digifabshop A Letter From John I left off last time in 2007. Seven years ago now. In our first dedicated shop of 1600 square feet. In addition to the fabrication projects we had going on, and learning how to incorporate a business, learning about insurance, and learning about taxes and such, our biggest all night, night after night, endeavor was the design and development of our first website. We were so excited about the details in the objects we were making, and about the materials themselves, so that became the focus. We didn’t say anything about ourselves on the site at all; instead we just crammed in as many images as we possibly could, and we tried to make it look fun and unique and organized and user friendly. You might see how that idea has carried on to even the current version of the site today. Meanwhile, machine wise, our vision was always to combine the capabilities of our CNC router with a laser cutter, and so once we began to grapple with all of our new overhead, we quickly
became obsessed with how we could acquire one of those. Again, we somehow got our bank to back us on a loan (still surprised that they did), but this time it came with a seemingly impossible condition. Though we’d be able to spread the payments out over time, we did have to come up with a massive down payment, and we just didn’t know how that would ever be possible. As time passed we were preparing ourselves for the letdown of not being able to make the deal happen, but, with one week remaining on the offer, we got a random call back from one of those postcards we’d sent out. We were offered a fast track CNC project, the budget just happened to be the exact amount we needed, and we had just that same week to get it done. The trick; we didn’t know how to use the specific software that was required, we’d never done what we needed to be able to get the CNC to do, we didn’t have the ability to prepare the material blanks ourselves, there was no extra, and so we couldn’t possibly make a mistake. Crazily, we got the laser…
Employee of The Month
DISPATCH MARCH
003 2015
Digifabshop's employee of the month for February is Erik Febus. In Erik's nominations, his co-workers have mentioned that Erik really works hard on our projects, and that he has stepped up to be responsible to check that the quality of finished Chipotle work is topnotch. He also has been assisting in the training of new members of the department to help shape them into productive members of the team. His co-workers say that Erik is a great person to work with, he is here on time every day, and he's always got a positive attitude.
In The Works
Since Erik has been at Digifabshop, he has proven himself to be able to keep his consistency and quality of work on a high level. He has learned many skills which he applies to his duties daily, while being eager to learn new skills, like his recent training on the Makor. He also takes the initiative during down time to get things done, such as organizing the shop floor tool cabinet or helping out wherever he can.
01 — LIQUID PLANNER
Erik has expressed the desire to continue to learn and grow within Digifabshop. We appreciate his commitment to the company, his team, and his work, and we look forward to a long and prosperous future working together. Thanks for all you do, Erik
NSEA Building Energy Show
Last Monday we went live with our new scheduling software, Liquid Planner. For the first time in Digifab's history we will be able to collect, share and analyze data through LP's robust "Reports" and "Dashboards" features. 02 — ECOVATIVE COLLABORATION
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT
Last fall, we completed three full interior fit-outs for CAVA Mezze Grill. Now, with a total of 8 locations in DC, Maryland and Virginia, we are gearing up to begin fabrication on their first west coast venture in Fairfax, Los Angeles. This up-and-coming fast-casual restaurant has its roots in a successful Greek-style tapas restaurant founded in 2006 by three childhood friends: Ike Grigoropoulis, Ted Xenochristos, and Chef Dimitri Moshovitis. While their commitment to simple, clean and delicious food is creating quite a buzz in the quick-service food industry, it is their commitment to beautiful and sustainable interiors that really gets us excited. Their first eight locations featured clear matte powder coated steel frames with FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified walnut tops and we are currently exploring a range of alternative wood species to distinguish new stores.
DISPATCH 003: MARCH 2015
This upcoming week we will be working on (what we hope to be) one of our first of many collaborations with a Troy, NY startup called Ecovative. We will be laminating 24 tables that combine Ecovative's mycelium-based insulation product with oil-finished Valchromat™ tops. Check them out as they are featured at Chef Dan Barber's food waste pop-up restaurant in NYC set to open up late next week!
This years Northeast Sustainable Energy Association conference featured a number of companies tackling the net-zero home's greatest hurdle: the window. We discussed production techniques and logistics with with some of the industry's finest and left with a valuable new insight.
JIM KIDD ERIK FEBUS
MAR 24TH MAR 31ST
We especially enjoyed our conversation with Todd and Alan at Menck Windows out of Chicopee, MA. Their product line (seen above) features a number of distinguished hardwood window profiles that take advantage of wood's natural insulative properties. Their highly engineered products are surpassing industry standards and their wood profiles are outright beautiful!
NEIL T. ALLEN DARRELL BOLDEN
MAR 1ST MAR 19TH
www.Menckwindows.com
One Year Anniversaries
Birthdays
DISPATCH 003: MARCH 2015
Keeping in line with our ongoing discussion about creative ways to divert our waste products from the landfill, we were particularly interested in Gutex™ Ultratherm Rigid Insulation. This lap-jointed, structurally-stable insulation featured at FourSevenFive's booth is primarily used as a roofing substrate and provides additional thermal insulation where there typically is none. What we liked most about this material is that it consists of 94.5% wood fiber and is pressed with only 4% natural parabins as a binding agent. This means it is biologically safe to work with and ensures an environmentally clean living environment.
www.FourSevenFive.com
We were really excited to run into our friends at Ecosupply who were showcasing a series of new sustainable products alongside an old favorite of ours: Richlite™! The sample shown above is a 6" thick block of Expanded Cork straight from the Cork Oak forest in Portugal. This material can be used both directly from the tree and can be pressed into larger dimensions without the addition of a binding agent. Expanded cork is a great alternative to styrofoam and many other man-made insulation products because of its high temperature transmittal delay and can easily be machined into a wide range of shapes and sizes. Look out for samples of this functional and attractive product around the shop in the upcoming months. www.ecosupplycenter.com