The Cutting Edge™ - September 2004

Public Policy

Making Sense of it All By John Satagaj, WMMA Legislative Counsel, email@jsatlaw.com

As this Congress enters its home stretch-maybe-there sure is a lot of unfinished business still on the table. In last month's column I focused my attention on one critical item for us, the repeal and replacement of the Foreign Sales Corporation/Extraterritorial Income (FSC/ETI) tax program. Every day, I go back and forth between optimism and pessimism.

One of the items that always has been high on the President's health care agenda is the association health plan (AHP) legislation. This bill would allow trade associations to offer health care insurance programs on a national scale. This means they would not have to offer the different benefits mandated by various states. I have always thought, in the short term, that the AHPs would provide you a measure of premium relief. Insurers would ally themselves with some big associations and offer loss leader premium cuts to capture market share. I have always been skeptical of the long term value of the legislation. Once the market share has been captured, premium increases seem logical. AHPs do nothing to actually change the costs of providing health care.

Having said all that, I had thought the Republican controlled Congress would produce a win for the President. The House has passed the bill, a couple of times now, without too much problem. In the Senate, the story has been different. While the Blue Cross/Blue Shields of the country, along with Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), oppose the bill, it has been a Republican Senator, Judd Gregg (R-NH) that has blocked movement on the bill. Senator Gregg chairs the subcommittee with jurisdiction over the bill.

My thought was that election year politics would persuade Senator Gregg to give the President a win. For a while, I even though it might be the trade-off for a minimum wage increase. Unions and Senator Kennedy get the minimum wage increase and they are forced to accept the enactment of the AHP.

Turns out I was wrong. Senator Gregg has stuck by his guns. In a letter to a local New Hampshire newspaper, Gregg said that the danger is that insurers and businesses would be allowed to "cherry pick" participants who have only young, healthy employees. Businesses that tend to employ older workers or have employees with costly conditions would be forced to buy outside the AHP group. Gregg indicated he would introduce legislation that captures the benefits of AHPs without the controversial elements, by creating a level playing field for everyone who purchases health insurance.

The fact that the minimum wage increase was not passed by the Senate was a surprise in itself. In an election year, Republicans have responded to the pressure in the past to take the issue off the table so it does not linger as a campaign issue. I expected them to add something to it, either the AHP as I alluded to above, or more likely some sort of tax relief. The effort was moving according to script. Senator Kennedy was able to extract a commitment to offer an amendment to a class action reform. Since the class action reform bill had been developing bi-partisan momentum it appeared likely the Senator would get his way. And indeed, the Republicans were preparing a modest package of tax relief sweeteners. But Senators began to maneuver to "pile on" other initiatives. Quicker than you can say "summer recess," the class action reform bill was pulled and the minimum wage increase shifted from the likely column to the campaign issue column.

At the beginning of this column, I started out by suggesting that this Congress just might not finish up soon. There is plenty of talk of a lame duck session after the elections. Congress is experiencing tremendous appropriations heartburn once again and a lot of folks think they will avoid the tough decisions before the elections.

Oddly enough, if they do, it might kick start an issue we have worked on all this year. As you know, the depreciation "bonus" will expire at the end of this year. We worked to get Congress to consider it during the FSC/ETI bill but no one would bite. I can conjure up a scenario in a lame duck session in which all of a sudden the expiring provision takes on a sense of urgency, and when we least expect it, Congress does something right. Who says I am not an optimist? It is hard to make sense of it all, isn't it?

October is "Manufacturing Month"

The Coalition for the Future of Manufacturing has designated October "Manufacturing-Making America's Future" Month - with the goal of educating and mobilizing political candidates in the final weeks leading up to the elections. During October, manufacturers are urged to engage in an array of political and societal leaders needed to help change the climate for U.S. manufacturing. Toolkits - available online at www.nam.org/toolkit and in CD format in mid-September - will provide manufacturers and their associations with a variety of materials to help further our message.

Among the recommended activities manufacturers can undertake in October:
- Candidate Dialogues. Hold forums in central locations with political candidates.
- Plant Tours & Field Trips. Host tours of facilities for political candidates as well as for schoolchildren and editors.
- Editorial Board Meetings. Hold group meetings between local manufacturers and local editors.
- Employee Activism. Hold roundtable discussions with employees to discuss the political issues of the campaign and the need to vote pro-manufacturing. (For more information visit www.nam.org/P2.)

To learn more, contact Stephen gold at (202) 637-3102 or sgold@nam.org.

Manufacturing Competitiveness of the Forest Products Industry:
Competing in Today's Global Manufacturing and Consumer Marketplace

November 3-5, 2004
Omni Royal Orleans Hotel, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
For a PDF of the complete program click here.

The North American forest products industry is facing many challenges in today's global marketplace, from resource procurement to environmental regulation to competition from off-shore manufacturers. The ability of the North American forest products industry to manufacture and compete in the global marketplace is being seriously challenged. Off-shore pressures from secondary manufacturers have begun to erode the manufacturing base of the secondary wood products industry. Primary producers face challenges in the commodity marketplace from off-shore producers and raw materials. Sustaining our manufacturing base is critical to the future of the forest industries in North America.

This conference is not about a search for a quick fix for the production environment. Nor is it about just another tool or new piece of equipment. Nor is it about getting together to share gloom and doom projections. This conference is about developing a state-of-the-art approach to competing in today's global economy. It is about understanding the value stream, aligning production with demand while achieving quality, and designing ultimate flexibility into forest products manufacturing systems. This conference is about manufacturing excellence. This conference considers examples of infrastructure and programming to support local, state, and regional forest products manufacturers. This conference is about competing.

We have assembled an excellent group of speakers representing industry, universities, and government. Collectively, all intellectual capital and stakeholders must come together to develop a synergistic approach to promoting the competitiveness of our forest industries in the new world marketplace.

Conference Objectives

- To summarize the current state of competitiveness of the forest products industry by addressing the global wood manufacturing environment, the business environment, and the production environment.
- To examine the contributions of the wood manufacturing industries to local economies.
- To present timely and relevant information on competitive strategies in the business and production environments.
- To examine relevant supply chain, quality, and industry support issues and challenges.
- To foster a platform among conference attendees to bring recognition and examples of solutions for competing in today's highly competitive manufacturing and business environments.

Decision makers in industry, plant managers, local economic development and state commerce representatives, forest industry consultants, equipment suppliers, community and 4-year college faculty and students, workforce development specialists, legislators, and others in the wood products industry supply chain.

The complete program of this important conference is available in PDF format. If you would prefer to have a copy mailed to you, contact conferences@forestprod.org. Poster Session

On Wednesday evening, 5:00-8:00 pm, an informal reception featuring complimentary hors d'oeuvres and beverages from a cash bar will offer attendees an opportunity to browse through a number of poster presentations on various subjects related to manufacturing competitiveness of the forest products industry.

Poster presentation spaces are still available. The poster session will consist of poster presentations by individuals who are stationed at a booth space similar to a typical exhibit booth. Each space contains a draped table and a 4- by 8-foot posterboard on which an abstract, key points, conclusions, charts, and diagrams are posted. If you believe you have technical materials suitable for a poster presentation (no commercial materials accepted), please submit the Poster Presentation Request Form to the Forest Products Society by October 1.

Poster presentations will be accepted based upon a review of their suitability to the objectives of the conference and on the availability of space.

To register for the conference, please print and complete the registration form and mail it to the Forest Products Society, 2801 Marshall Ct., Madison, WI 53705-2295, or fax it to (608) 231-2152, or you may register by phone (608) 231-1361, ext. 208.

An on site registration desk will be set up at the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel. Registration desk hours on site will be: Tuesday, November 2, 3:00-7:00 pm; Wednesday, November 3, 7:00am-5:00pm; Thursday, November 4, 7:00am-5:00pm; Friday, November 5, 7:00am-12:00noon.

The conference fee of $595.00 includes conference materials, three continental breakfasts, two luncheons, one reception, and five coffee breaks.

Refunds for cancellations will be given if requested by mail, telephone, or fax. A charge will be made for late cancellations: within 2 weeks of the opening day of the conference, 15% of the registration fee; within 72 hours, 30% of the registration fee. No refunds will be given on cancellations after the closing day of the conference.

Registrants are responsible for making their own hotel reservations. A block of rooms has been reserved at the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel at a special conference rate of $93.00 + tax Deluxe Queen (single or double occupancy) or $129.00 + tax Luxury (single or double occupancy). The room block will be held through October 11, 2004, 5:00 pm local time at the Hotel. After October 11 remaining rooms in the block will be released for sale to the general public, and attendees cannot be guaranteed the conference rate or room availability after this date.

The hotel reservation form should be completed and mailed or sent by fax directly to the Omni. For telephone reservations, phone (800) 400-1700 or (504) 529-5333, or you may fax your reservation to (504) 529-7016. In order to receive the special conference rate, be sure to state that you are registering for the 2004 Manufacturing Competitiveness Conference. You may also make your room reservation on-line at the Omni Royal Orleans' Reservation Web Site.

All events related to the conference will take place at the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel. A luxury hotel, recipient of the AAA four-diamond luxury award for the past 27 years, the Omni Royal Orleans graces New Orleans most fashionable corner, St. Louis at Royal in the heart of the historic French Quarter. Offering Pinnacle Award winning meeting services, a unique rooftop pool oasis and the Zagat rated Rib Room-Rotisserie Extraordinaire. This restaurant has been the haunt of literary greats and the politically infamous for more than 40 years, and is known as the "place to see, and be seen"!

Sponsored by the Forest Products Society in cooperation with the American Forest & Paper Association, American Furniture Manufacturers Association, Arkansas Wood Manufacturers Association, Architectural Woodwork Institute, FDM Magazine, Healthy Forests Healthy Communities Partnership, Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association, Louisiana Forest Products Development Center, Mississippi Forest Products Laboratory, North Carolina State University, Southern Forest Products Association, University of Tennessee Forest Products Center, USDA Forest Products Laboratory, Virginia Forest Products Association, Virginia Tech, Wood Component Manufacturers Association, Wood Digest Magazine, WoodLINKS USA, Wood Machinery Industry Association, Wood Machinery Manufacturers of America, Wood Molding and Millwork Producers Association, Wood Products Manufacturers Association, and Wood & Wood Products Magazine.

The Planning Committee Chair is Paul M. Winistorfer, Professor, Department of Wood Science & Forest Products, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA. Planning Committee Members include: Arthur B. Brauner, Executive Vice President, Forest Products Society, Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Urs Buehlmann, Assistant Professor, Department of Wood & Paper Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Dan Cumbo, Research Associate, Department of Wood Science & Forest Products, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA; D. Earl Kline, Professor, Department of Wood Science & Forest Products, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA; Chuck Ray, Assistant Professor, School of Forest Resources, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Janice K. Wiedenbeck, Research Scientist, USDA Forest Service, Princeton, West Virginia, USA; and Tim Young, Associate Professor, Tennessee Forest Products Center, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.

WMMA® Member Earns Federal Government Matching Funds Grant through an Article read in The Cutting Edge
By Todd Herzog, President, Accu-Router, Inc. todd@accu-router.com

In the February 2004 issue of the WMMA® The Cutting Edge newsletter, Harold Zassenhaus had written about an available federal government grant program with the Economic Development Administration of the Department of Commerce. U.S. manufacturers could qualify for a matching funds grant of up to $75,000 by showing economic harm from foreign competition.

The last three years have been economically challenging to U.S. machine tool builders, especially with competition from Japan, Taiwan, and China. Accu-Router decided last March to apply for this grant program. Many communications, forms, phone calls, and finally meetings with a southeastern coordinator led to a submission in late May. We were initially approved in mid-July. A final report submission was sent to DOC which was approved on August 11, 2004. Accu-Router was approved for the full program amount of $75,000 in matching funds or a total payout of $150,000 ($75,000 from Accu-Router). We will have up to three years to spend the matching funds which are subject to funding availability.

The matching funds grant is designated for projects such as new advertisement creation, new product literature, web site expansion, sales rep recruiting, new product flysheets, new trade shows, third party R & D, market research, training for new software, etc. The focus of these projects is to help expand sales and market share. Accu-Router did provide specific project expense projections to aid in the submission. These very projects will be undertaken with this program. The very first matching fund released was associated with the IWF 2004 Show.

Accu-Router is thrilled to be able to participate with this federal matching funds program. This will provide a direct economic boost to our company. It will allow for more aggressive marketing services and personnel recruiting than would have been otherwise scheduled. This grant award comes directly from information gained through being a member of WMMA®. Other WMMA® member companies could also benefit from this E.D.A. program. We are certainly glad we did.

Sincerely,

Todd A. Herzog
President, Accu-Router, Inc.

Note: You can look into receiving federal grants for your company, too. There is no one central source of all government grants - each federal agency has its own grant opportunities and they are divided into "issue" areas. There are some dedicated websites, however.

-For information about training grants, visit: www.doleta.gov.
-For lean manufacturing/quality process/supply chain grants visit www.mep.nist.gov.
-Visit the Department of Commerce for economic development grants www.commerce.gov.
-Or visit the General Accounting Office to see what they think of how federal grants are spent www.gao.gov.

International Business Development

Wood Bedroom Furniture Tariffs Reduced
By Harold Zassenhaus, WMMA® Export Director, zemg@erols.com

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced an "Amended Preliminary Anti-Dumping Duty Determination" on Chinese wooden bedroom furniture due to "significant ministerial errors made in margin calculations". As a result, several Chinese manufacturers who were originally facing 198% tariffs will now face only 10.92% rates, while only two manufacturers saw their margins increase.

The impact of this determination is not yet apparent as export numbers to China for the first five months of 2004 continue to exhibit substantial growth. However, some Chinese furniture producers have noted that they are gradually changing the focus of their export promotion away from the U.S. and towards Europe. The full impact of this determination will become apparent as export statistics are posted for the second half of 2004.

Wood Furniture Import Trends
By Harold Zassenhaus, WMMA® Export Director, zemg@erols.com

Wood Furniture import statistics have been broken down into 11 component parts: bedroom furniture, wood frame upholstered furniture, chairs, furniture parts, office furniture, kitchen cabinets, furniture and parts of rattan, cane or bamboo, chair parts, kitchen furniture (excluding cabinets), furniture for vehicles and other wood furniture. Members can click here to view a series of tables showing 3 year trends by type, by country, by fastest growing country as well as imports from China by type. Members will need their user name and password to log onto the site. Contact Karen Boyle, WMMA® Headquarters, (215) 564-3484, for forgotten user name and password.

Wood furniture imports continued its double digit growth for the first 6 months of 2004, growing by 15% to $6.8 billion. Wood Bedroom furniture grew by 22% perhaps because of or in spite of the recent Department of Commerce preliminary dumping determination (see related article).

China continued to be the largest supplier (41% import market share) and one of the fastest growing (27% over the same period last year) with shipments totaling $2.8 billion. The US now imports over 50% of its bedroom furniture from China, 34% of its wood frame upholstered furniture, 34% of its chairs, 52% of its chair parts and 32% of other furniture parts.

While China continues to be the main concern for wood product producers, other supplying nations are gaining market share. Vietnam, which supplied less than $12 million in 2001, exported over $126 million over the first half of 2004. It is currently the 9th leading supplier nation and it would be no surprise if it is one of the top 5 by 2005. Vietnam has placed a high priority on furniture production. The country has developed a "furniture city" close to its capital where it has its own port and accounts for the vast majority of its production and exports. It is a market that WMMA® members should seriously consider since it is open to US sources of supply, may of the producers speak English and the are hungry for additional machinery.

Other countries that have been increasing their shipments to the US include: Slovakia, Finland, Lithuania, Chile, Brazil, Poland, France, Germany, Sweden, Thailand, India and Malaysia.

WMMA Congratulates Four Challengers Award Winners

Seven companies were recognized for technological innovation in the Challengers Distinguished Achievement Awards presented during a ceremony held Thursday, August 26^th, and four of them were WMMA® members.

The seven companies' products were selected from a group of 20 finalists. A total of 118 products were entered in the biennial competition.

Congratulations to the WMMA® members who were winners:

Accu-Systems Inc's MMTJ, a single-sided CNC machine for doing miter, mortise and tenon work. The combination machine's V-shaped tabletop allows machining of two parts at once.
All referencing is done off one edge for accurate joints. A computer controls the X, Y and Z axes, as well as the size of the mortise and tenon. Programs are stored and recalled as needed.

Binks DeVillbiss/ITW Industrial Finishing's VTX spray gun. It employs Jet Impingement Automation to supply NGR wood finishing stains and improve pattern coating uniformity and color consistency while reducing mottling and haloing. The VTX accommodates a three-stage process that hydraulically pre-atomizes the stain, creating a vortex, forms a hollow fluid bulb and finely atomizes the stain with an air cap and baffle combination.

Mereen-Johnson Machine Co.'s CamLock system. It utilizes the natural occurrence of centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the ripsaw arbor to lock the saw blades into their desired position. Mereen-Johnson says the new system makes saw changeover as easy as stopping the saw arbor, moving the saw blade to the new desired position and restarting the arbor. The CamLock system also features individually spring-tensioned position locking cams, which will hold each blade in position until the arbor is started and centrifugal force takes over.

Vortex Tool's Diamondback tool design. It features a polycrystalline-fused cutting edge on a solid-carbide blank. Because the Diamondback has true helical tool geometry, it can combine the performance of solid carbide with the extended life of polycrystalline, the company says. Initial testing indicates tool life in excess of 10 times that of traditional carbide solid carbide bits, Vortex adds.

IWF 2004 Recap

IWF 2004 a Success

The 2004 International Woodworking Machinery & Supply Fair (IWF) put an exclamation point on the woodworking industry's recovery.

The four-day event, held August 26-29 at the Georgia World Congress Center, drew rave reviews from the vast majority of exhibitors who interacted with the staffs of Wood & Wood Products, Custom Woodworking Business and CLOSETS magazines.

Representatives of woodworking machinery were particularly impressed with the quality of booth traffic at their booths and most importantly their seemingly strong intent to buy. Representatives of exhibiting companies including Thermwood said they wrote up more orders on the first day of the show than any other show's first day ever.

Pre-registration of 20,912 was 3.6% above that of 2002, according to James Wulfekuhle, IWF director of marketing and communication. He also noted that the show's 1,372 exhibitors was a record and display space of 832,813 net square feet was the second largest in IWF's history.

Workplace Tools

Tools to Help Manage the Hispanic Workforce
By Tim Longwell, D.J. Case & Associates, tim@djcase.com

Tools now available at www.na.fs.fed.us/wihispanic

The wood products industry, like many labor-intensive industries, has increasingly turned to hiring Hispanic workers to maintain a competitive edge. Recently, numerous wood product industry associations decided to collectively address the challenges that their members were facing with their Hispanic workforce.

An intensive assessment was completed to identify the needs for companies in the wood products industry and their Hispanic workers. Based upon these results the following products were developed: - Working with Hispanicsis a guide to help supervisors and managers understand how cultural differences can affect the workplace.
- El Pequena Gui'a para el Inmigrante Hispano (A Small Guide for the Hispanic Immigrant) is a nationally recognized booklet written as an informational resource explaining the American culture and workplace to the Hispanic woodworker.
- The Employee Handbook Template allows companies to develop a customized employee handbook including their company name, contact persons, State (labor laws vary by state) and specific information on times of work, worker obligations, rights and responsibilities. The handbook can be downloaded in English and/or Spanish.
- A Survival Spanish/English Wood Products Terminology Glossary has over 1400 terms and phrases that can be printed out to aid in communication or "clicked on" to hear pronunciation.
- Company Orientation and Employee Motivation helps supervisors understand the importance of the orientation process and worker productivity. This resource also provides insight into what can motivate employees to perform optimally.
- Achieving Quality Through Teamwork helps builds a team mentality that can increase productivity and product quality.
- A comprehensive list of Related Links provides additional information and resources on these subjects.

The following Industry Associations provided invaluable initiative, direction, guidance, and participation: IHLA, WMMA, AHMI, AWI, AWFS, KCMA, WCMA, WPMA and many others.

These FREE resources can be accessed at www.na.fs.fed.us/wihispanic thanks to funding from the USDA Forest Service, Wood Education Resource Center (WERC).

Innovative Energy Efficient Industrial Ventilation

Industrial Ventilation is a major part of energy consumption in the woodworking, metalworking, food processing, chemical, pharmaceutical, printing and other industries. This article describes an innovative on-demand industrial ventilation system. The main benefit from system installation is radical energy saving (67% average of all installed systems) in comparison with classical ventilation systems.

Events of the recent years, increased prices of oil and gas, and the recent major blackout in the U.S. history which makes using energy-efficient equipment more important than ever before. The Ecogate® system is an excellent choice for a more energy-efficient environment.

Since its first commercial year 2000, the company has shipped over 13,000 gates, over 1,300 small & medium systems and over 65 Master Industrial Systems. A number of systems are already three years in uninterrupted service around the USA at major woodworking companies.

The Ecogate® System has already gained industry acceptance. Among other environmental and energy-efficiency awards, Ecogate® won the prestigious Sequoia Award given by the Association of Woodworking® Furnishings Suppliers to organizations that demonstrate environmental innovation and leadership in energy conservation in 2001. The Ecogate® MASTER System was installed for evaluation and training purposes at North Carolina State University, Hodges Lab.

Through extensive data collection, we have discovered that the typical woodworking manufacturer is actually producing sawdust only at 5% to 60% of its workstations at any given time. This percentage varies with first, second, third shift, type of factory (mill, cabinet maker) and by other factors.

Fig. 1: Typical activity of workstations at a major US woodworking producer during the first shift (best workstation 55% of shift time, worst 0%, average 23.5%). Note: red columns are representing comparison between workstations.

As you see, only 23% of workstations are cutting material during the first shift, yet the dust collecting system is working all the time, with full power. The Ecogate® System solves this by creating computer controlled on-demand system.

When a machine is turned on, a sensor signals the greenBOX® controller to open the appropriate gate. When the machine stops, the gate closes. The greenBOX® MASTER computer monitors the usage of all machines in the shop and, through the Power MASTER™ unit (with variable speed drive), it continually optimizes the amount of power supplied to the collector fan based on the software model of the system (duct system) and the software model of the fan. The System is programmed to keep a certain number of gates open at certain position, even if the machinery is not operating in order to maintain proper airflow through the system.

Fig. 4: Simplified block diagram of the Ecogate® System. Sensors and blast gates are connected to the greenBOX® MASTER unit. The greenBOX® MASTER unit regulates the speed (power) of the collector fan via a Power MASTER™ unit using a serial communication channel. A negative pressure sensor is connected to the greenBOX® MASTER.

EMBED Visio.Drawing.6

Fig. 2: green line represents "real air-volume demand" of workstations in the factory; red line represents air-volume of a typically designed system minute by minute. Ecogate® system is designed to supply "demand" air-volume, with the result of average electricity savings of 67%.

The next chart will explain how we can achieve high electricity savings (60-80%) - the so-called fan law.

Fig. 3: High energy savings are possible based on a law of physics called "the fan law": 50% reduction of air-flow (by automatically closing dampers on non-operating machinery) fan motor will need only 12.5% of consumption (an 87.5% savings). Thus, reducing air flow just 30% will yield a 66% savings.

To design an on-demand system by using automated gates is not that technically difficult, but the idea is to design a system, which maintains proper air-velocities. Dust collecting systems are transporting sawdust and if air-velocity in some part of ducting drops under a certain value, sawdust will settle in the ducting.

Ecogate® solves this problem by using sophisticated software models, sensors, and proper duct system design, which is proprietary know-how covered by patent. Our customers can prove that we have solved the problem: sawdust settling has never happened to us on all running systems over the past three years.

Fig. 5: This chart shows the measurements at a furniture manufacturing facility in California, made by a third party (SC Edison): red line represents average consumption of dust collecting system without Ecogate® system (61 kW), green line average consumption with Ecogate® system (13 kW), a 79% reduction.

We have similar results at all Ecogate® system installations.

The average savings on all installed systems are 67% of electricity used for industrial ventilation. This information has been verified by one or more outside agencies. The typical electrical savings that most manufacturers see with the Ecogate® system have been in the range of 60% to 80%.

In addition to electricity savings, there are other benefits to the Ecogate® System. They include reduced noise, guaranteed air velocity at working drops, radically reduced startup current peak, corrected power factor (0.98 - 0.99), reduced wear & tear of fan motor and belt drive. Also, saved electricity will never have to have been produced in the first place, resulting in CO2 emissions reduction and waste reduction, which is called pollution offset. This fact enhances corporate image. For example, the three ECOGATE® MASTER systems installed at Autumn Milling factories (which won the 2002 ENERGY STAR Award) saved more than 200,000 kWh, which, in addition to significant money savings, will prevent about 248,000 pounds of CO2 emissions per year.

Industrial Ventilation

Total installed power (mil. kW)	Total consumption (mil. kWh)	Total savings (mil. kWh)	CO2 gases saved (million pounds)
22.52	15,154	53,147	65,902

# of businesses	Installed power (MW)	Savings (MW)
94,731	22,519	14,637

Ecogate® has measured thousands of air-velocities in drops and hundreds of air-velocities in main ducts. Average air-velocity from thousand of measurements in the drops is much lower than the recommended 4500-5000 FPM. Saw dust is known to cause cancer (as published in the Tenth Report on Carcinogens by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services), and, according to the Industrial Ventilation Manual (published by American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists), air-velocities below 4,000 FPM are not high enough to capture all the sawdust generated by workstations.

Incentive programs for installing energy efficient technology are available through government agencies and power utility companies in the U.S. and other countries. The incentive programs can cover up to 50% of the system cost. For example, companies that save energy with the ECOGATE® system can receive fixed-price incentives (for example, 8.0 cents/kWh saved) for measurable energy savings achieved in the territory of Southern California EDISON, the primary utility in Southern California. Other incentive programs are available from utilities in 20 states.

The Ecogate® System represents an opportunity for industrial ventilation companies to offer an upgrade to all of their existing customers and enable maximum savings based upon Ecogate's® new technology. For more information, visit www.ecogate.com or e-mail to info@ecogate.com. Literature:

1. The United States 2002 review, International Energy Agency, 9 Rue de la Federation, 75739 Paris, France
2. The Energy Factor, Energy User News, September 2002, Special report for senior executives
3. Energy Star Article: Finding the money for energy efficient projects, published in Energy User News
4. US Census data 1999
5. Industrial Ventilation, A Manual of Recommended Practice, 24th Edition, published by American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists
6. Tenth Report on Carcinogens by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
7. Ecogate® Q&A for industrial designers

ANSI Standards Available
The ANSI O1.1 1992 (R 2002) Standard is available for sale on the ANSI website at www.webstore.ansi.org. Type "O1.1" in the search field and you will be directed to the Woodworking Machinery Safety Requirements. The most revised edition will be available shortly…

Association News

Let Down Your Spam-Guard for WMMA®

As you know, WMMA® sends most of its communications electronically to members. However, we have been struggling to keep up on bounce backs as more and more companies take advantage of software to cut down on spam. We have found that these software programs are blocking important messages from your association. This is creating a real problem in communicating with our members, YOU!

In order for WMMA® to communicate with you and your company, we ask that you please inform your IT Department and/or Network or Systems Administrator that we would appreciate it if they would please add our domain [wmma@fernley.com] to their "WHITE LIST" so that we are not automatically blocked from getting through.

Please help us to keep you abreast of the latest happenings in WMMA®. Thank you so much for your cooperation. If you have further questions, please contact us.