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30 Years!

3/10/2016

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Of all the things that have changed professionally over the last 30 years, the one that astounds me the most is how I make what I make.

B-a-a-ack in 1986, making a kitchen included drawing it with a pencil, ordering a large stack of rough lumber to make the doors, cutting plywood on a table saw, and using a drill to make the holes for shelves and hardware.  There was a dumpster in case anything went wrong.

In 2016, making the same kitchen includes drawing it on the computer (want to see it in 3-d?), ordering the doors online from a specialty manufacturer (who will also spray finish them if you want), and using CNC to cut cabinet parts and do any machining required for shelves and hardware.

A story:  last year I attended training sessions to better utilize the software I use. The learning curve has been fearsome, but worth it.  During one of the breaks, I attempted to engage one of the other (younger) attendees in some shop talk.  I asked him how long he had been in cabinetmaking.   "Eight years," he replied.  Newbie, I thought.  "It must be hard, absorbing all this information."

 "Neah," he replied.  "I was a computer science major in college."

I don't have any nostalgia for milling 100 board feet of lumber, or marking out every single hole by hand. I don't even mind that a large chunk of my woodworking know-how is irrelevant to producing your kitchen. The fact is, a person with computer skills (and presumably some knowledge of cabinetmaking) represents the state of the art.  

And I still have a dumpster, in case anything goes wrong.

Picture
Oak board, circa 1986
Picture
Oak board, circa 2016
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    Erik Bittner

    Because not everything useful or fun in my field will fit in a web tab.  

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