News & Events

Upcoming Events

CKCA 2012 National Forum

Date:	February 2-5, 2012
City:	Victoria, B.C.
Place:	Fairmont Empress Hotel

Read: Second Notice
Read: General Program
Download: Event & Hotel Registration Package

Members are invited to experience Victoria- Canada's garden city in supernatural British Columbia. The National Forum site will be the imposing, yet elegant, Fairmont Empress Hotel.

The capital city of British Columbia, Victoria boasts many historic buildings and some of the most fascinating museums in Western Canada. The city benefits from one of Canada's mildest climates, which allows its residents to pursue outdoor pleasures all year round.

Victoria's downtown Inner Harbour includes the historic Legislative Buildings, home of the provincial government; the Royal BC Museum; and Thunderbird Park, with an amazing display of 15 impressive totem poles. Victoria enjoys some of the country's most exhilarating scenery: there's an ocean or mountain vista around every corner, while the city's flower gardens are famous the world over. Whether your taste runs to golfing, hiking, biking and fishing or you're more the shopping, dining and theatre type, there are no end of delights for visitors to Victoria – the city was included in the Top 10 Family Vacations in Canada in the Trip Advisor 2011 Travelers' Choice awards.

The Forum agenda will feature plant tours, topical guest speakers, a supplier showcase and a manufacturers' round table.

We thus encourage all members and prospective members alike to mark their calendars now and plan on making your way to Victoria BC next February for an excellent program and networking opportunity!

CKCA Regional Meeting

Date:	Spring Meeting 2012
City:	TBD - Ontario

CKCA Regional Meeting

Date:	Fall Meeting 2012
City:	TBD - Alberta

Recent Events

CKCA Regional Meeting

Date:	September 13, 2011
City:	Kitchener / Cambridge, ON
Place:	Grand Valley Golf and Country Club

CKCA Regional Meeting

Date: June 14, 2011

City: Halifax, NS

Place: Delta Barrington Hotel

Presentations from the Event:
At the recent CKCA Regional Meeting in Halifax, presentations on two important topics were given by FPInnovations on "Lightweight Panels: Trend or Bubble?", Torsten Lihra, Ph.D., Group Leader - Value Added Products; and "New Developments in the Finishing of Wood Kitchen Cabinets", Véronic Landry, Ph.D., Chemistry, Scientist. They have kindly provided their presentations for all members.

Photos from the Event (click for larger images)

CKCA Newsletter - May 2011

Our newsletter is sent out about 4 times a year. If you want to get our our distribution list, please email us at: info@ckca.ca

May 2011 - In this issue:

New Members
CKCA Benchmarking Surveys
Final Notice: CKCA Regional Meeting
Career Focus Program
Comparative Life Cycle Analysis

Spring 2011 - In this issue:

New Members
CKCA National Forum
CKCA First Design Competition
NEW CKCA Board Elected
Presidents Message
Kitchen Leader Recognized

CKCA Design Contest Winner Announced!

The 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 are 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 design winners will be featured in publications and CKCA communications and promotions.

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

Kitchen Leader Recognized

Charles Larre, Superior Cabinets was recently recognized by the Wood Manufacturing Council with their Award of Distinction, which recognizes an individual who has made a significant contribution over time to support the human resource needs of the advanced wood processing industry. The award celebrates a true champion of the industry, who has dedicated their career to advancing education, industry training, recruitment, retention, promotion or any activity which serves the HR needs of the industry.

In 1980 Charles Larre and his brother-in-law Bernie Oster established Superior Millwork Ltd.; a small company with only 4 employees. Word of mouth and a solid reputation created an ever increasing business opportunity and as a result, Superior Millwork Ltd. moved to larger and larger facilities and continued to expand. This growth continued throughout his career.

In 1999, the company was named Business of the Year by the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce and received their Export Award. As the major kitchen cabinet manufacturer in Saskatchewan, Superior Cabinets became known for its support of and belief in its industry. Employees came first, but Charles was also a member of the editorial board of advisors for Woodworking magazine and an active member of the Canadian Kitchen Cabinet Association. Larre championed Superior's involvement in the National Education Initiative (NEI), which was responsible for the inception, funding and implementation of a university-level training program for secondary wood products skills. That program is now the Centre for Advanced Wood Processing at the University of British Columbia, and Charlie's daughter, Jovan, is one of its graduates.

Charlie attributed his success to his employees believing that they were the foundation of the company’s success. With the support of his wife Linda and the involvement of his daughters Jovan and Jasmine, Superior’s legacy lives on. Superior Cabinets has always based its corporate philosophy on family values and as such Charlie set up a special staff fund, dedicated to helping families in need within the company. After his passing, the "Charles Larre Never Give Up on A Dream" Fund was also established for those in need in Saskatoon. Charles Larre was a man who loved life. His mission was to work hard, play hard and love every minute of the life he had been given. He surrounded himself with his friends and family, who were all very dear to his heart.

Past Events

CKCA 17th National Forum

Date:	February 3-6, 2011
City:	Ottawa, ON
Place:	Fairmont Chateau Laurier

Download: Presentation - The Economic Outlook (presentation by Michael Burt, Associate Director, Industrial Economic Trends, The Conference Board of Canada)

Photos from the event:

The CKCA would like to thank and acknowledge the generosity of our sponsors. Their contributions are greatly appreciated:

BECKER ACROMA, BÉLANGER LAMINÉS, BLUM, FORMICA, GRASS CANADA, HETTICH, MAPLECRAFT DOORS, RICHELIEU HARDWARE, PRÉMOULÉ GROUPE SAVOIE, UPPER CANADA FOREST PRODUCTS, VALSPAR, PLANIT CANADA

Delegates had the opportunity to visit some very interesting manufacturing facilities as part of the event. The tour stopped at three members manufacturing plants and at Lee Valley Tools. Our thanks for tours to Deslaurier Custom Cabinets Ltd., Laurysen Kitchens Ltd., Lee Valley, and Ottawa Valley Kitchens Ltd.

The “What’s New”– suppliers presentations were again sold out, with Blum, Planit Canada, Hettich, Upper Canada Forest Products, Grass and Taurus Craco outlining their products and services for delegates. Guest speakers included Sam Geist, Business Strategist/Author, whose thought-provoking presentations were very well received, and Michael Burt, Associate Director, Industrial Economic Trends – The Conference Board of Canada provided an economic forecast, which is available here.

Delegates enjoyed a fun evening on Friday night of entertainment at La Ferme Rouge. Once again the Forum wrapped up with an informative Manufacturers’ Roundtable Session, which this year featured a presentation on Clustering by Sepp Gmeiner, Lignum Consulting.

CKCA Regional Meeting

Date:	September 22nd, 2010
City:	Surrey, B.C.
Place:	Sheraton Vancouver Guilford Hotel

Sept 21st Business Innovation Partnership Seminar: Randy Hnatko - Alain Albert - Richard Lipman - Kelly Deck - Helen Goodland
Sept 22nd Tour Pics: Columbia Cabinets - Montalco Custom Cabinets - CAWP1 - CAWP2