Hello all,
The new facility is coming along and will open in the next couple of weeks. There is still much to do beyond the initial opening, so we will not have an official 'Grand Opening' until later. Several of you have inquired about volunteering to help us with things, and we are finally getting to a place where we can take you up on the generous offers - please read on!
I owe deep gratitude and appreciation to all that have helped us move this ball so far forward, in so little time. In particular my wife has kept me focused and managed the business, our household, and our kids while I have pulled excessive hours loading and unloading trailers, working overhead from scissor lifts, scaffold, and ladders, attending meetings, scraping stuff off the floor, etc............. My friend (NCWW member) Karl Koch has driven a long way to tirelessly assist me with the complex overhead systems. Professor Dixon and the NCFS Woodturners did an AMAZING job of relocating all of the equipment and roughly 6,000bf of hardwood in two blistering work days! Everything was expertly orchestrated, without injury or damage.
I humbly thank each of you. This school could not be built without you.
We have focused attention on the main shop, working on a sophisticated overhead power distribution system with 208v 3ph, 240v, and 120v SO drops with commercial twist lock receptacles. We have installed high bay LEDs throughout the plant that minimize shadows and provide warm, comfortable light. We have also installed two banks of industrial ceiling fans that provide comfortable air flow across the shop without noise or irritating draft. We are still searching for a good 42" - 48" belt driven exhaust fan, and are considering options for additional cooling in the main space...
All of the machinery is now energized and we are installing the new bed and firing up the 5' x 10' Shopbot next week.
So we are now entering the phase where we can best use some woodworking help. As soon as the CNC is online we will begin making various shop implements for infill lighting, cord and hose management, tool organization/storage, etc. We also need to build 5 Shaker style student workbenches for the bench room. I have designed much of the stuff we need to make, and will work through the remaining items in over the next week. It will take some time and expertise to put it all together, get tool cabinets and various shop implements hung, organize tooling, etc. The machines all need cleaning, calibration, and setup as well. After talking to Mike Davis earlier this week, we thought it might make sense to try to get a group of folks together for a few days at the shop (could be in one or two sessions) to knock some of this out together sometime in mid to late September. Who doesn't want to spend some time woodworking with Mike - I sure do! Please let me know if you are interested.
I think you are all going to love this place, we are excited about it. The shop is truly unlike any other workshop I have ever walked into. It is an intersection between a large millwork shop and a university classroom. I am excited to announce that my friend Gordon Bergfers (one of the founders and senior executives at Shopbot) has announced his retirement and is joining our team to teach digital fabrication and advanced machining exclusively at NCFS with me. I am also excited to announce that I am talking to Mike Davis and Jim McConnell (of Mortise & Tenon and Popular Woodworking) about teaching hand tool classes in the bench room as soon as it is completed.
As a reminder, the NCFS Woodturners Club will meet at the shop next Saturday, September 7, if you would like to join us. I look forward to sharing this place with you, learning from and sharing with you, and invite you to visit the new facility soon!
Stuart.
the North Carolina Furniture School
3749 W Wilson St.
Farmville, NC
The new facility is coming along and will open in the next couple of weeks. There is still much to do beyond the initial opening, so we will not have an official 'Grand Opening' until later. Several of you have inquired about volunteering to help us with things, and we are finally getting to a place where we can take you up on the generous offers - please read on!
I owe deep gratitude and appreciation to all that have helped us move this ball so far forward, in so little time. In particular my wife has kept me focused and managed the business, our household, and our kids while I have pulled excessive hours loading and unloading trailers, working overhead from scissor lifts, scaffold, and ladders, attending meetings, scraping stuff off the floor, etc............. My friend (NCWW member) Karl Koch has driven a long way to tirelessly assist me with the complex overhead systems. Professor Dixon and the NCFS Woodturners did an AMAZING job of relocating all of the equipment and roughly 6,000bf of hardwood in two blistering work days! Everything was expertly orchestrated, without injury or damage.
I humbly thank each of you. This school could not be built without you.
We have focused attention on the main shop, working on a sophisticated overhead power distribution system with 208v 3ph, 240v, and 120v SO drops with commercial twist lock receptacles. We have installed high bay LEDs throughout the plant that minimize shadows and provide warm, comfortable light. We have also installed two banks of industrial ceiling fans that provide comfortable air flow across the shop without noise or irritating draft. We are still searching for a good 42" - 48" belt driven exhaust fan, and are considering options for additional cooling in the main space...
All of the machinery is now energized and we are installing the new bed and firing up the 5' x 10' Shopbot next week.
So we are now entering the phase where we can best use some woodworking help. As soon as the CNC is online we will begin making various shop implements for infill lighting, cord and hose management, tool organization/storage, etc. We also need to build 5 Shaker style student workbenches for the bench room. I have designed much of the stuff we need to make, and will work through the remaining items in over the next week. It will take some time and expertise to put it all together, get tool cabinets and various shop implements hung, organize tooling, etc. The machines all need cleaning, calibration, and setup as well. After talking to Mike Davis earlier this week, we thought it might make sense to try to get a group of folks together for a few days at the shop (could be in one or two sessions) to knock some of this out together sometime in mid to late September. Who doesn't want to spend some time woodworking with Mike - I sure do! Please let me know if you are interested.
I think you are all going to love this place, we are excited about it. The shop is truly unlike any other workshop I have ever walked into. It is an intersection between a large millwork shop and a university classroom. I am excited to announce that my friend Gordon Bergfers (one of the founders and senior executives at Shopbot) has announced his retirement and is joining our team to teach digital fabrication and advanced machining exclusively at NCFS with me. I am also excited to announce that I am talking to Mike Davis and Jim McConnell (of Mortise & Tenon and Popular Woodworking) about teaching hand tool classes in the bench room as soon as it is completed.
As a reminder, the NCFS Woodturners Club will meet at the shop next Saturday, September 7, if you would like to join us. I look forward to sharing this place with you, learning from and sharing with you, and invite you to visit the new facility soon!
Stuart.
the North Carolina Furniture School
3749 W Wilson St.
Farmville, NC