WPMA Annual Meeting

Greetings Customers & Friends,

Shortly after starting Parkerville in 2005, we joined a national trade organization called the Wood Products Manufacturers Association (WPMA). Parkerville was finding its way in the early days, and the exposure to a wide range of wood and woodworking-related companies around the country was beneficial for Parkerville. WPMA is a tremendous resource of information, with members including all sorts of mills and manufacturers, and professional services businesses, such as legal, insurance, and others who specialize in and cater to our industry. Other companies or start-ups in need of wood-related products can also contact WPMA, and WPMA will analyze their requirements and refer them to an appropriate member to service their needs. They publish a monthly newsletter which is informative, educational, and humorous, and members can advertise employment opportunities or sell surplus equipment and materials at no charge. They recently started a monthly podcast called Shop Talk, which just launched its second episode. Another applicable, beneficial resource for members in the woodworking business.

Every year, WPMA hosts an annual meeting where members from around the country join together. Later this month, my son Brendan and I plan to attend the 2-day event in Lancaster, PA. The event includes speakers and programs on trending aspects of our industry, including Artificial Intelligence in the woodworking industry, which is on the agenda this year. Two plant tours are also part of the program, as Conestoga Wood Specialties and Keystone Wood Specialties have agreed to host the group. These companies, which benefit from Pennsylvania’s hardwood timber forests and sawmills close by, are huge plants with hundreds of employees. Both primarily specialize in manufacturing components for other companies that build cabinets. Tens of thousands of kitchen cabinet doors a day, face frames, and drawer boxes are the main products, on a massive scale. The event organizers mix in some fun things and incorporate time to network and meet with other members, which may be the most valuable aspect of the event. I will report next month on how the event was and the pros and cons of attending.

On another subject, we are beginning to see some tariff activity on some vendors’ recent invoices. Not anything related to lumber or plywood, fortunately. We had a few tariff dollars added to the solid surface adhesive that was included in an order for Corian that we purchased. We’ve also seen tariffs on some special-order hardware. A few months ago, we added some language to our formal quote templates that gave us the flexibility to add these tariff costs to our jobs should we incur them. This primarily is on the larger, commercial projects that we do with general contractors. On these projects, we need a formal change order from our customer (the contractor) to change our contract amount, whether it adds, or deducts from the agreed amount. 

We have a creative staff that’s always looking for ways to generate interest in woodworking and Parkerville. If you follow us on social media, you may have seen that we are working with the Manchester Chamber of Commerce to offer a 2-session program called “Women’s Intro to Woodworking.” It’s part of the Chamber’s monthly series that promotes Women in all professions.

We also have another Saturday morning epoxy demonstration on our calendar, so whether you are planning a river table or a piece of jewelry, this demonstration will cover the basics that will allow you to make something extraordinary. We’re also planning to offer a single-session safety class, which will be a demonstration on the safe operation of common stationary power tools in a wood shop, along with some tips on selecting and rough cutting lumber in preparation to build your project.  We will also review how to tally and measure the lumber that we sell. We are dedicated to inspiring our customers to become better woodworkers and to help facilitate those with an interest to get started. May your interest and curiosity in woodworking never wane.

We recently found a nice stack of Ambrosia Maple that will be available in a week or two. It was air-dried, so we have it in a kiln for a short time. I think it’s all 4/4 and fairly wide. We also have a couple of good leads on some other collections of interesting, rare species of wood that we hope to acquire. We’re coming into our busy time and want to have some special things for you to see when you come to visit.

Hope to see you at the shop,

Sincerely,

David Harris, President

Parkerville Wood Products, Inc.