What do Boston, Chicago and New York have in common when it comes to important North American woodworking events?

Each is closer in distance to Toronto than it is to other wood trade show hot spots Atlanta and Las Vegas.

What's more, all three of these famed U.S. cities enjoy non-stop service on upstart Porter Airlines, which flies daily into the Toronto City Centre Airport, a mere kilometer from the Direct Energy Centre, new home to this year's Woodworking Machinery & Supply Expo, Canada's largest woodworking event. (For the record, Porter also flies to Toronto from Myrtle Beach, SC, and 11 Canadian cities.)

This public service announcement for WMS, October 27-29, 2011, is not meant to discourage American woodworkers from making plans for the 2012 International Woodworking Fair in Atlanta or the 2013 AWFS Fair in Las Vegas. Indeed, I strongly encourage you to attend as many woodworking events as you can to stay abreast of current technologies and supplies; learn about emerging technologies and industry trends; connect with current and prospective vendors; and network with woodworking peers.

WMS provides all of these vital woodworking trade show opportunities in the comfort of downtown Toronto, a North American hub of business affluence and cultural influence.

International Supplier Connections
In addition to its close proximity, WMS features an exhibit base with many of the world's most recognized names.

On the hardware side, the list includes companies like Blum, Grass, Hettich and Richelieu. Familiar software providers include 20-20 Technologies, Cabinet Pro, Delcam, Planit and Tradesoft. On the board side are Flakeboard, Tafisa and Uniiboard.

The Wood Machinery Manufacturers of America is organizing a strong showing of its members at a special products pavilion. More major American machinery companies, such as Thermwood and Timesavers, will be on hand through their Canadian distributor CNC Automation, which will also present Kentwood moulders on behalf of Stiles Machinery and Makor finishing systems, at its booth. CNC Automation plans to use machinery in its booth to manufacture and assemble residential casegoods to benefit Habitat for Humanity.

This is just a small representation of the companies that will be represented at WMS; new companies are continuing to contract exhibit space for the three-day show.

Biggest Conference in WMS History
The woodworking displays and demonstrations will be augmented by the largest WMS Conference ever.

Vance Communications Canada, the show's organizer, is working closely with several important groups to craft a well-rounded and comprehensive educational offering. WMS Conference partners include the Architectural Woodwork Manufacturers Association of Canada (AWMAC), Association of Closet and Storage Professionals (ACSP), Cabinet Makers Association (CMA) and Centre for Advanced Wood Processing (CAWP) at the University of British Columbia.
 
WMS Conference topics range from wood finishing and lean manufacturing to marketing and breaking into new markets. In addition to more traditional conference sessions held in meeting rooms, WMS will feature Wood Tech Summit comprised of live, interactive panel discussions on the show floor.

If your woodworking business is in the market for new machines, supplies or ideas that can help it operate more efficiently and profitably, I wholeheartedly recommend that you consider spending a day or two exploring growth opportunities at the Woodworking Machinery & Supply Expo.

Learn more and register to attend at WoodworkingExpo.ca or contact me at [email protected]; 847-415-8024.

Read more of Rich Christianson's blogs.

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