But the City of Industry, CA-based company knew that in order to remain competitive in the tract housing market, it would have to be proactive and automate - every step of the way.

McConnell Cabinets has since invested thousands of dollars to improve the quality and consistency of manufacturing at its facilities. Changes have already been implemented in the production, assembly and packaging lines. The final phase will be completed later this year and includes revamping the finishing operation.

Improving Production
Although the company specializes in new construction tract housing, each order is unique. "At one time, the business used to be to just offer one door style, one color..." says William Scott McConnell, owner and president. "Today, we manufacture to the builder's option, with each cabinet customized."

The majority of cabinets produced are face-frame; the company's Full Access frameless line accounts for 20 percent of the mix. Combined, the company currently manufactures an average of 1,000 cabinets per day, with a capacity of 1,600.

To improve consistency and consolidate machining operations in both its frame and frameless lines, McConnell Cabinets focused its attention on its production methods, Sarrail says.

"After looking at our operation as a whole, we found a lot of extra handling in all departments. If the operation did not add to the quality or value of the product, we redesigned the process," he adds.

Employee input was integral, Sarrail says. The company was able to draw upon a wealth of experience by its 499 employees; 96 have been with the company 10 or more years, 58 for 20 or more years and eight for 30 or more years.

McConnell Cabinets manufactures face-frame and frameless cabinets for new construction and remodeling markets. Pictured above is a European beech face-frame cabinet in a cherry finish.

Almost immediately, the company found it could consolidate cutting operations and reduce storage needs by standardizing stock material for its cabinets to precut sizes. The next operation targeted was the machining process for frame cabinets.

One of the first changes implemented was to run all frame parts through a Weinig CNC moulder. In addition to the consistency immediately obtained from the programmable settings, the CNC moulder "eliminated all the mill marks, which reduced the need for additional sanding operations down the line," McConnell adds. Parts now are sanded just twice prior to finishing, first through a four-head Timesavers, then through a DMC to remove crossgrain.

"We've reduced our sanding operations, while our quality and consistency are twice what we had before," says Bob McManus, general manager.

To speed up the production process, in late 2003 McConnell Cabinets redesigned the construction method for its face-frame cabinets. Among the changes was the switch from dowel to screw construction.

"We were boring the dowel holes for the stiles and rails, inserting the dowels by mallet, then clamping the frames to square them up," Sarrail says. "When we changed the way we made the frames, we found a machine that drills a pocket for the screw. It's more consistent and a much faster process."

The company also developed a unique way to manufacture its frameless line. "Since we debuted our Full Access line in 2000, frameless cabinetry has become a growing business," says Jim Ewing, sales manager. However, he says, because of the company's unique requirements for mass customization, the traditional method of 32mm boring was ineffective for McConnell Cabinets' needs.

McConnell Cabinets' Full Access line is available in a variety of styles and finishes, including high-gloss white. Frameless cabinetry accounts for 20 percent of McConnell Cabinets' production.

Different became the operative word. McConnell Cabinets not only reconfigured its boring lines to include traditional stand-alone machines, but it changed all the processors to Allen-Bradley so the machines could be linked. A bar code system soon will be implemented to aid tracking and ensure order accuracy, McConnell says.

Panels first are cut to standardized sizes on one of two Schelling CNC panel saws and stacked.

As orders are placed, Heian stackers load panels onto the machining line. Panels are sent to a Powermatic table saw, cleaned, then run through a Biesse RBO panel turner and the first of two Biesse Techno boring machines with modified heads for flexibility.

"We had tooling customized for the different boring patterns," says Sarrail. The customized heads are also adjustable to height and depth.

The two 106-foot lines are similar, although one has the added capability of dowel insertion. Only one operator is needed to run either line.

"With our old method, the time for boring end jambs for the base cabinets was one minute per panel on the single point-to-point. On the new throughfeed boring line, we can do 10 to 15 per minute," Sarrail says.

The company's original boring machine, a Biesse Rover 325, is now used for one-up jobs. Homag and Holz-Her edgebanders are used to apply banding to the panel edges.

The company also changed the drawer construction in its face-frame line to match the Full Access frameless line. The reason, McConnell says, was "to increase the quality of our product through consistency." An average of 1,450 drawers are manufactured per day.

The majority of cabinet doors - 95 percent - also are manufactured in-house. "Our door styles, as well as the species, dictate our price points," says Ewing. Ranked highest to lowest by price point, the species used at McConnell Cabinets are: Lyptus (special orders), hickory, cherry, maple, European steamed beech and oak. Beech is the most popular species requested, followed by oak.

McConnell Cabinets produces 1,540 doors per day in approximately 40 styles and finishes. Thermofoil doors are outsourced from Decore-ative Specialties.

Two Schelling CNC panel saws cut sheets to specified widths. As part of its efforts to improve consistency and reduce stock, the company has standardized much of its material sizes.

Located in Southern California, McConnell Cabinets falls under the jurisdiction of the South Coast Air Quality Management District in regards to VOC emissions. SCAQMD's Rule 1136 is the most restrictive finishing regulation in the nation.

Although the company already exceeds the requirements of the July 1, 2005, rule through its use of water-based stains, McConnell says their commitment to a "green" environment has led them to look further for ways to eliminate VOC emissions.

"Bob (McManus) and I also spent time looking at some different facilities to see what they were doing and how they were doing it," Sarrail says. Their research led the company to invest in a Cefla flatline and UV coating system.

The new line is scheduled to be operational by October. When installed, the finishing process will be: whitewood sanding on the new Opti-Sand sander; application of water-based stain; sanding on a second Opti-Sand sander;application of sealer on the Cefla flatline; a third sanding process; then UV coating of the topcoat on the Cefla system. Akzo coatings will be used in the process.

"Our final goal is to have all of our products finished on the flatline system," McConnell says.

The five newly-installed 85-foot automated assembly lines and 200-foot packaging line have led to significant reductions in the handling of parts, McConnell says.

"With the new redesign of the assembly of our cabinets, we increased output approximately 50 percent, based on having parts in one location. The assembly starts on the conveyor - with all operations done on the conveyor - and the cabinets are transferred to the pre-ship area. When the job is complete, the houses of cabinets are transferred to another power conveyor to be loaded onto the truck. This has removed four-to-five hand movements on the cabinets, reducing any chance of damage," Sarrail adds.

Maintaining quality control in all facets of the operation is very important, says John Sarrail, vice president of sales. "For that reason, we deliver and install everything we build."