Possibly one of the most difficult building professions in the industry is that of a woodworking architect. During the installation process, after building and completing a specific woodworking project, there is very little room for technical error.
Although this has always been a constant in the industry, some woodworking installations like wood molding, veneer paneling and casework development have always been more lenient in this regard. These specific areas have always presented more room for adjustments and modifications to enable unplanned corrections when it comes to plumbing and electrical additions.
A New Age Of Woodworking
Nowadays, the industry of woodworking has been reinvented as architects are doing a lot more with their unique skills. This was more than obvious when woodworkers gathered at the 61st annual Architectural Woodworking convention. Believe it or not, woodworkers are now expected to work with a wide range of materials that include ceramic, glass, acrylic and metal.
By working with these new materials, these specialized workers are now establishing their future by diversifying their skills. While this seems like a dream come true for woodworkers, many industry experts are identifying this change has a potential risk. This is true because many feel that woodworking projects add the most value where jobs that include mounting and shaping do not.
Project Management
In addition, many different woodworkers feel that they are becoming more like a project manager when there is no wood architecture involved in a specific project. In fact, one industry executive has been reported as saying, “When there is not enough wood in it, we find ourselves becoming project managers”. On top of this, other projects that do not involve wood are becoming much more time consuming.
When a particular job involves granite or steel products, they are not frequently shaped and cut on the job site. This is causing pre-assembly to occur on different job sites and even creating a new professional niche for this type of production. The one positive upside of this new potential industry is that the actual installation has started to be much more effective and efficient.
The Future Of The Woodworking Industry
Another big factor that is changing the woodworking industry is technology and information exchange. This includes wireless connectivity between offices or plants, social media communications, computer system upgrades and centralized email. Because of the generation of technology, a member of the AWI is quoted as saying, “I have a general manager on a building project who is 26. This is how the next generation communicates”.
A company in Salt Lake City, Utah, called Fetzer Architectural Woodwork is responsible for wiring the plant headquarters to a central Bluetooth system at a relatively low cost. In addition, the plant headquarters had many different computer towers that are fully equipped with SIM cards that allow each employee to read and report critical information in live, real time.
Regardless of the next job or project, the industry of woodworking has quickly been revamped to include a wide range of different building responsibilities. Reference:www.woodworkingnetwork.com