The Cabinet Makers Association (CMA) is pleased to announce that Dominic Rubino will be the closing keynote speaker at the organization’s 2020 national conference, which will be held March 4-6 in St. Charles, Illinois.

A professional speaker, facilitator, author, and business coach, Dominic Rubino is dedicated to helping woodworking professionals work less and earn more. Through his blog, articles, podcast, and videos Rubino has been teaching business improvement tricks to shop owners for almost two decades.

To leave the CMA 2020 event attendees with a memorable conference experience, Rubino will close the conference with insights about how business owners need a map to get their company to the destination. That map is a strategic plan that portrays what the company will look like over the next five years. Rubino’s presentation will outline specific steps to help attendees figure out WHO will do WHAT by WHEN.

Rubino’s presentation connects the overall event theme of “2020 Vision” and the associated sight lines of driving a car: looking in the rearview mirror to see where we have been, checking the blind spot to see what’s happening around us, and shifting gears to accelerate forward.  After that, according to Rubino, “The rest is just checking the map and making course corrections to get to your destination.”

​You don’t want to miss this event! For more information and to register, visit www.cabinetmakers.org/2020

The Cabinet Makers Association (CMA) will once again host a day of local shop tours on October 16, 2019 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The CMA event is in conjunction with the Wood Pro Expo Lancaster, which will be held October 17-18.

On October the 16th, the CMA event will begin with a networking breakfast before the bus departs for School Specialty in Lancaster. The next stop will be Meridian Products in New Holland, PA. Then the group will enjoy lunch at Shady Lane Smorgasbord in East Earl, PA. The day will conclude with a visit to a CMA member shop: Seven Trees Woodworking in New Holland.

The CMA hosts high-value events such as this to connect similar-sized shops with the purpose of sharing best practices and business acumen, while learning how other businesses do what they do. In addition to the shop tours, the events encourage networking by providing an opportunity to talk shop, share issues, and provide solutions. 
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Registration for the full day ofCMA tours is $65 which includes group transportation, breakfast, and lunch. To register for the shop tours and the Wood Pro Expo, visit www.woodworkingnetwork.com/events/wood-pro-expo-lancaster. In 2018, the CMA event sold out, so early registration is encouraged to secure your spot.

The Cabinet Makers Association (CMA) announces that Guy Bucey will be the opening keynote speaker at the organization’s 2020 national conference, which will be held March 4-6 in St. Charles, Illinois.

To kick off the CMA’s second national conference, Bucey will share why you should “Stay in Your Lane” when it comes to being an effective leader. Bucey is the COO of Inova, a leading manufacturer and innovator in the furniture industry. Located in upstate New York, Inova focuses on the hospitality, contract, multi-family, student housing, and military markets. Bucey began his career at the company following his service in the Marines and quickly became a role model, known for demonstrating the power of teamwork.

“At Inova, we put a lot of focus on our leadership — we want to be mentors and teachers and not just people who are telling other people what to do. The exact term we use is ‘servant’ leadership,” explained Bucey. “We’re always working to cultivate, train, and teach other employees.”

Bucey’s keynote address coincides with the event theme which focuses on “2020 Vision” and the three sight lines of driving: looking in the rearview mirror to see where we have been, checking the blind spot to see what’s happening around us, and shifting gears to accelerate forward.
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You don’t want to miss this event! For more information and to register, visit www.cabinetmakers.org/2020

Owners and managers of woodworking businesses challenged by a low number of job applicants and/or high employee turnover rate are encouraged to attend free College of Woodworking Knowledge seminar sessions featuring the Woodwork Career Alliance of North America at the AWFS Fair, July 17-20 in Las Vegas.

The WCA is scheduled to participate in a pair of free seminars of the fair’s Culture & Workforce Track and one free seminar in the Teacher track.  The sessions include:

WCA – WIIFM: What’s In It For Me?
1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 17
Presenter: Patrick Molzahn, director of Cabinetmaking & Millwork, Madison College and secretary of the WCA
Whether you are in education or in industry, this session will provide ideas that you can use to implement the Woodwork Career Alliance credentialing system to create and manage a training program in your school or business. The presenter, who has used the WCA Skill Standards to shape his curriculum, will demonstrate how to improve your training program and discuss how members can take advantage of the WCA’s online library of videos, educational materials and other training resources to help you accomplish your goals faster and better.

Finding, Training and Retaining Workers
11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Thursday, July 18
Presenter: Patrick Molzahn, director of Cabinetmaking & Millwork, Madison College and secretary of the WCA
Where are all the workers? If only I could find someone with skills. These millennials just don’t have the work ethic we expect. Does this sound familiar? In a tight labor market, you need to get creative. This seminar will provide strategies to overcome many of the challenges you face recruiting and retaining quality employees.

Building a Training Program for Your Workers
3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Friday, July 19
Presenters: Scott Nelson, president of the WCA & Patrick Molzahn, director of Cabinetmaking & Millwork, Madison College and secretary of the WCA
Are you looking to create you own in-house training program? This ‘nuts & bolts’ session will show you how to get started and how you can access ready-made resources to make the job easier. The presenters will discuss how to assess new candidates on layout and measurement and how to customize your training template. Come to this session to learn:

• How to access quality training resources;
• How to develop and structure a training plan – including creating a template; and
• The benefits of doing in-house training.

In addition to those three free seminars, instructors of two WCA EDUcation™ institutions will present sessions in the Teacher track. John Stearns of the MiLL is scheduled to talk on Classroom Tool Safety, Teacher Curriculum and Resources, and How to Get Money for Your Program & Spend It Wisely. Mark Smith of Reed Cutler High School will discuss AutoCAD for the Woodworking Program and Marketing Your Program: How to Get Started.
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To learn more and register for AWFS Fair seminars, visit awfsfair.org. 

​Richelieu is thrilled to celebrate 50 years of innovation at KBIS in Las Vegas. Through our years of expertise and industry knowledge, Richelieu has built an extensive range of specialty hardware products for the kitchen and bath industry. Reaching out to the architecture, design and woodworking communities, we are proud to share this milestone achievement with our KBIS family.
 
Visit us at booth #C-9309 to see Richelieu’s latest innovations and learn more about our solutions for creating spectacular interiors and functional furniture. From a stunning line of new decorative hardware to the most impressive kitchen storage and organization solutions, Richelieu responds to market demands for both functional and stylish kitchen and bathroom accessories that you won’t want to miss!

See more information online at Richelieu.com/KBIS2019

​The Woodwork Career Alliance of North America is organizing several Accredited Skill Evaluator Training events over the next few months, including sessions during the AWFS Fair this summer in Las Vegas. 
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The course fee covers the half-day training session and materials plus a one-year membership as a WCA EDUcation™. EDUcation members also gain access to the WCA’s online archive of training videos and other valuable materials that they can use to develop or enhance their woodworking training programs.

ASE’s are a vital link of the WCA’s credentialing program. In most school woodworking programs, the ASE is also the instructor. An ASE is responsible for observing a person’s ability to perform a woodworking operation at a high enough caliber to earn tool points to fortify their woodworking credentials.

“The purpose of the training is for them to learn how to evaluate woodworkers using the WCA Skill Standards,” said Scott Nelson, president of the WCA. “They learn to test if a student’s or professional woodworker’s performance measures up to accepted industry standards in terms of set up, safety, part quality, etc.”

To date, more than 260 woodworking instructors and professionals have been certified as accredited skill evaluators by the WCA.

Upcoming ASE Training Sessions

April 26: The MiLL National Training Center, Colorado Springs, CO
WCA ASE training is offered as an optional upgrade on the third day of the three-day MiLL Academy event. For more information and to register visit https://themillco.org/academy.

July 17-20: AWFS Fair, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV
The WCA will host seven ASE training sessions in its exhibit booth during the AWFS Fair. Morning and afternoon sessions are scheduled for July 17-19. A morning session will also be offered on July 20. Each session is limited to four seats. For more information and to register, contact Scott Nelson, WCA president, at snelsonwca@gmail.com or call 402-610-6043.
To find out how to schedule a WCA ASE Training event at your school or business, contact Scott Nelson at snelsonwca@gmail.com or call 402-610-6043.
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Learn more about the WCA and its credentialing program at www.woodworkcareer.org.

About the Woodwork Career Alliance
The Woodwork Career Alliance of North America was founded in 2007 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation and is governed by a volunteer board of directors. The WCA’s mission is to develop and administer a unified set of Skill Standards for the wood products industry. Since 2011, WCA has developed observable and measurable performance standards and assessments for more than 240 woodworking machine operations. In addition, WCA has issued more than 2,000 credentials, a portable, personal permanent record documenting each holder’s record of woodworking skill achievements. More than 100 high schools and post-secondary schools throughout North America are WCA EDUcation™ members. To learn more about the WCA and how to get involved with its programs, including sponsorship opportunities, visit WoodworkCareer.org.