic, ShopBot is stepping forward to help. The Virtual ShopBot Workshop is part of a commitment that ShopBot made 24 years ago – to make CNC accessible to small and mid-sized manufacturing. Part of that commitment is expressed in the agile design and functionality of our tools; the other part in providing top tier education, training, information, and world class support.
“ShopBot is unlike any other CNC company – we build our own tools and we use our tools to make things; we use them in production, and we use them in our own home shops. We understand the applications. We appreciate concerns of new users and of experienced users. We know how to put the tools to work. The Virtual Workshop lets us share the experience and expertise of ShopBot employees who have worked with CNC technology in production as well as in their own shops.” ShopBot, COO, Jeanne Taylor, continues “We make it a point to stay engaged with our customers and if, because of the challenges in this new world, we can’t do it in person then we’ll do it online, over the phone, and via video conference platforms. If this is the new normal – we’re all in – here in the US designing, building, and helping CNC tool owners succeed in this new future.” From the ShopBot website, the Virtual ShopBot Workshop provides at-a-glance links to live demos and recorded trainings. Viewers can also virtually tour production sites and workshops, which include both new and old tools in use, even a 20+ year-old ShopBot still at work. ShopBot engineers host live demos and trainings at least two times per week. Participants may IM chat with the trainer during the training and ask questions at the end in an interactive forum. These trainings are then recorded and curated on ShopBot’s website for at-a-glance reference. Ryan Patterson, a product engineer at ShopBot, adds, “We enjoy being able to share tips and techniques live, and sometimes even our own mishaps, with our customers. It’s important to us that they continue to maximize their skills and use of our tools.” The Virtual ShopBot Workshop recently launched the entertaining ‘Stuart & Bill Show’ which gives the viewer an opportunity to sit back and enjoy conversations and project discussions between two long-time woodworkers and friends: Stuart Kent, founder and owner of the North Carolina Furniture School in Farmville, NC and ShopBot’s Bill Young, boat builder, maker, and problem-solver. Jen Nix, ShopBot’s Marketing Manager says “We’re excited to see where Stuart and Bill take the show as it continues to move forward! They cover a wide variety of content of interest to CNC enthusiasts, no matter where they are in their CNC journey – recent topics have ranged from techniques for vacuum hold down to creating furniture that is longer than the bed of the tool.” Visit and share: www.shopbottools.com/virtualworkshop to access the actively growing list of online content related to CNC during this time of stay-at-home and social distancing restrictions across the US. With questions or to request additional information please reach out to marketing@ShopBotTools.com About ShopBot Tools, Inc. (www.shopbottools.com) Founded in 1996, ShopBot's mission is to make the empowering technology of digital fabrication widely accessible and usable. ShopBot's CNC tools, working across a range of sizes, deliver the power, precision and reliability of digital tools costing thousands of dollars more. ShopBot tools are designed and built in Durham, North Carolina, USA. The global spread of the Coronavirus poses unknown challenges for all of us. We hope that you, your family, friends, and co-workers are safe and well. As we navigate this crisis together, we would like you to know that the CMA is committed to providing service to our members, especially in this time of need, and to continue to address the needs of small businesses in the woodworking industry.
We will support you and your business needs while at the same time doing all we can to not spread the sickness. This is a strange time with a lot of uncertainty, but there are things we can all do to help. By now most of us have heard these things a thousand times, but they are still important:
Read more advice from the CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/guidance-business-response.html In addition, there have been concerns about how to address the situation if your business has to shut down due to the virus. Fortunately, Congress has already passed several bills offering relief to small businesses, and we encourage you to check them out: https://www.sba.gov/page/coronavirus-covid-19-small-business-guidance-loan-resources Because of the current concerns, we have cancelled our April 22 regional event in Charlotte, NC. We will keep you posted when a new date is determined. Woodworking Network has compiled a helpful summary of other industry disruptions and cancellations: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/woodworking-industry-disruptions-and-cancellations-coronavirus-update We encourage you to stay connected and keep building your business as much as possible. In the next few weeks, we plan to host a webinar to introduce our new website program for members. Stay tuned for the date and time. Also, be sure to stay in touch on the forums: ask questions and also provide answers and assistance when possible. Now is the time, more than ever, to rely on CMA members and our collective resources. Together we will work on solutions during this challenging situation. |
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