by Yun-Han Lin

We received our first woodwork order at the end of 2022 and have learned quite a few tips from the project. The following are a few feedbacks and our reflections.

Types of order

Due to the remote location of our studio, it is inconvenient to move around, so we target our orders at those that can be produced in remote areas and can be delivered to our customers. Woodwork orders are prone to items for house decoration; for instance, we once received a request for a cat tree. Unless there are special reasons, our workshop usually tends to decline requests of such customized objects.

Discussion beforehand

Before starting working on the project, it is better to go over the details as specific as possible, so that there will not be any misunderstandings after the products are completed.

Size: 3D drawings are vital, just to be safe. Fortunately, the client from our first projects provided their 3D drawings, which allowed us to have a clear idea of the objects from the very beginning, which greatly increased our willingness to take case.

Wood pieces: plywood is the most often used, with levels categorized based on the thickness. Thinner ones come in 3 mm, while thicker ones are 12 mm, although they often come in 11mm, since there is usually a 1 mm difference.

Tolerances: since handmade works seek zero variation can be time-consuming, there is usually a margin allowed. This is also the reason it is vital to inform the customers in advance that there will be a difference of plus or minus 2 mm. For projects like drawers that can only come in smaller but not larger, so that it could fit, these details must be confirmed in advance.

Production

Process: the thickness of the board was less than 15 mm, so we fixed the boards together using wood glue and a staple gun. Should it be 18 mm thick, we would have gone for wood glue coupled with screws manufactured by Pocket Hole.

Rounded corners: should the corners of the woodwork all be right angles, users may get cut, so we rounded the corners to a radius of about 2 mm.

Flaws: plywood often come in small flaws and pits, which can be fixed using wood repair adhesives to smooth out the surface.

Final check on the finished product

After completion, we take photos of the object and send them to customers to confirm; among the photos are also those with the object measured using tape measures, so that we and the customers can see the size is measured with the same specs.

Delivery

Since wooden works are medium and large items, we used to have services from Lalamove. It is easy to place orders on their app, and the shipping cost is much lower than that from many traditional shipping companies. Users can even track the progress in real time. However, we are located in a remote area, so there are few drivers that are willing to take our orders; also, there are additional costs to move the objects upstairs with NT$ 200 for each extra floor.

Later on, we found a courier company called Speedy Bunny Express. Its services are similar to those from traditional shipping agencies. Users contact the company for a quotation for their service, and the cost for moving the object upstairs will be included in the quotation. After comparing, the total cost is a bit less than that from Lalamove. One small shortcoming is that they deliver to several locations in one shipment; meaning, they may not deliver the projects directly to our customers the moment they collect it, and it may take almost half a day. That being the case, instead of worrying about not being able to find a driver to take the order, we opted for Speedy Bunny Express, which provides a relatively stable service.