TimberTech Reliance Rail

Elite Woodworks LLC, a manufacturing company based in Somerville, Alabama, has experienced significant growth and success since its establishment in 2010. Founded by the father-and-son team of Earl and Dustin Whisenant, the company initially operated with three employees in a 3,400-square-foot facility. By August 2014, its operations expanded into an 8,400-square-foot shop with an eight-person team, reflecting a remarkable increase in size and production capacity. The Whisenants' extensive woodworking background, totaling sixty years of combined experience, has been instrumental in transforming Elite Woodworks from a specialized door shop into a comprehensive component manufacturing facility. Elite Woodworks offers a diverse range of products, including cabinet doors, drawer fronts, and various custom cabinet components and accessories such as face frames, custom box components, mouldings, and valances. The company primarily serves customers in Northern Alabama and Tennessee, located conveniently near Huntsville, Alabama. The move into full-service component manufacturing was a logical progression, building upon Earl Whisenant's woodworking career that began in 1972 and his subsequent ownership of Mastercraft Woodworks, a custom cabinetry business established in 1984. Mastercraft Woodworks expanded its product line to include full-size doors and cabinets for manufactured housing by 2001. After selling Mastercraft in 2006, Earl and Dustin continued to manage the business until a fire in late 2009 led to its closure, paving the way for the establishment of Elite Woodworks. A critical factor in Elite Woodworks' production efficiency and profitability is the accurate and optimized cutting of raw materials. The company relies on TigerStop cutting and optimizing equipment, including the TigerSaw 1000, which was installed in October 2014. This fully-automated crosscut and push-feed saw system replaced manual cutting processes, significantly reducing material waste, labor costs, and rework. According to Dustin Whisenant, the TigerSaw 1000 allows for direct downloading of door programs from the computer, minimizing errors and scrap and eliminating issues with missing parts. The system’s user-friendly interface is notable, as it is designed to be easily operated even by individuals unfamiliar with laptops, with instructions displayed clearly on the monitor. Elite Woodworks has further enhanced its production capabilities by upgrading its upcut saw and incorporating another TigerStop into its panel operation, enabling the downloading of panel part programs directly from the office. An additional TigerStop was integrated with an Omga radial arm saw for precise panel sizing. Beyond cutting equipment, the shop is outfitted with a comprehensive array of machinery, including a ripsaw for the roughmill area, a Weinig Unimat 500 for mouldings, and a Pillar MMTJ CNC machine for crafting miter joints on cabinet doors. Other specialized machines include Unique 315 and 318 for coping and stiles, a Unique 336 for shaping and sanding profiles, and SCMI and Buetfering widebelt sanders. Gluing for raised panel door construction is performed using a Rosenquist RF, with a Carlson door pinner assisting in assembly. The company also utilizes a Vitap boring machine for cabinet cutouts and drawer sides, a Holz-Her panel saw and edgebander, a 4x8 CNC flatbed Cam-Wood router, a Legacy CNC router for ornamental mouldings, and a Laguna CNC for custom turnings, posts, and corbels. Elite Woodworks leverages a robust software library, including Cabinet Vision, SuperDoor, Aspire, Rhino, and RouterCAD, to support its diverse manufacturing processes. The Whisenants emphasize that their company is more than just a door shop, differentiating themselves by offering total cabinet components. They view their customer relationships as partnerships, committed to investing in their customers' success by providing a wide array of products, from 32mm cabinets to butcher block tops. While primarily working with maple, they accommodate any specified wood type, including oak, hickory, and poplar. The company maintains a strong relationship with TigerStop, acknowledging the support and collaboration received. This extensive capability allows Elite Woodworks to handle nearly any woodworking project, ensuring high quality and attention to detail in every product. For more information, Elite Woodworks can be found online at EliteWoodworksllc.com, and TigerStop at TigerStop.com. #EliteWoodworks #Woodworking #CabinetComponents #TigerStopEquipment #ManufacturingSuccess #CustomWoodwork #WoodMachining #BusinessGrowth #WoodShop

This article highlights three distinct options for deck railings from TimberTech, catering to different priorities: ease of installation, ease of ordering, and customization. It provides insights for DIY enthusiasts and professionals seeking efficient and stylish railing solutions for their deck projects. For those prioritizing straightforward installation, TimberTech's Impression Rail Express® is presented. This system features a panelized design where balusters come pre-assembled in panels, simplifying the process by eliminating the need to install each baluster individually. The system also offers customizable 30-40 degree stair panels with 10 degrees of adjustment, accommodating various stair designs. Furthermore, three top rail options—Classic, Drink Rail, and Modern—share identical installation features, allowing for design flexibility without compromising ease of assembly. The article notes that all TimberTech railing systems, when properly assembled, are designed to meet common deck railing code requirements, though local building codes should always be verified. When ease of ordering is the primary concern, RadianceRail Express® is recommended. Unlike many railing systems that require individual component orders, RadianceRail Express streamlines the process by providing most necessary components in a single package. This includes top and bottom rails, balusters, post sleeves, hardware, and foot blocks, with only terminating posts, skirts, and post caps needing separate consideration. The top and bottom rails are pre-drilled for balusters, further simplifying installation. The system boasts a classic, milled wood aesthetic and is constructed from durable composite material, offering superior stain and weathering resistance compared to traditional wood, thus eliminating the need for sanding, staining, or sealing. For buyers seeking extensive customization options for a unique deck design, the TimberTech Classic Composite Series is the ideal choice. This series features a universal bottom rail that allows for integration with various infill options, including cable rail, glass, or traditional balusters, to achieve either a traditional or contemporary look. While this series offers significant design flexibility, the article advises that some customization options might be more complex to install, suggesting that working with a contractor can ensure proper construction. Customization involves three key steps: selecting a top rail design (Traditional, Modern, Drink Rail, or other perimeter options), choosing a color (Matte White, white, black, or other available colors to complement the deck and yard), and finally, deciding on an infill option. Additionally, the Classic Composite Series allows for customization of post sleeves, caps, and skirts to add a personalized touch, and offers lighting options for enhanced ambiance and safety. #deckRailings #DIYDeckProjects #TimberTech #homeImprovement #outdoorLiving #buildingMaterials #deckDesign #productReview

RDI Railing's Elevation Rail is a horizontal cable railing system designed to offer a modern aesthetic and unobstructed views for both indoor and outdoor spaces. The product distinguishes itself with a significantly faster installation time compared to leading competitors, attributed to its innovative design and reduced number of SKUs. It was recognized for its innovation, receiving the 2023 Best of IBS Award for Most Innovative Building Material at the annual NAHB International Builders’ Show, outcompeting over 400 other entries. Key features of the Elevation Rail system include its industrial design, suitability for indoor balconies, outdoor patios, and deck spaces, and a continuous top rail that accommodates both stair and level applications. The system requires no specialized tools or fasteners for installation, simplifying the process for contractors and potentially for homeowners undertaking DIY projects. Panels are available in lengths up to 6 feet wide and come in pre-assembled kits of 36-inch and 42-inch heights. These kits include pre-installed brackets and pre-strung stainless-steel cables, contributing to the rapid assembly. A notable advancement in the Elevation Rail system is the inclusion of a 42-inch high panel, introduced in early 2024. This expansion makes the product versatile enough for use in commercial and multi-family construction projects, in addition to its residential applications. The core innovation lies in its cable installation process, which diverges from traditional methods that involve feeding individual wires through posts. With Elevation Rail, the unique stainless steel pre-strung cable rail assembly slides into post ends once the posts are installed. Further enhancing its ease of installation is Barrette Outdoor Living’s patent-pending OneTen™ built-in centralized tensioning system. This system allows for all cables to be tensioned simultaneously, a significant departure from competitor systems that require individual cable tensioning and frequent seasonal adjustments. This centralized tensioning mechanism not only saves considerable time for contractors but also simplifies maintenance for end-users. The company asserts that the Elevation Rail system can be installed 38% faster than competing cable railing systems, citing a specific example of a 12'x18' deck installation where Elevation Rail took 49 minutes compared to 129 minutes for a competitive product. RDI Railing backs its product with a Transferable Limited Lifetime Warranty for the aluminum railing components and a Limited Warranty for its cable fittings. #RDIRailing #ElevationRail #CableRailing #HomeImprovement #OutdoorLiving #BuildingMaterials #FastInstallation #ModernDesign #ConstructionInnovation #NAHBInternationalBuildersShow

A team of researchers at Tokyo University has developed innovative software named 'Tsugite,' designed to facilitate the creation and fabrication of complex wooden joints and furniture. This software draws inspiration from traditional Japanese craftsmanship, which is renowned for its intricate wood joinery techniques that allow for the construction of sturdy structures without the need for nails, screws, or adhesives. The name 'Tsugite' itself is derived from the Japanese word for joinery, reflecting the software's core purpose. The Tsugite system provides users with the flexibility to either design custom joints from scratch or select from a pre-existing library of designs. Once a joint design is finalized within the software, it can be manufactured precisely using a CNC milling machine. A significant advantage of Tsugite is its accessibility, as it aims to enable individuals with limited or no prior experience in woodworking or 3D design to create functional wooden structures efficiently, often within minutes. One of the key benefits of using the Tsugite-designed joints is their inherent reusability and recyclability. Since no nails or glue are employed in the construction, furniture and other wooden structures can be easily assembled, disassembled, and reassembled, promoting sustainable practices. The Tokyo University researchers highlight that their system streamlines the creation of custom joints through an intuitive modeling interface that integrates seamlessly with CNC fabrication processes. The design environment is structured as a 3D grid of voxels, which allows for efficient geometric analysis and combinatorial searches, thereby simplifying the design process. The software operates in two distinct modes to cater to different user preferences and skill levels. In the manual editing mode, users can actively modify a joint design and receive immediate graphical feedback, enabling iterative refinement. Conversely, the gallery mode offers users a selection of pre-calculated, feasible joints, from which they can choose the most suitable option for their project. This dual-mode approach ensures both creative freedom and ease of use, making the sophisticated art of Japanese wood joinery more attainable for a broader audience. This development represents a significant step in blending ancient craft traditions with modern technology, opening new possibilities for furniture design, carpentry, and sustainable manufacturing. The project's creators include Maria Larsson, Hironori Yoshida, Nobuyuki Umetani, and Takeo Igarashi, whose collaborative efforts have resulted in this user-friendly and powerful design tool. #JapaneseWoodJoinery #TsugiteSoftware #CNCManufacturing #WoodworkingTechnology #FurnitureDesign #DigitalFabrication #SustainableDesign #TraditionalCraftsmanship