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CKCA Newsletter - May 2011
CKCA First Design Contest WinnersThe CKCA has held its first ever design contest. Entries included an original floor plan, interpretive drawings, a design statement and photographs (as available). Entries were judged on Visual Appeal - 25%, Creativity - 30%, Elements and Principles of Design - 35% and Presentation (quality of floor plan/elevation/perspective) - 10%. Individuals judging the Design Competition were designers and industry professionals and were not be eligible to enter the competition. The first winners were announced at the National Forum President's Dinner at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier in Ottawa on Saturday, February 5th.
The winning designs in the first CKCA Design Awards were: Small Kitchens (Less than 35 sq. ft. of countertops) - Lora Lea Harrison, Wolf Creek Cabinets Ltd., AB Medium Kitchens (35 to 50 sq. ft. of countertops) -Karhu Fine Cabinetry and Millwork with Gerhard Linse Design Consultants , ON Large Kitchens (More than 50 sq.ft. of countertops) -Karhu Fine Cabinetry and Millwork with Gerhard Linse Design Consultants, ON Large Bathrooms (Floor plan greater than 55 sq. Ft. ) - Karhu Fine Cabinetry and Millwork with Gerhard Linse Design Consultants, ON. Other Rooms (Laundry/Utility/Home Office/etc.) - Harvey Boehlig, Rosehill Woodcrafters, MB
CKCA Launches 2011 BenchmarkingMembers of the CKCA have identified a need to continually update benchmarking information. The association is undertaking a 2011 data gathering exercise to ensure that member firms have access to current information. There appears to be a greater need than ever for benchmarking statistical information related for both business and workforce demographics. There seems to be consensus within the kitchen cabinet sector that such information is useful and valuable to manufacturers in their assessment of policies and practices. The business demographics survey covers such issues as materials, construction, upgrades, finishes etc. (ie. do cabinet manufacturers produce their own doors, species used on cabinet doors, materials used in standard case construction, what upgrades are offered on case construction, drawer systems being used, where is sales growth coming from, etc.). The workforce demographics survey covers such areas as performance management and recognition, career development, work-life balance, benefits, general wage and benefit administration, plant wages, and absenteeism and leave. The completion of these questionnaires represents a significant and valued investment of time and effort in those activities which are designed to benefit the membership in ultimately maintaining and/or enhancing their competitiveness in the marketplace. Members are invited to complete the two questionnaires by May 16, 2011 after which summary and analysis will begin. Individual company responses are confidential and no single firm will be identified. The information collected will be grouped, summarized and made available to all firms participating in the survey. Twenty-five firms took part in the 2009 benchmarking initiative and the feedback was very positive. Members found the information very useful and business decisions were made based on the summary reports. CKCA Certification Program
President's Message
Why should I as an owner of a kitchen cabinet manufacturing company join an association such as the CKCA? Don't you know that my time is valuable and I can't be wasting it going to some function about kitchen cabinets, after all I've got a business to run. What could possibly be more important than that? Those were my responses when I was first invited by one of my supplier reps to attend a CKCA regional meeting back in 2001. In my mind I couldn't justify the expense of time and money to attend a function that I figured would have little or no benefit to me. If you're a business owner you will attest to the fact that you can't say yes to every invitation and demand of your time. You have to be selective as to what you say yes to. Needless to say, I didn't go. I'm glad the story doesn't end there. To the credit of my rep she never gave up. She kept hounding me about going to one of the meetings. I kept saying "no" or "I'll think about it." Like a dripping faucet she finally wore me down after a year and I agreed to go to an event in Montreal in the spring of 2002. I don't remember a whole lot about the actual conference, just that I was sitting on a bus full of business owners like myself with a few crazy supplier reps. I will say that we had a lot of fun. The one thing I remember the most was some of the conversations I had with a couple of other cabinetmakers. We talked openly about how we ran our shops and some of the common problems that most shops have. They weren't all big things. I came away with some small ideas about how I could do some of the things in our shop a little bit better. I was also amazed that I was able to give a solution to the owner of a much larger shop than mine about setting up a jig to perform a certain procedure. He thanked me for the information. Who knew that an apparently successful midsize shop owner could learn from a small shop owner like me? Now I don't want to mislead you in any way. Being a member will not guarantee a benefit in itself. You do have to be proactive. I recall a conversation with Harvey Short who is former president of CKCA that "you get out of it what you put into it". You do have to take time away from your business and attend the events. You may have to go out of your comfort zone and speak to other shop owners whom you have never met. Another big plus is our supplier members. They have a wealth of knowledge about our industry and are more than happy to help you solve problems, offer solutions and assist you to succeed in any way they can. And of course when you get home from an event you have to put into action what you have just learned. But I shouldn't have to tell you that. As business owners we didn't get to where we are by letting life just happen to us. We made decisions based upon our knowledge and acted on it. In closing, I would like to say to you that if you are not a member and are still not sure about joining that CKCA I would invite you to attend one of our upcoming events. We have special rates for first timers and I can assure you that you will not be disappointed. Thank you for your interest in the CKCA. I hope to see you at one of our events this year. Learn more about CKCA membership and benefits. |
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