25 years on and still here

If you had asked me back when we started this magazine in 1995 how long would it last no way would I have said twenty five years but here we are celebrating our 100th issue. It has been an interesting journey being witness to good times and not so good times but above all to change. As a publication we have gone from paste up boards and film stripping, from aluminium to plastic plates to eventually the digital world where everything is in the ether from one computer to another. The same can be said of the industry sectors we have covered. Ross Campbell, one of our featured people in this issue makes the comment ‘Today there is no destiny without computerisation’ and he is right.

The magazine has essentially covered two main sectors: the utilization of solid wood and panel by the main trades we cover being joiners, cabinetmakers, furniture and kitchen manufacturers on the one hand and on the other the myriad of product and services involved in what can be called architectural hardware. Both sectors have been heavily influenced by the introduction of computerisation be in design or manufacturing since the maturing process began back in the mid 1990’s. Just two examples suffice to illustrate this. One is the evolution of machines using CNC technology which has transformed modern production processes making it faster, more efficient and cheaper to make products. The other is they say a hinge is a hinge is a hinge. Not true. The design process aided by computerisation and new production techniques has seen the humble hinge evolve over the last twenty years from simple to sophisticated.

The magazine has been fortunate from the start to be the official publication of the NZ Joinery Manufacturers Federation now known as Master Joiners. This body has evolved over the last twenty five years as well. The first annual conference I attended was held in Ashburton back in 1995. It was a small gathering by current standards. Membership of the Master Joiners was for a long time around 140 until the implementation of the NZ Standard 4211 after which membership doubled to around 280 and is still growing. It was in my view the single greatest change to date for the group since it’s inception back in 1949. In the last year or so we have seen some exciting developments for the Master Joiners with the appointment of new personnel, a new national office in Wellington and a new approach. It is a true trade organisation being representative of it’s members and a link to other organisations particularly for training, apprenticeships and government. The future for the organisation looks ever brighter. I should note here that the magazine has been the proud sponsor of what is now called the Master Joiners Apprentice Awards for a continuous 25 years – the only sponsor to be so. It would have been so this year as well had it not been for Covid 19.

For me there has been one particular aspect that has kept me in this business: the people I have met over the years. They are too numerous for me to mention by name but they have all left their mark on me. Perhaps the most important person though has been the person I started this business with, my editor Michael Goddard. He has been there through it all, at the coalface meeting and interviewing clients for stories while putting the magazine together in readiness to print. He has probably seen change more dramatically than I have particularly on the production side of things. I thank him for his real contribution.

We have over the years been supported by the suppliers to the industries we have covered and they ultimately are the reason for our survival and I thank them for it. I have always viewed the magazine as the meat in the sandwich between the buyer and the seller, we don’t take sides we simply present. The driving force is to be as good as we can in getting the message out there, to encourage other potential members to join the Master Joiners and to present the Master Joiners as well as we can. There are many other topics of the last twenty five years I could touch on but I’m going to end with a very hearty thank you to the most important people of all: you the reader. The magazine is for you and we will continue to provide coverage of the latest in goods and services available and industry comment as long as we can

Bob Nordgren

150 YEARS 50 BRANCHES 1 ACCOUNT

0 HASSLES

OUR PARTNERS ENSURE YOU’RE ALWAYS IN GOOD SUPPY

We stock the market’s best known brands and understand the special requirements needed by a joiner for the perfect finish.

Your furniture and joinery account manager will work with you and the extended CARTERS team.

Talk to us today about the joinery solution that works for you.

Supplier of Bestwood

Melamine colour board ranges, ask your local branch for details today.